13 rising artists named to year-long campaign

NASHVILLE -- (December 14, 2021) -- Today, CMT revealed its newest lineup of rising artists to watch in its highly-anticipated 2022 CMT LISTEN UP campaign, which recognizes and supports country music’s most promising newcomers across CMT platforms. The year-long initiative is committed to raising support for these artists via full cross-brand support for their music and videos across CMT and CMT Music, CMT Hot 20 Countdown, CMT.com and @CMT social platforms, in additional to opportunities across other MTV Entertainment Group brands with live events, the ViacomCBS Times Square NYC Billboard and more.

“Our Class of 2022 class truly represents what the future of country music looks like - wildly talented, diverse newcomers who are all positively impacting our genre with their own very unique style,” shared Leslie Fram, SVP of Music & Talent at CMT. “We can’t wait to work with this exciting group of rising artists across CMT’s many initiatives, including Equal Play, while continuing to introduce their music to audiences at CMT and beyond.”

The following 13 artists join CMT’s prestigious 2022 LISTEN UP roster:

• BRELAND
• Brittney Spencer
• Elvie Shane
• Frank Ray
• Jaime Wyatt
• Kat & Alex
• Lily Rose
• Morgan Wade
• Sam Williams
• Shy Carter
• Tiera
• Walker Hayes
• Yola

Since 2011, CMT’s LISTEN UP franchise has introduced new talent to the brand’s passionate fan base and has helped launch the careers of many country sensations. Some notable alumni of the franchise include: Ashley McBryde, Blanco Brown, Brett Eldredge, Carly Pearce, Dan + Shay, Gabby Barrett, Ingrid Andress, Jimmie Allen, Jon Pardi, Kacey Musgraves, Kelsea Ballerini, Luke Combs, Maren Morris and Thomas Rhett, among others.

For updates and more information, visit CMT.com, follow @CMT on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, YouTube and TikTokand use #CMTListenUP to join the conversation.

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About CMT:

CMT is the leading authority on country music and lifestyle, offering a mix of original series, music events and specials. CMT is everywhere its fans are, including two cable channels (CMT and CMT, the 24-hour music channel), digital (CMT.com) and social (@CMT on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, YouTube and TikTok). CMT is a unit of ViacomCBS Inc. (Nasdaq: VIACA, VIAC) (“ViacomCBS”). For more information, please visit cmtpress.com.

Press Contacts:

Ali Marszalkowski, Ali.Marszalkowski@viacomcbs.com

Lisa Chader, Lisa.Chader@thechangeagentcy.com