ABC Radio For the second year in a row, Thomas Rhett is hosting the annual 3-hour ABC-TV special from CMA Fest. Last year, he shared the honors with Brett Eldredge. In 2017, he’s sharing the gig with recent tourmate Kelsea Ballerini.
“It’s a lot of fun,” TR says. “We’ve done pretty much everything live this time which is really cool. And Kelsea, I’ve gotten to know her over the last couple years, and we’ve gotten to become really good buddies. She’s just easy to deal with, and I hope I’m easy to deal with. She’s a great co-host and we’ve had a blast doing it.”
Thomas admits he feels a little more on his game this year than he did in 2016.
“Last year was a little bit different because I had shows during CMA Fest,” he recalls. “This year, I get to be here every single day and get to watch all the shows and get to hang with the artists before they go on stage. So I think just having that makes me more prepared this year than last year.”
There’s also one more major thing that’s changed for Thomas Rhett since last year’s festival: He’s a new dad.
“I was just telling them backstage I felt like a big rock star. Last night I walked off stage and changed a dirty diaper immediately. So that’s kind of what life has become,” he jokes.
You can watch CMA Fest 2017: The Music Event of Summer when it premieres Wednesday, August 16 at 8 p.m. ET on ABC.
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