WASHINGTON: Singer-songwriter Kelsea Ballerini and actor Anthony Mackie have been tapped to lead the next country music awards ceremony.
As per Variety, Ballerini and Mackie will host the 2022 CMT Music Awards live from Nashville April 11, CBS announced on Thursday.
This year marks Ballerini's second time as CMT host after hosting the 2021 awards show. Last year, the singer co-hosted with fellow country star Kane Brown, who was then in his second year in the role.
Mackie, widely known for his roles in Marvel's 'Avengers' franchise, is a surprise choice to host a country music awards show, although he did present an award on last year's telecast.
Apart from announcing Mackie and Ballerini as this year's hosts, the networks said that nominations will be revealed on March 16, a little less than a month prior to the show's air date.
While the CMT Music Awards have mostly been hosted by country music figures in recent years, the show does have a long history of bringing in actors to share the gig.
Sarah Hyland co-hosted with Brown and Ashley McBryde in 2020; prior to that, Brittany Snow, Kristen Bell, Pamela Anderson, and Kathy Najimy had been drafted at various points.
Coming back to this year's CMT Music Awards, it was originally announced for April 3, but then another CBS show, the Grammys, took over that slot after being delayed from January, and the CMTs were bumped back eight days.
The telecast will be based at Nashville's Municipal Auditorium, with remote performances from other locations, after long having the much larger Bridgestone Arena as its home turf. No performers have yet been announced.