Chris Willman Music WriterAfter taking a break last year from the show’s usual artist-honoring format to put a pre-recorded spotlight on pandemic heroes, “CMT Artists of the Year” will return to both a live broadcast and music celebrities being celebrated in its 2021 incarnation, set for Oct.
13.The five stars selected by the country music network for 2021 honors are Chris Stapleton, Gabby Barrett, Kane Brown, Kelsea Ballerini and Luke Combs.Of this year’s class, two — Combs and Brown — are holdovers from 2019, when CMT last presented its “Artists of the Year” in the traditional manner.
Ballerini was last feted in 2018, when the entire lineup was devoted to women artists. Stapleton had been part of the bill the year before that.
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