Jelly Roll reigns among first-time winners at the CMT Music Awards
By Lisa Respers France, CNN
Sunday was a big night for first-time nominees at the 2023 CMT Music Awards.
They dominated the event with singer Jelly Roll taking home three awards, followed by Lainey Wilson with two, and Hardy, Megan Moroney and Katelyn Brown tying with one each.
The live show was held at the Moody Center in Austin, Texas, co-hosted by country performers Kane Brown and Kelsea Ballerini.
Tattooed singer/songwriter/rapper Jelly Roll won male video of the year, male breakthrough video of the year and digital-first performance of the year for his single, “Son of a Sinner.”
“You can be whatever you want to be, I promise you that,” he said during one of his acceptance speeches. “I told them that I wanted to be a country singer and I am standing here at the CMT Awards with the male video of the year, baby!”
Jelly Roll, who roused the award show’s audience with his performance of “Need A Favor,” has had great success with “Son of a Sinner.”
It helped him stay on Billboard’s Emerging Artist Chart for a record-breaking 25 consecutive weeks, ultimately breaking the record of most weeks spent by an artist at No. 1.
In February, Jelly Roll announced his 44-city “Backroad Baptism” arena tour.
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