Kate and Martha Take the CMT Awards

My mom and I love pop-country, so we made a road trip to Nashville this week for the CMT Music Awards, hosted by Billy Ray Cyrus and his daughter Hannah Montana. I mean Miley Cyrus. Mom and I compiled a list of highlights and lowlights from the event.

HIGHLIGHTS:

1. 18-year-old Taylor Swift, won the big buckle (buckle!) for Video of the Year, as well as Female Video of the Year, for her hit “Our Song.” (Fact: She wrote the song for her ninth-grade talent show.)

2. Sugarland won duo video of the year for their sloooow and saaaad song “Stay,” and Little Big Town and Jake Owen joined the band on stage for an awesome performance of “Life in a Northern Town.” (Fact: Jennifer Nettles looks like Kirsten Dunst.) Mom has a crush on Jake Owen. Dierks Bentley too, but that’s beside the point.

3. Alison Krauss and Robert Plant won Wide Open Country video of the year (from an artist outside the mainstream of country music) for “Gone, Gone, Gone (Done Moved On).” Robert Plant was actually there to accept the award! Even odder than a Led Zeppelin member at the CMT Awards was Snoop Dogg at the CMT Awards.

4. Lightofmylife Brad Paisley won Comedy Video of the Year for the (hopefully) tongue-in-cheek “Online,” featuring George Costanza from Seinfeld.

5. Husband and wife Tim McGraw and Faith Hill performed “I Need You.” They sat in stools facing each other and held hands. We nearly cried.

6. Carrie Underwood closed the show with her super-catchy, super-sweet new single “All American Girl.” How can you not love Carrie?

7. The side stage featured up-and-comers like Bucky Covington, Luke Bryan, Lady Antebellum and Ashton Shepherd.

LOWLIGHTS:

1. Rascal Flatts performed their ridiculous new single “Bob That Head,” confirming my belief that RF is in fact the worst band ever in the world ever. Ever!

2. Paula Abdul.

3. My girl Miranda Lambert didn’t win anything!

4. It was 30-something degrees outside.

5. Naomi Judd was wearing light pink lipstick with dark red lipliner and closed-toed support hose with open-toed shoes.

6. Hannah Montana’s voice isn’t as pretty as I expected. It’s kind of shrill.

7. Crystal Gayle still hasn’t cut her hair.

If I could redistribute the buckles, I’d probably give them all to Miranda Lambert, saving one for Nicole Kidman (pictured above with husband Keith Urban and a bun in the oven). I know she’s not a country-music star, but I think she could use a free belt buckle.

Thanks CMT!

--Kate (and Martha)