Carrie Underwood Steps Down as CMA Awards Host After 12 Years
Grammy winner first hosted in 2008
Ross A. Lincoln | December 30, 2019 @ 8:31 PM
Last Updated: December 30, 2019 @ 10:46 PM
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After 12 consecutive years, Carrie Underwood is stepping down as host of the Country Music Association Awards. The seven-time Grammy winning country singer made the announcement on Instagram Monday afternoon.
“One of the highlights of 2019 and of my entire career so far was being on stage with the legends that are Reba and Dolly Parton. I’m so proud that we could celebrate the incredible female artists that are part of the legacy of country music, past, present and future, and I’m thankful for the huge audiences all over the world that tuned in to see it,”Underwood wrote.
“It’s hard to believe that it was my 12th year hosting and I will always treasure every show, from the 11 that I was so lucky to do with my partner in crime and friend for life, Brad Paisley, to sharing the stage with two of my all-time heroes. I’m so incredibly grateful to everyone involved with the CMA Awards all these years. It’s hard to imagine topping what we have accomplished together, so I’ve decided that it’s time to pass the hosting torch (at least for now!) to others that will cherish it and honor it as much as I do. I’ve got so many exciting things coming in the new year and beyond, and I can’t wait to see what the future has in store for all of us.”
Underwood has co-hosted the CMAs every year since 2008, usually alongside Brad Paisley. In the 2019, she hosted alongside country legends Reba McEntire and Dolly Parton as part of the ceremony’s celebration of female performers. Over her career she has won nine CMAs.
26 Stars Who Only Need a Grammy to EGOT, From Liza Minnelli to Al Pacino (Photos)
The EGOT -- an acronym for Emmy, Grammy, Oscar, Tony -- is the greatest honor in entertainment. These stars are (or were) close to achieving it.
Ingrid Bergman (1915-1982)
Emmy: Single Performance by an Actress, "Startime" (1960); Actress in Limited Series or Special, "A Woman Called Golda" (1982)
Oscar: Actress, "Gaslight" (1944); Actress, "Anastasia" (1956); Supporting Actress, "Murder on the Orient Express" (1974)
Tony: Actress (Dramatic), "Joan of Lorraine" (1947)
Liza Minnelli (1946 - )
Emmy: Single Program - Variety and Popular Music, "Liza With a Z" (1973)
Oscar: Actress, "Cabaret" (1973)
Tony: Actress in a Musical, "Flora, the Red Menace" (1965); Actress, "The Act" (1978)
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Ellen Burstyn (1932 - )
Emmy: Guest Actress in Drama Series, "Law & Order: Special Victims Unit" (2009); Supporting Actress in Miniseries or Movie, "Political Animals" (2013)
Oscar: Actress, "Alice Doesn't Live Here Anymore" (1974)
Tony: Actress in a Play, "Same Time, Next Year" (1975)
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Jeremy Irons (1948 - )
Emmy: Voiceover Performance, "The Great War and the Shaping of the 20th Century" (1997); Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Miniseries or a Movie, "Elizabeth I" (2006); Narrator, "Big Cat Week" (2014)
Oscar: Actor, "Reversal of Fortune" (1990)
Tony: Actor in a Play, "The Real Thing" (1984)
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Anne Bancroft (1931-2005)
Emmy: Variety or Musical Program - Variety and Popular Music, "Annie, The Women in the Life of a Man" (1970)
Oscar: Actress, "The Miracle Worker" (1962)
Tony: Supporting Actress in a Play, "Two for the Seesaw" (1958); Actress in a Play, "The Miracle Worker" (1960)
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Viola Davis (1965 - )
Emmy: Actress in a Drama Series, "How to Get Away With Murder" (2015)
Oscar: Actress, "Fences" (2016)
Tony: Featured Actress in a Play, "King Hedley II" (2001); Actress in a Play, "Fences" (2010)
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Bob Fosse (1927-1987)
Emmy: Choreography, Directing, Single Program - Variety and Popular Music, "Liza With a Z" (1973)
Emmy: Actress in a Miniseries or a Special, "Prime Suspect" (1996); Actress in a Miniseries or a Movie, "The Passion of Ayn Rand" (1999); Actress in a Miniseries or a Movie, "Elizabeth I" (2006); Lead Actress in a Miniseries or Movie, "Prime Suspect: The Final Act" (2007)
Oscar: Actress, "The Queen" (2006)
Tony: Actress in a Play, "The Audience" (2015)
Jessica Lange (1949 - )
