Chris Stapleton, Carrie Underwood and More Named 2016 CMT Artists of the Year
Luke Bryan, Florida Georgia Line, Thomas Rhett, Chris Stapleton and Carrie Underwood have been named CMT's 2016 Artists of the Year and will be honored at a ceremony in Nashville in late October.
CMT announced its 2016 Artists of the Year on Tuesday (Sept. 13). Rhett and Stapleton are first-time recipients of CMT's Artist of the Year honor, though Stapleton received the Breakout Award in 2015; Bryan, meanwhile, has been awarded Artist of the Year five consecutive years (2012-2016), tying him with Jason Aldean for the most Artist of the Year honors, while FGL have received the award four times (2013-2016) and Underwood has earned it three times (2010, 2012, 2016).
In addition to the five Artist of the Year honorees, CMT will also recognize Kelsea Ballerini with the Breakout Artist of the Year award. The rising star recently made history with her third single, "Peter Pan": She's the first female artist (including duos and groups) in country music history to hit No. 1 with her first three consecutive singles from a debut album, as well as the first solo female artist in history to top both the Country Airplay and Hot Country Singles chart simultaneously.
The 2016 CMT Artists of the Year ceremony will take place at Music City's Schermerhorn Symphony Center on Oct. 20 at 9PM ET. Additional awards recipients, performers and special guests will be revealed in the coming weeks. Previous Artist of the Year honorees include Kenny Chesney, Little Big Town, Taylor Swift and more.
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