Florida Georgia Line, Kane Brown, Blanco Brown & Breland part of special
CMT has revealed Nelly will headline an upcoming installment of the iconic music series, CMT Crossroads. Joined by longtime friends and collaborators Florida Georgia Line, Kane Brown, Blanco Brown and Breland, CMT Crossroads: Nelly & Friends will premiere Wednesday, September 1st at 10 pm ET/PT exclusively on CMT.
A true genre-bending artist, Nelly makes his Crossroads debut as the series’ first hip hop headliner. The rap superstar first burst onto the country scene with “Over and Over,” his groundbreaking duet with Tim McGraw in 2004 which made history charting on multiple charts including the Rhythmic, Adult Top 40 and Hot Rap.
Nelly continues to bring country music influences into his unique cross-format blend of music. Later this month, he’s slated to release his new country-inspired Heartland project, his first new album since 2013 dropping on August 27th. Nelly recently released his second single from the album, “High Horse” featuring Blanco Brown & Breland, plus teased a new song with “Cool Again” collaborator Kane Brown. The EP’s first single, “Lil Bit” with Florida Georgia Line was just awarded RIAA Platinum certification and follows their Diamond collaboration “Cruise.”
“I’m excited to celebrate my music with my friends and fellow artists on Crossroads! When people talk about me crossing lines and genres, I think about it more that music brings folks together,” shares Nelly.
The 60-minute special will feature new music from Heartland alongside high-energy performances of Nelly’s biggest chart topping hits, including a few surprises celebrating the 20th anniversary of hit Country Grammar. In addition to Nelly, this marks first-time appearances from Kane Brown, Blanco Brown and Breland on the Crossroads stage; Florida Georgia Line returns to the legendary stage after teaming up with Backstreet Boys for a much-acclaimed episode in 2017.
CMT Crossroads shows the far-reaching roots of country music by pairing country artists with musicians from other genres. Each episode features a different set of stars playing together, swapping stories and sharing their common love of music. The series debuted January 13, 2002 with Elvis Costello and Lucinda Williams and since has showcased dream musical partnerships including Ray Charles and Travis Tritt; Bon Jovi and Sugarland; Kelly Clarkson and Reba McEntire; Def Leppard and Taylor Swift; Sting and Vince Gill; John Mayer and Keith Urban; Mumford & Sons and Emmylou Harris; Steven Tyler and Carrie Underwood; Stevie Nicks and Lady Antebellum; Katy Perry and Kacey Musgraves; Alicia Keys and Maren Morris; Halsey and Kelsea Ballerini, and most recently, Nathaniel Rateliff and Margo Price, to name a few.
