Thomas Rhett and Lauren Akins will host the 11th Annual CMA Country Christmas holiday special, airing on ABC, Monday November 30. Thomas and his wife Lauren will be joined by Dan + Shay, Gabby Barrett, Lady A, Tim McGraw, Florida Georgia Line, Kelsea Ballerini, Little Big Town, and Darius Rucker with Lindsey Stirling.
This CMA Country Christmas will have a little different feel this year, as itâs the first time the annual special was filmed without a live audience.
The specialâs Executive Producer Robert Deaton says âThe idea for this yearâs show was to do a throwback of the great Christmas specials of the 1960s and 1970s. Andy Williams, Perry Como, Bing Crosby, Judy Garland, Frank Sinatra all had classic Christmas specials where the viewer was invited into the homes of the host to celebrate the holiday like a best friend coming to visit. That was what we wanted to create for this yearâs show. Instead of a big flashy production, we took a page from those iconic specials to say, âCome relax, and letâs celebrate the holidays together.ââ
Catch a preview of a CMA Country Christmas right here
photo by TCD