Kelsea Ballerini says CMT Music Awards will have a "through line of fun and celebration"

With the CMT Music Awards just days away, host and nominee Kelsea Ballerini is giving you a sneak peek at what you can expect from the three-hour show.

"Everyone should tune in because it's going to be great. You're going to see collaborations. You're going to see your favorite artists. You're probably going to discover a new artist that maybe you don't know yet. You're going to see some fashion moments. You're going to see big hair and sequins, and you're going to see me," she teases in a press interview.

Austin, Texas, will host the show for a second consecutive year, and it's a move Kelsea welcomes with open arms.

"I loved the show in Austin last year. I feel like it was just like a new breath of life into the CMT Awards. Austin is a city that celebrates the arts and specifically country music," she says. "To be able to move it to a city like that and have it there again, [which] has such a landscape for that — it just feels new. But it also feels, like, of course it's there."

So how do the CMT Music Awards differ from other award shows?

"There's just an element of celebration. And it's a little lighter and fun," Kelsea shares. "It's really fun. It's about the fans. It's about the music. You're seeing legends, you're seeing new artists, you're seeing everything in between. And there's just a through line of fun and celebration."

In addition to hosting, Kelsea will perform her newly released reimagined version of "Love Me Like You Mean It," which dropped Friday.

The 2024 CMT Music Awards air live from Austin, Texas, on Sunday, April 7, at 8 p.m. ET on CBS and Paramount+.

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