3/6/2008 Staff Over 2 million Country Music fans cast their votes to determine the nominees for the 2008 CMT Music Awards, surpassing all previous numbers for the event. The awards show is the only one of its kind that allows fans to completely determine who the night's winners will be. The leading nominees are Brad Paisley and Sugarland, who received a total of 11 nominations each in the thirteen categories of awards, ranging from Entertainer of the Year to Performance of the Year. Other multiple-award nominees, with 3 each, include the Carrie Underwood, Kellie Pickler, Kenny Chesney, LeAnn Rimes, Rascal Flatts, Taylor Swift, and Trace Adkins. Billy Ray Cyrus, along with daughter Miley (who moonlights as alter ego, Hannah Montana), will host the awards, held at Nashville's Curb Event Center at Belmont University. Father Cyrus receives his first CMT Music Award nomination, in the category of Tearjerker Video of the Year for his song "Ready, Set, Don't Go".
CMT award show performances will include Alan Jackson, Brad Paisley, Carrie Underwood, Sugarland, Taylor Swift, and Toby Keith, as well as Billy Ray and Miley. Additional performances are to be announced.
Executive Vice President and General Manager of CMT, Brian Phillips, commented on the number of votes all of the artists received, saying that it makes "the awards more competitive than ever", adding that between the performances of the top two nominees and the addition of new categories, "this year's show promises to be a night full of surprises." Voting is now open at CMT.com to determine who the actual winners will be when the show airs Monday, April 14th at 8 PM ET. The voting will close three days before the awards, on April 11th. At the top of the show, the final nominees for Video of the Year will be announced, so that throughout the show, fans can cast their votes both online and via mobile phone to determine the night's big winner. Fans can visit CMT.com to view streaming clips of nominated videos.
Final nominees for the 2008 CMT MUSIC AWARDS include:
VIDEO OF THE YEAR
(awarded to artist, video director)
Video |
Artist |
Director |
“Online” |
Brad Paisley |
Jason Alexander |
“Wasted” |
Carrie Underwood |
Roman White |
“Don’t Blink” |
Kenny Chesney |
Shaun Silva |
“Nothin’ Better To Do” |
LeAnn Rimes |
David McClister, LeAnn Rimes |
“Take Me There” |
Rascal Flatts |
Shaun Silva |
“Because of You” |
Reba McEntire & Kelly Clarkson |
Roman White |
“Stay” |
Sugarland |
Shaun Silva |
“Our Song” |
Taylor Swift |
Trey Fanjoy |
MALE VIDEO OF THE YEAR
(awarded to artist)
Video |
Artist |
“Online” |
Brad Paisley |
“I Told You So” |
Keith Urban |
“Don’t Blink” |
Kenny Chesney |
“Don’t Blink” |
Toby Keith |
“I Got My Game On” |
Trace Adkins |
FEMALE VIDEO OF THE YEAR
(awarded to artist)
Video |
Artist |
“So Small” |
Carrie Underwood |
“Nothin’ Better to Do” |
LeAnn Rimes |
“Anyway” |
Martina McBride |
“Famous in a Small Town” |
Miranda Lambert |
“Our Song” |
Taylor Swift |
GROUP VIDEO OF THE YEAR
(awarded to artists)
Video |
Artist |
“(You Want To) Make a Memory” |
Bon Jovi |
“A Little More You” |
Little Big Town |
“Stand” |
Rascal Flatts |
“Take Me There” |
Rascal Flatts |
DUO VIDEO OF THE YEAR
(awarded to artists)
Video |
Artist |
“Lost in this Moment” |
Big & Rich |
“Proud of the House We Built” |
Brooks & Dunn |
“What Do Ya Think About That” |
Montgomery Gentry |
“Stay” |
Sugarland |
USA WEEKEND BREAKTHROUGH VIDEO OF THE YEAR
(best video from artist's major debut album; awarded to artists)
Video |
Artist |
“A Different World” |
Bucky Covington |
“Stealing Cinderella” |
Chuck Wicks |
“I Wonder” |
Kellie Pickler |
“All My Friends Say” |
Luke Bryan |
COLLABORATIVE VIDEO OF THE YEAR
(awarded to artist)
Video |
Artist |
“Till We Ain’t Strangers Anymore” |
Bon Jovi featuring LeAnn Rimes |
“Workin’ for a Livin’” |
Garth Brooks & Huey Lewis |
“Because of You” |
Reba McEntire & Kelly Clarkson |
“I Need You” |
Tim McGraw featuring Faith Hill |
PERFORMANCE OF THE YEAR
(musical performance on broadcast/major cable network tv; awarded to artist)
Video |
Artist |
TV Show (Network) |
“Free and Easy (Down the Road I Go)" |
Dierks Bentley |
A Capitol Fourth 2007 (PBS) |
“I Wonder” |
Kellie Pickler |
41st Annual CMA Awards (ABC) |
“Stay” |
Sugarland |
2007 CMT MUSIC AWARDS (CMT) |
“If You’re Reading This” |
Tim McGraw |
42nd Annual ACM Awards (CBS) |
SUPPORTING CHARACTER OF THE YEAR
(best supporting character enhancing video concept; awarded to the special guest)
Video |
Artist |
Supporting Character |
“So Small” |
Carrie Underwood |
Christian Kane |
“Online” |
Brad Paisley |
Jason Alexander |
“I Got My Game On” |
Trace Adkins |
Rodney Carrington |
“Teardrops On My Guitar” |
Taylor Swift |
Tyler Hilton |
WIDE OPEN COUNTRY VIDEO OF THE YEAR
(best video from non-mainstream country artist; awarded to artist)
Video |
Artist |
“Gone, Gone, Gone (Done Moved On)” |
Alison Krauss and Robert Plant |
“How Long” |
The Eagles |
“Measure of a Man” |
Jack Ingram |
“Gravedigger” |
Willie Nelson |
TEARJERKER VIDEO OF THE YEAR
(awarded to artist)
Video |
Artist |
“Ready, Set, Don’t Go” |
Billy Ray Cyrus |
“I Wonder” |
Kellie Pickler |
“Don’t Blink” |
Kenny Chesney |
“Stay” |
Sugarland |
COMEDY VIDEO OF THE YEAR
(awarded to artist)
Video |
Artist |
“The More I Drink” |
Blake Shelton |
“Online” |
Brad Paisley |
“High Maintenance Woman” |
Toby Keith |
“I Got My Game On” |
Trace Adkins |
VIDEO DIRECTOR OF THE YEAR
(awarded to director)
Director |
Eligible Videos |
Michael Salomon |
Toby Keith’s “High Maintenance Woman” Trace Adkins’ “I Got my Game On” |
Roman White |
Carrie Underwood’s “So Small” Reba McEntire and Kelly Clarkson’s “Because of You” |
Shaun Silva |
Kenny Chesney’s “Don’t Blink” Rascal Flatts’ “Stand” |
Trey Fanjoy |
Bucky Covington’s “A Different World” Taylor Swift’s “Our Song” |