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Tom’s Guide

Technology

Adam Marshall

How to watch Country Music Awards 2023: 57th CMAs channel, start time, performers, nominees

Lainey Wilson United States Luke Combs Jordan Davis Luke Bryan CMAs (Event) Country Music Awards Ashley McBryde Chris Stapleton CMA Awards

Headshot of country singer Lainey Wilson, sporting blonde tousled hair and a western-style hat, ahead of the annual Country Music Association Awards 2023.

The annual Country Music Association Awards return to Music City this Wednesday night to celebrate the biggest and best country music stars for the 57th time. The show is set to be jam-packed full of awards, performances and more rhinestones than you can shake a fiddle stick at. In this article we'll explain how to watch the 2023 CMA Awards live, including from anywhere with a VPN.

2023 CMA Awards live stream: How to watch online

The 2023 Country Music Association Awards are broadcast at 8/7c on Wednesday, November 8.
• U.S. — ABC via Sling/Fubo
• Canada — CTV
• Australia — Stan
• Watch anywhere — Try ExpressVPN 100% risk free

Luke Bryan and Peyton Manning are returning as your gracious hosts at a glitzy ceremony held at the Bridgestone Arena in Nashville, Tennessee — the very heartland of country music in the U.S.

Having picked up two gongs last year, Lainey Wilson is the most nominated artist at this year's CMA Awards. Her album Bell Bottom Country was among the most critically acclaimed country albums of 2023 (it already picked up Album of the Year at the ACM Awards). The daughter of Beach Boy Brian Wilson, Lainey has nine nominations in total, including best Female Vocalist and two each in Single of the Year and Musical Event of the Year.

As well as the awards business, the list of performers set for Nashville is a veritable who's who of country stars. Host Luke Bryan will take the the stage himself, as well as Lainey Wilson, Jelly Roll (who has five nominations), Hardy, Luke Combs and many more — there's a full list of performers, presenters and nominees at the bottom of this article. Plus, Kenny Chesney, Mac McAnally, Alan Jackson and the Zac Brown Band will perform a tribute to the recently deceased country legend Jimmy Buffet.

Read on for details about how to watch this year's ceremony no matter where you are, by reading this guide to live stream the 2023 CMA Awards.

How to watch CMA Awards live streams from anywhere

If you've had to leave the country this week, you won't be able to watch ABC or other streaming services you pay for when overseas. However, with a virtual private network, or VPN, you can appear to be surfing the web from your home country and access the same streaming services you'd normally watch.

Not sure which VPN is right for you? We've tested many different services and our pick for the best VPN overall is ExpressVPN. It offers superb speeds and excellent customer service. But you've got other VPN options as well. Here are our top picks.

It's really ease to setup and use a VPN:

1. Install the VPN of your choice. Our in-depth testing puts ExpressVPN at the top of the charts.

2. Choose the location you wish to connect to in the VPN app. So if you're travelling outside the U.S. but want to watch your usual stream, simply select a server from the U.S.A. on the list.

3. Sit back and enjoy the action. Head to your streaming service or app and watch the CMA Awards like you would back at home.

How to watch CMA Awards live streams in the U.S.

The 2023 Country Music Association Awards will be shown on ABC at 8/7c on Wednesday, November 8.

There are several ways you can access ABC, the most obvious one being to pull it down with one of the best TV antennas.

Alternatively, ABC is among the channel line-ups of a good few of our picks for the best streaming services. That includes Sling TV, Fubo, YouTube TV and Hulu with Live TV.

Sling TV is the best value cable replacement of the lot from just $40/month, but ABC is only available for Sling Blue in select markets. So you may prefer Fubo for this one.

And if you're not that bothered about watching live, then it will be available to watch on Hulu from Thursday. Subscriptions start from $7.99/month or $79.99/year), with a 30-day free trial if you're a new Hulu customer. Or for even better value, you can get it as part of the Disney Plus Bundle from $14.99/month.

And remember, if you're usually based in the U.S. but aren't there at the moment, you can still watch the services you already subscribe to via a VPN such as ExpressVPN — meaning you can view CMA Awards live streams from anywhere in the world.

How to watch CMA Awards live stream in Canada

CTV has the rights to show the 2023 Country Music Association Awards in Canada.

That means cable subscribers will be able to watch the ceremony live at 8 p.m. ET / 5 p.m. PT on TV for free on CTV2, at CTV.ca and on the CTV mobile app — all on Wednesday, November 8.

Not in Canada at the moment? Signing up to ExpressVPN will help you access your streaming service while overseas.

How to watch Country Music Awards in the U.K.

Country music fans across the Atlantic will have to wait a week to watch the CMA Awards, and even then you'll only get highlights.

