CMT Music Awards 2015 winners and highlights
The CMT Music Awards should be renamed the Carrie Music Television Awards.
Carrie Underwood cleaned house at the country awards show Wednesday with three wins, including video of the year for "Something In the Water," and she even gave a shout-out to her 3-month-old son.
"This is my first awards show since little Isaiah has been in the world," said Underwood, who gave birth in late February and sported a skin-tight white dress. "I'm sure he's napping on the bus right now, but I should definitely say that he has already inspired me so much as well as has my husband, Mike."
The show in Nashville, Tennessee, marked Underwood's fourth consecutive victory for video of the year.
The 32-year-old songstress, who also performed, is the most decorated CMT Award winner with 13 awards, including six for video of the year. She walked into the Bridgestone Arena with five nominations - she was the leader - and also won female video of the year for "Something In the Water" and collaborative video of the year for "Somethin' Bad" with Miranda Lambert. She earned two nominations for both video of the year and female video of the year.
While country stars, from Luke Bryan to Florida Georgia Line, dominated the awards show, a video skit about rushing to the CMT Awards starred Arnold Schwarzenegger, Alan Jackson, Steven Tyler, Rick Springfield, Tom Arnold and Justin Bieber, who said he loved Bryan in the clip.
"Yeah, Bieber loves me," Bryan said onstage when he won male video of the year for "Play It Again."
Bryan was just one of the many performers, and he worked the crowd when he sang "Kick the Dust Up," the first single from his hotly anticipated new album, "Kill the Lights," due out Aug. 7.
Lady Antebellum kicked off the CMT Music Awards with the help of Grammy-winning DJ-producer Zedd. The venue was full of hands pumping in the air, explosive blasts and beaming lights as Zedd - known for the hits "Clarity" and "Break Free" with Ariana Grande - played piano and backed the country trio, who performed Zedd's "Beautiful Now" in between their own song, "Long Stretch of Love."
Lady A later won group video of the year.
"We also want to thank the beautiful, amazing Kate Upton and Tony Hale for being a part of this video," Hillary Scot said of the actors, who appeared in the clip for "Bartender."
Jason Aldean and Bob Seger won CMT performance of the year for their performance of "Turn the Page" from their "CMT Crossroads" special.
"This is really cool `cause this was a song that I played in the clubs for years and to get a chance to perform this with (Bob) onstage, I mean this was a dream come true for me," Aldean said.
Florida Georgia Line, who performed outside, won duo video of the year for "Dirt," while Sam Hunt, who scored two No. 1 hits on the Billboard Hot Country Songs chart with "Take Your Time" and "Leave the Night On," won breakthrough video of the year for the latter.
Hunt also hit the stage, and other performers included Reba McEntire, Eric Church, Kenny Chesney, Darius Rucker and Keith Urban, whose wife, Nicole Kidman, sang along as he strummed his guitar. Jake Owen started his colorful, summery performance of "Real Life" on top of an airbed that surfed above the crowd.
Schwarzenegger, NFL player J. J. Watt, Billy Ray Cyrus, David Spade, Norman Reedus from "The Walking Dead," Hunter Hayes and Rumer Willis, who recently won "Dancing With the Stars," were among the presenters at the show, hosted by Erin Andrews and Britney Snow.
Underwood's win for video of the year beat Dierks Bentley's "Drunk on a Plane," Florida Georgia Line's "Dirt," Aldean's "Burnin' It Down" and Bryan's "Play It Again."
List of winners:
Video of the Year: Carrie Underwood, "Something in the Water"
Male Video of the Year: Luke Bryan, "Play It Again"
Female Video of the Year: Carrie Underwood, "Something in the Water"
Group Video of the Year: Lady Antebellum, "Bartender"
Duo Video of the Year: Florida Georgia Line, "Dirt"
Breakthrough Video of the Year: Sam Hunt, "Leave The Night On"
Collaborative Video of the Year: Miranda Lambert and Carrie Underwood, "Something Bad"
CMT Performance of the Year: Bob Seger and Jason Aldean, "Turn the Page" from "CMT Crossroads"