2012 CMT Music Awards

Toby Keith and actress Kristen Bell eventually took the stage to host the 2012 CMT Music Awards, but if you followed the opening moments of the show, you learned it wasn’t easy for them to get along. The two spent time campaigning to host the show themselves in a pre-taped video segment that featured cameos from President Obama, Mitt Romney, Bon Jovi, Willie Nelson, Mario Lopez and more.

Lady Antebellum both owned and opened the night at the 2012 CMT Music Awards by performing ‘We Owned the Night.’ After a verse and a chorus, the trio was quickly joined by those pop phenoms in Hot Chelle Rae. But the boys didn’t jump in on Lady A’s song, nor did Lady A cover the band’s smash ‘Tonight, Tonight.’ They did something entirely new, different and customized.

President Barack Obama and presumptive Republican presidential nominee Mitt Romney will appear at tonight’s 2012 CMT Music Awards. Each is part of a comedic pre-taped video that will open the show, much the way the President, John McCain and Hillary Clinton did in 2008.

Here’s another reason to tune into the 2012 CMT Music Awards tonight (June 6). Rascal Flatts with get supersized and perform with rock band Journey for the first time ever! That’s quite a shift from their previous collaborator Justin Bieber — with whom they remixed last year — but it’s equally as thrilling.

The 2012 CMT Music Awards are a collection of both superstars and hot, new country talent. This week, stars like Carrie Underwood and Eric Church have been rehearsing their performances, while newcomers like Kip Moore, Jana Kramer and the FARM look to take the stage for the very first time. Scroll through these photos of artists preparing for Wednesday’s (June 6) CMT broadcast.

Toss back those red solo cups, as Toby Keith has signed on to host the 2012 CMT Music Awards, which will air Wednesday, June 6 at 8PM ET on CMT and at CMT.com. The country superstar will be joined by actress Kristen Bell, who will co-host alongside him. We’re beyond excited to see how well Keith and Bell play off one another.

CMT unrolled the red carpet for their 2012 Music Awards nominations this morning, and it looks like Carrie Underwood is set to have quite the year, with a stunning total of five nominations. While Underwood is in the lead, tons of other country stars netted multiple nominations this year. Miranda Lambert is packing four — two for her solo work and two with first-time nominees Pistol Annies. Read M