Sugarland and Sara Evans to Announce Final Nominees for the 2007 CMA Awards on ABC's "Good Morning America"

Sugarland and Sara Evans to Announce Final Nominees for the 2007 CMA Awards on ABC's "Good Morning America"

Montgomery Gentry and Taylor Swift Complete the Announcements on a Special Edition of "CMT Insider" live from Nashville Thursday Aug. 30

NASHVILLE, Tenn., Aug. 27 /PRNewswire/ -- You can't celebrate Country Music's Biggest Night(TM) until you experience Country Music's biggest morning with Sugarland.

Jennifer Nettles, Kristian Bush and Sara Evans will announce the final nominees in several categories for the 2007 CMA Awards live Thursday, Aug. 30, from the "Good Morning America" studios in the heart of New York City's Times Square on the ABC Television Network. The remaining categories will be announced live by Montgomery Gentry and Taylor Swift from the Sommet Center in Nashville on a special edition of CMT's "CMT Insider."

"The 41st Annual CMA Awards" will be broadcast live from the Sommet Center in Nashville Wednesday, Nov. 7 (8:00-11:00 PM ET/delayed PT) on ABC.

"We always have a great time on 'Good Morning America,' but what makes this appearance really special is that we are there to announce the nominees for the CMA Awards," said Nettles. "It's live so our friends on the road can find out the nominees at the same time we are reading them."

"Well, we may peek," quipped Bush.

Sugarland exploded onto the music scene in 2004 with multi-Platinum selling Twice The Speed Of Life, which gave birth to mega hits "Baby Girl" and "Something More." Their current album Enjoy the Ride has already sold more than a million copies and spawned two No. 1 hits "Want To" and "Settlin'." Their single "Everyday America" is "Good Morning America's" new theme song and their next single is the powerful ballad "Stay." Sugarland has previously toured with Brad Paisley and Brooks & Dunn and are currently on the road with Kenny Chesney, including a date Thursday night at Madison Square Garden.

The announcements on "Good Morning America" with Sugarland and Evans will take place in the 8:30 AM portion of the ABC news program (all time zones).

Broadcasting live from Nashville, CMT's Katie Cook and Lance Smith will present exclusive coverage of the remaining 2007 CMA Awards nominee announcements with Montgomery Gentry and Swift in a special half-hour edition of "CMT Insider," premiering Thursday, Aug. 30 (10:00 AM/ET; 9:00 AM/CT) on CMT.

The special will re-air on CMT immediately following the live broadcast at 10:30 AM/ET; and again at 1:00 PM/ET; and on Friday, Aug. 31 at 8:00 AM/ET and 1:30 PM/ET; and Saturday, Sept. 1 at 10:30 AM/ET. Footage from the nomination special will also be available immediately following the telecast on CMT's broadband channel, CMT LOADED at CMT.com.

In addition to the nominee announcements, Montgomery Gentry and Swift will announce the finalists for the 2007 CMA Broadcast Personality and Radio Station of the Year in four categories (small, medium, large and major markets) as well as the finalists for the CMA National Broadcast Personality of the Year.

The audio announcement of the CMA Awards nominees and Broadcast Awards finalists will be available via StarGuide from CMA's official radio partner Premiere Radio Networks. As part of their comprehensive 2007 CMA Awards radio package, Premiere Radio Networks will offer coverage of the nominee announcements, a preview special, Red Carpet features, a live feed of the Awards gala and a backstage wrap up show. Any Country radio station interested in receiving the radio package, including the nominations feed, may contact Premiere Affiliate Relations at (818) 377-5300.

The 2006 CMA Awards, held in Nashville during November Sweeps (Nov. 6), ranked in the Top 5 with the Academy Awards, the Golden Globes, Grammy Awards and Emmy's during the 2006-2007 season for awards shows among total viewers. With "The 40th Annual CMA Awards," ABC won Monday evening in both total viewers (16.0 million) and adults 18-49 (5.4/13). According to Nielsen, research estimates that more than 30 million viewers watched all of part of the ceremony.

The CMA Awards nominees and winners are determined by the 6,000 industry professional members of CMA, which was the first trade organization formed to promote an individual genre of music in 1958. The first "CMA Awards Banquet and Show" was held in 1967. The following year, the CMA Awards were broadcast on NBC television for the first time -- making it the longest running, annual music awards program on network television. The show aired on NBC through 1971 and on the CBS Television Network from 1972 through 2005.

"The 41st Annual CMA Awards" is a production of the Country Music Association. Walter C. Miller is the Executive Producer, Robert Deaton is the Producer. Paul Miller is the Director. The special will be shot in high definition and broadcast in 720 Progressive (720P), ABC's selected HDTV format, with 5.1 channel surround sound.

ABC News' "Good Morning America" is anchored by Diane Sawyer and Robin Roberts. Chris Cuomo is the news anchor and Sam Champion is the weather anchor. The morning news program airs live from 7:00-9:00 AM/EDT, Monday through Friday, on the ABC Television Network. Jim Murphy is the senior executive producer and Tom Cibrowski is the executive producer of ABC News' "Good Morning America."

CMT's weekly entertainment series CMT INSIDER, hosted by Katie Cook, gives viewers their fix of Country Music news plus broader topics from the entertainment world, including the latest in movies, music, fashion and sports. CMT INSIDER premieres every Saturday at 2:00 PM ET/PT on CMT. Lewis Bogach serves as Executive Producer.

Premiere Radio Networks is the official radio packager of the CMA Awards, including a stereo-radio simulcast of the gala event. American Airlines is the official airline of the 2007 CMA Awards. Chevy: The Official Ride of Country Music. Mary Kay(R) is the Official Beauty Sponsor. Additional promotional partners include Crisco(R), Gibson Guitar(R), and Greased Lightning(R) Cleaning Products.

For information, visit www.CMApress.com for CMA Awards history, photos, press releases and logos. On-line media credentialing for the CMA Awards begins Aug. 30. This is a protected site for the media only with restrictions on use.

Source: Country Music Association

CONTACT: Wendy Pearl, +1-615-244-2840, or Scott Stem, +1-615-244-2840,
both of Country Music Association; or Denise Carberry of PFA/NY,
+1-212-334-6116; or Mozell Miley of ABC/NY, +1-212-456-6444; or Bridgette
Maney of GMA, +1-212-456-5902; or Lisa Chader of CMT, +1-615-335-8405

Web site:

http://www.cmaworld.com/
http://www.cmapress.com/
http://www.cmt.com/

-------
Profile: intent