A one-hour highlights show will be shown on free-to-air BBC Four at 10:35 p.m. on Friday, November 17.

That also means it will be shown on the BBC's free streaming service — BBC iPlayer. It's totally FREE to view, provided you have a TV licence of course. And is available on pretty much any streaming device you can think of, including web browsers and through its smartphone app.

Based in the U.K. but outside the country when it's shown? You can watch BBC iPlayer from anywhere via one of the best VPN services.

How to watch CMA Awards live stream in Australia

If you're in Australia and have a subscription with streaming service Stan, then you're in luck — the ceremony will be broadcast live on the service at 12 p.m. AEDT on Thursday, November 9.

Stan plans start from only $10/month, but there's also a 30-day free trial available if you haven't used it before.

If you don't have Stan and aren't overly bothered about watching the ceremony live, then you could choose to wait until Saturday, November 18 when it will be shown on free-to-air Channel 9.

What are the CMA Awards?

The full name of the CMA Awards is the Country Music Association Awards. This year marks its 57th iteration, with the very first ceremony dating all the way back to 1967 — making it the longest running annual music awards program on network television.

The CMA Awards celebrate outstanding achievement in country music, with categories for best Album, Song, Vocalists, Group, Duo, Song, New Artist, Musician, Video and Event.

Brooks & Dunn and Vince Gill are the most decorated artists in CMA Award history, with 18 wins apiece. While George Strait's 83 overall nominations is the most for any artist.

2023 CMA Awards hosts

Duo Luke Bryan and Peyton Manning will host the CMA Awards for the second year running.

Luke Bryan is a multi CMA and CMT Award winning artist with a massively successful country music career dating back over a decade. The 47-year-old has sold more than 75 million records, including the 2013 hit Crash My Party. As well as hosting the CMAs, he has also been a judge on The Voice and American Idol.

Peyton Manning is better known for football than music. He had a hugely successful 18-year NFL career, playing quarterback for Indianapolis Colts and Denver Broncos. He's no stranger to awards, however, bagging two Super Bowl rings and five NFL MVP awards during his football career.

2023 CMA Awards nominees

Entertainer of the Year
Luke Combs
Chris Stapleton
Carrie Underwood
Morgan Wallen
Lainey Wilson

Album of the Year
Ashley McBryde Presents: Lindeville - Ashley McBryde
Bell Bottom Country - Lainey Wilson
Gettin' Old - Luke Combs
One Thing At A Time - Morgan Wallen
Rolling Up the Welcome Mat - Kelsea Ballerini

Female Vocalist of the Year
Kelsea Ballerini
Miranda Lambert
Ashley McBryde
Carly Pearce
Lainey Wilson

Male Vocalist of the Year
Luke Combs
Jelly Roll
Cody Johnson
Chris Stapleton
Morgan Wallen

Vocal Group of the Year
Lady A
Little Big Town
Midland
Old Dominion
Zac Brown Band

Vocal Duo of the Year
Brooks & Dunn
Brothers Osborne
Dan + Shay
Maddie & Tae
The War And Treaty

New Artist of the Year
Zach Bryan
Jelly Roll
Parker McCollum
Megan Moroney
Hailey Whitters

Single of the Year
“Fast Car” - Luke Combs
“Heart Like A Truck” - Lainey Wilson
“Need A Favor” - Jelly Roll
“Next Thing You Know” - Jordan Davis
“wait in the truck” - HARDY (feat. Lainey Wilson)

Song of the Year
“Fast Car” - Tracy Chapman
“Heart Like A Truck” - Trannie Anderson, Dallas Wilson, Lainey Wilson
“Next Thing You Know” - Jordan Davis, Greylan James, Chase McGill, Josh Osborne
“Tennessee Orange” - David Fanning, Paul Jenkins, Megan Moroney, Ben Williams
“wait in the truck” - Renee Blair, Michael Hardy, Hunter Phelps, Jordan Schmidt

Musical Event of the Year
“Save Me” - Jelly Roll (with Lainey Wilson
“She Had Me At Heads Carolina (Remix)” - Cole Swindell & Jo Dee Messina
“Thank God” - Kane Brown (with Katelyn Brown)
“wait in the truck” - HARDY (feat. Lainey Wilson)
“We Don't Fight Anymore” - Carly Pearce (featuring Chris Stapleton)

Music Video of the Year
“Light On In The Kitchen” - Ashley McBryde
“Memory Lane” - Old Dominion
“Need A Favor” - Jelly Roll
“Next Thing You Know” - Jordan Davis
“wait in the truck” - HARDY (feat. Lainey Wilson)

Musician of the Year
Jenee Fleenor
Paul Franklin
Rob McNelley
Derek Wells
Charlie Worsham