Emmy (3): Actress in a Miniseries or a Movie, "Grey Gardens" (2009); "American Horror Story" (2012 and 2014)
Oscar (2): Supporting Actress, "Tootsie" (1982); Actress, "Blue Sky" (1994)
Tony: Actress, "Long Day's Journey Into Night" (2016)
Photographed by Megan Mack for TheWrap
Jason Robards (1922-2000)
Emmy: Actor in a Miniseries or a Special, "Inherit the Wind" (1988)
Oscar: Supporting Actor, "All the President's Men" (1976); Supporting Actor, "Julia" (1977)
Tony: Actor in a Play, "The Disenchanted" (1959)
Al Pacino (1940 -)
Emmy: Actor in a Miniseries or a Movie, "Angels in America" (2004) and "You Don't Know Jack" (2010)
Oscar: Actor, "Scent of a Woman" (1992)
Tony: Supporting Actor in a Play, "Does a Tiger Wear a Necktie?" (1969); Actor, "The Basic Training of Pavlo Hummel" (1979)
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Christopher Plummer (1929 - )
Emmy (2): Actor in a Limited Series, "Arthur Hailey's the Moneychangers" (1977); Voiceover Performance, "Madeline" (1994)
Oscar: Supporting Actor, "The Beginners" (2011)
Tony (2): Actor in a Musical, "Cyrano" (1974); Actor in a Play, "Barrymore" (1997)
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Vanessa Redgrave (1937 - )
Emmy (2): Actress in a Limited Series or a Special, "Playing for Time" (1981); Supporting Actress in a Miniseries or a Movie, "If These Walls Could Talk 2" (2000)
Oscar: Supporting Actress, "Julia" (1977)
Tony: Actress, "Long Day's Journey Into Night" (2003)
Geoffrey Rush (1951 - )
Emmy: Actor in a Miniseries or a Movie, "The Life and Death of Peter Sellers" (2005)
Oscar: Actor, "Shine" (1996)
Tony: Actor in a Play, "Exit the King" (2009)
Maggie Smith (1934 - )
Emmy: Actress in a Miniseries or a Movie "My House in Umbria" (2003); Supporting Actress in a Miniseries or Movie, "Downton Abbey" (2011, 2012 and 2016)
Oscar: Actress, "The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie" (1969); Supporting Actress, "California Suite" (1978)
Tony: Actress, "Lettice and Lovage" (1990)
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Glenda Jackson (1936 - )
Emmy (2): Outstanding Single and Continued Performance by a Lead Actress, "Elizabeth R" (1971)
Oscar (2): Best Actress, "Women in Love" (1970) and "A Touch of Class" (1973)
Tony: Best Actress in a Play, "Three Tall Women" (2018)
Tony Walton (1934 - )
Emmy: Art Direction for a Miniseries or a Special, "Death of a Salesman" (1986)
Oscar: Art Direction, "All That Jazz" (1979)
Tony: Scenic Designer, "Pippin" (1973); Scenic Designer, "The House of Blue Leaves" (1986); "Guys and Dolls" (1992)
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Maureen Stapleton (1925-2006)
Emmy: Single Performance by an Actress in a Drama, "Among the Paths to Eden" (1968)
Oscar: Supporting Actress, "Reds" (1981)
Tony: Supporting Actress in a Play, "The Rose Tattoo" (1951); Actress in a Play, "The Gingerbread Lady" (1971)
Thomas Mitchell (1892-1962)
Emmy: Actor, NBC (1953)
Oscar: Supporting Actor, "Stagecoach" (1939)
Tony: Actor in a Musical, "Hazel Flagg" (1953)
Melvyn Douglas (1901-1981)
Emmy: Single Performance by an Actor in Leading Role in a Drama, "CBS Playhouse" (1968)
Emmy: Actress in a Series, "Hazel" (1962 and 1963)
Oscar: Actress, "Come Back, Little Sheba" (1952)
Tony: Supporting Actress in a Play, "Goodbye, My Fancy" (1949); Actress in a Play, "Come Back, Little Sheba" (1950); Actress in a Play, "Time of the Cuckoo" (1953)
Jessica Tandy (1909-1994)
Emmy: Actress in a Miniseries or a Special, "Foxfire" (1987)
Oscar: Actress, "Driving Miss Daisy" (1989)
Tony: Actress in a Drama, "A Streetcar Named Desire" (1948); "The Gin Game" (1978); "Foxfire" (1983)
Jack Albertson (1907-1981)
Emmy: Continuing or Single Performance by a Supporting Actor in Variety or Music, "Cher" (1975); Actor in Comedy Series, "Chico and the Man" (1976)
Oscar: Supporting Actor, "The Subject Was Roses" (1968)
Tony: Supporting Actor, "The Subject Was Roses" (1965)
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Ralph Burns (1922-2001)
Emmy: Music Direction, "Baryshnikov on Broadway" (1980)
Oscar: Scoring, Adaptation and Original Song Score, "Cabaret" (1972); Original Song Score/Adaptation Score, "All That Jazz" (1979)
Tony: Orchestrations, "Fosse" (1999); Orchestrations, "Thoroughly Modern Millie" (2002)
Paul Scofield (1922–2008)
Emmy: Single Performance by a Lead Actor, "Male of the Species" (1969)
Oscar: Actor, "A Man for All Seasons" (1966)
Tony: Actor in a Play, "A Man for All Seasons" (1962)