Luke Bryan & Peyton Manning to Return as Co-Hosts of 2023 CMA Awards

Luke Bryan and Peyton Manning are set to co-host the 2023 CMA Awards, which will air live on ABC from Nashville’s Bridgestone Arena on Nov. 8. The country star and the former football great also fronted last year’s show.

Bryan and Manning are just the fourth hosting team to repeat as CMA Awards hosts. Mac Davis and Barbara Mandrell co-hosted three years running, 1980-82. Brooks & Dunn also co-hosted three years in a row, 2004-06. Brad Paisley and Carrie Underwood fronted the show 11 years in a row, 2008-18.

Before teaming up with Manning, Bryan was the solo host of the 2021 show.

While Bryan and Manning are a great pairing, they are not quite in the same league as the hard-to-top pair of country legends that co-hosted the recent ACM Awards: Garth Brooks and Dolly Parton.

The CMA Awards, which likes to call itself “Country Music’s Biggest Night” (and has trademarked that phrase), will air live Wednesday, Nov. 8, at 8 p.m. ET.

The CMA Awards have aired on ABC since 2006. The show has aired on all three legacy networks. It aired on NBC from 1968-71 and on CBS from 1972-2005.

Luke Combs, Cody Johnson and Lainey Wilson each won two awards at last year’s CMA Awards. Combs took entertainer of the year for the second year in a row and album of the year for the second time in three years. Johnson took single of the year and music video of the year, both for “Til You Can’t.” Wilson took female vocalist of the year and new artist of the year.

Viewership for the 56th annual CMA Awards grew to three-year highs in 2022, with 9.7 million total viewers and a 1.79 rating among adults 18-49, after seven days of viewing across linear and digital platforms. The show was the No. 1 most social TV program that evening and the No. 1 most social entertainment program season-to-date. The event earned 3.7 million total social interactions (+71% above 2021) and 5.3M video views (+119% over 2021). (All figures provided by the CMA; Source: Talkwalker SCR)

The first CMA Awards Banquet and Show was held in 1967. The following year, the CMA Awards was broadcast for the first time – making it the longest running annual music awards program on network television. The Grammys first aired as a live telecast in 1971. The ACM Awards first aired in 1972. The American Music Awards debuted in 1974.

ABC is also the network home of CMA’s two other television properties, CMA Fest and CMA Country Christmas.