(Photo : REUTERS/Danny Moloshok)
Unlike the 2006 CMT two-hour special that focused on the events that shaped country music, the All-Time Top 40: Artists Choice will highlight the artists that have helped mold the genre by shaping the lives of those who sing the music.
Kicking off on Saturday, March 15, 2014, the show will unveil one artist per week during the CMT Hot 20 Countdown. CMT invited nearly 100 of today's most popular artists to take a poll, sharing the artists from country music as well as other styles that influenced them the most. Participating artists include: Alabama, Ashley Monroe, Blake Shelton, Bobby Bare, Brooks and Dunn, Charley Pride, Charlie Daniels, Darius Rucker, Dierks Bentley, Dolly Parton, Dwight Yoakam, Eric Church, Florida Georgia Line, George Strait, Hunter Hayes, Jake Owen, Jason Aldean, Jennifer Nettles, Kacey Musgraves, Keith Urban, Kenny Rogers, Lady Antebellum, LeAnn Rimes, Luke Bryan, Martina McBride, Merle Haggard, Rascal Flatts, Ricky Skaggs, Ronnie Milsap, Rosanne Cash, Sheryl Crow, Taylor Swift, The Band Perry, Trace Adkins, Travis Tritt and Wanda Jackson, to name a few.
In a press release, CMT executive producer Quinn Brown talked about the show and poll, saying, "When you let the artists decide - the people that make country music for a living - that's something you can't argue with. And if you think these will be the same 40 music legends you always hear about, you are in for a surprise - and lots of them. Sure, it's a safe bet that Elvis and Hank Sr. will make it, but I can also tell you that the entire modern era of popular music, country and otherwise, is well represented."
Starting March 15, be sure to tune in the the Hot 20 Countdown, which airs every Saturday and Sunday at 11:00 a.m. ET/PT, to see who the real movers and shakers have been!
