Dolly Parton and Reba McEntire Replace Brad Paisley as Host of the CMA Awards

It has just been announced that country music legends Dolly Parton and Reba McEntire will be taking Brad Paisley’s place hosting the Country Music Awards (CMAs) alongside Carrie Underwood.

Fox News reported that the CMAs said they will celebrate “legendary women in Country Music throughout the ceremony.”

“It’s an incredible honor to welcome Carrie, Reba and Dolly to the CMA Awards stage this year,” Sarah Trahern, CMA Chief Executive Officer wrote on the organization’s website. “In addition to awarding the year’s best and brightest in the genre, ‘The 53rd Annual CMA Awards’ will celebrate the legacy of women within Country Music, and we couldn’t think of a more dynamic group of women to host the show.”

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While Paisley has not publicly revealed why he isn’t hosting, he made it clear that he is excited for the new hosts.

“As a fan of all 3 of these amazing women, I can’t wait to watch,” he tweeted.

Underwood also expressed her excitement at getting to host with the two legends.

“So thankful to the #CMA for wanting to honor the women of Country Music for this year’s #CMAAwards! I couldn’t be more excited to get to stand up there with 2 of my personal heroes… @reba and @DollyParton are trailblazers, icons,” Underwood wrote on Twitter.

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CNN reported that the ratings for the awards show took a dive last year, and it’s been speculated that the CMAs wanted to switch things up. There will also be a new director, Alex Rudzinski, an MTV Video Music Awards veteran who also directed the recent live productions of “Rent” and “Hairspray.” This will be the first time in eleven years that Paisley has not hosted. While he will certainly be missed, it will be fun to change things up with Parton and McEntire at the wheel!