CMT Awards Remain Best in Show and a Top Advertiser Showcase

That may strike some as an exaggeration and it probably wonamp8217t hold up for anyone who doesnamp8217t have at least a remote interest in what country music has become in this millennium To be blunt Itamp8217s the new pop and maybe the new rock but in most cases it is also true to its roots The messages of todayamp8217s country songs are the same as those of the genreamp8217s glorious and more focused past Itamp8217s the packaging and presentation that has changed making the country sound as powerful a force as any other music in contemporary popular cultureThis is always reflected in the entertainment that the CMT Awards telecast offers Need proof Just look at the eclectic mix of performers who scramble every year to be included in CMTamp8217s big show amp8211 an event which I might add gets bigger every year but never seems to move beyond the reach of country musicamp8217s burgeoning fan base Fans remain a huge part of the program inside Nashvilleamp8217s cavernous Bridgestone Arena or whatever space it is taking place in and in recent years at an outdoor stage on Lower Broadway in my opinion one of the most exciting streets in the country As big as the big show gets it never loses the intimate feel of its early years Thatamp8217s a remarkable accomplishment in this era of outsized everything when bigger is not always betterI attended the CMT Awards for MediaVillage in 2005 06 07 and 08 During that time Carrie Underwood pictured at top who was fresh off her win on amp8220American Idolamp8221 won many a Buckleamp160thatamp8217s what the CMT Award is known as and generally stole the show whenever she performed as did two other amp8220newcomersamp8221 back then Taylor Swift and Miranda Lambert It was particularly exciting to see Underwood emerge as the mosthonored performer at last nightamp8217s show ten years after she began dominating these awardsThe list of celebrities not necessarily associated with country music who made appearances either live or on tape during this yearamp8217s CMT Awards includesamp160Justin Bieber Arnold Schwarzenegger David Spade promoting his upcoming amp8220Joe Dirtamp8221 sequel a movie made by Crackle Steven Tyler amp8220Dancing with the Starsamp8221 winner Rumer Willis and breakout performer Noah Galloway amp8220American Idolamp8221 winner Nick Fradiani 2012 amp8220The Voiceamp8221 winner Cassadee Pope Nicole Kidman lending support as always to husband Keith Urban Chris Carmack and Charles Esten of ABCamp8217s amp8220Nashvilleamp8221 CBSamp8217 amp8220Late Late Showamp8221 host Jim Corden and Rick Springfield hilarious in a bit that found him singing amp8220Jessieamp8217s Girlamp8221 to an appreciative Schwarzenegger onamp160a largely empty Nashville sidewalkTalent of that caliber doesnamp8217t turn out for any event unless said event is deemed important and worthwhile and in the case of these awards irresistible fun for allCountryamp8217s power players were also out in force including Keith Urban Kenny Chesney Florida Georgia Line Reba McEntire Eric Church Jason Aldean Zac Brown Band Luke Bryan Jake Owen Darius Rucker Sam Hunt and Lady Antebellum So were the smart advertisers who embrace this event every year especially Nationwide which for the eighth consecutive year sponsored the strikingly effective Nationwide Stage Thatamp8217s a small platform in the massive arena on which up and coming country stars play for a minute or so leading into commercial breaks A shot at the Nationwide Stage has become one of the most coveted opportunities for newcomers in country musicAdvertiser ubiquity is nothing new in award shows but it always seems to be something special at the CMT Awards Sponsorship of the performances on the Lower Broadway stage is key amp8211 last year it was all about Pepsi and Blake Shelton this year it was Kia and Kenny ChesneyAnd then there was heavily sponsorconnected newcomer Chris Janson who seems to have one of the smartest marketing teams in the business today First he appeared on the Nationwide Stage singing his iTunes hit amp8220Buy Me a Boatamp8221 Rolling Stone recently published an interesting story about this song which you can read here As the commercial break approached viewers were urged in voiceover to download the CMT app and amp8220watch the exclusive premierequot of quotBuy Me a Boatamp8221Meanwhile over on Twitteramp160Janson was busy telling his tweeps to Shazam the PepsiDollar General commercial he appears in that ran during the telecast to watch the video for amp8220Buy Me a Boatamp8221Andamp160Pepsi was promoting Janson throughout the showI donamp8217t consider myself an ultimate authority on country music but after last night Iamp8217d be willing to wager that Janson will be a major star of the genre by this time next year and will have a formal performance all his own during the 2016 CMT Awards If weamp8217re lucky maybe heamp8217ll play at the networkamp8217s annual Upfront miniconcert too unless Jake Owen agrees to bring his crazy quotReal Lifequot beach party from last night39s show to NYC in which case Janson will have to waitThe opinions and points of view expressed in this commentary are exclusively the views of the author and do not necessarily represent the views of MediaVillage management or associated bloggers

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CMT Awards Remain Best in Show and a Top Advertiser Showcase

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CMT Awards Remain Best in Show and a Top Advertiser Showcase

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