Country music superstars Kane Brown and Kelsea Ballerini will return as co-hosts of April’s CMT Music Awards for a third consecutive year, with Brown pulling double-duty for CBS that week on the network’s hit drama “Fire County” in his acting debut.
The CMT Music Awards will be held in Austin, Texas, as the city’s first major televised awards show, from the University of Texas’ Moody Center on Sunday, April 2, at 8 p.m. ET/PT.
In addition to co-hosting the award show, Brown will team up with wife Katelyn Brown for the broadcast world premiere of their multiweek No. 1 hit single, “Thank God.” The duet has over 210 million streams and cements the Browns as only the second married couple in country music history to earn a No. 1 on both Billboard and Aircheck charts.
“We couldn’t pick a more dynamic pair to helm our show’s first ever move to Austin in what is sure to be one of our most memorable yet – and can’t wait for him and Katelyn to together share the stage for what will be an unforgettable, world premiere performance,” said CMT Music Awards producers in a statement.
After co-hosting the CMT Awards, Kane Brown will make his acting debut on the new drama series “Fire Country,” on Friday, April 7, on CBS. The show will also be available to stream live and on demand on Paramount+.
Brown will play Robin, an enigmatic, modern-day train hopper who helps injured patients on the scene of a crash, according to the network. “A Robin Hood of sorts, he’s an outlaw on the run with a heart of gold,” CBS’ description said.
“Fire Country” stars Max Thieriot (“Seal Team”) as Bode Donovan, a young convict seeking redemption and a shortened prison sentence by joining a prison release firefighting program in Northern California, where he and other inmates are partnered with elite firefighters to extinguish massive, unpredictable wildfires across the region, according to the show’s logline.
“As soon as Kane stepped onto set it felt like he had been a part of the ‘Fire Country’ family from the beginning,” said Thieriot, who also co-created the hit firefighter drama. “I was really blown away by how natural and honest he is in each scene.”
CBS renewed “Fire Country” for a second season early last month ahead of its midseason return after it had been averaging 8 million viewers since its October premiere, which made it the top new broadcast series of the season.
