CMT (American TV channel) facts for kids
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| Type | Country music (main) Entertainment |
|---|---|
| Country | United States |
| Broadcast area | Nationwide |
| Headquarters | New York City |
| Programming | |
| Language(s) | English Spanish (via SAP audio track) |
| Picture format | 1080i HDTV (downscaled to letterboxed 480i for the SDTV feed) |
| Ownership | |
| Owner | Paramount Skydance Corporation |
| Parent | MTV Entertainment Group (Paramount Media Networks) |
| Sister channels |
List
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| History | |
| Launched | March 5, 1983 |
| Former names | CMTV (1983) |
| Availability | |
| Streaming media | |
| Affiliated Streaming Service | Paramount+ |
| Service(s) | DirecTV Stream, FuboTV, Hulu + Live TV, Philo, Sling TV, YouTube TV |
Country Music Television, known as CMT, is an American TV channel that started on March 5, 1983. It's owned by Paramount Skydance Corporation, part of their MTV Entertainment Group. CMT was the first channel across the country to focus on country music. It showed music videos, concerts, and stories about country music stars.
Later, CMT started showing its own lifestyle and reality TV shows, plus sitcoms. In December 2023, about 56 million homes in the U.S. could watch CMT. This number was lower than its highest point of 93 million homes in 2011. The channel's main office is in New York City, with other offices in Nashville, Tennessee.
Contents
How CMT Started
Early Days (1983–1997)
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CMTV (Country Music Television) was created by Glenn D. Daniels. He owned Video World Productions in Hendersonville, Tennessee. The channel began broadcasting on March 5, 1983. It started just two days before its main competitor, The Nashville Network. The very first music video shown on CMT was "It's Four in the Morning" by Faron Young.
A few months later, MTV sued CMTV because their names were too similar. So, the channel changed its name to simply CMT.
In 1991, Gaylord Entertainment Company bought CMT for $34 million. Gaylord also owned CMT's competitor, The Nashville Network. In October 1992, CMT launched its first international channel, CMT Europe. By 1998, CMT Europe stopped broadcasting.
In 1995, CMT stopped playing videos by Canadian artists who didn't have U.S. record deals. This happened because a Canadian channel, New Country Network, replaced CMT in Canada. By March 1996, CMT started playing those videos again. This was after CMT bought a part of New Country Network, which then became a Canadian version of CMT.
Under CBS and Viacom (1997–2017)
In 1997, Westinghouse, which owned CBS, bought both CMT and TNN. Later, Viacom bought CBS in 2000. This meant Viacom then owned CMT and TNN. TNN slowly stopped showing country music to avoid being too similar to CMT.
Even though CMT showed less music programming over time, its viewership grew a lot. By 2007, more than 83 million homes could watch the channel.
On June 10, 2016, CMT announced it would continue the TV series Nashville. This show had been canceled by ABC. CMT ordered a fifth season with 22 episodes.
Changes and New Shows (2017–Present)
In 2017, Viacom made changes to its channels. CMT started to focus more on unscripted shows, like reality TV. Because of this, Nashville's sixth season was its last.
As part of this change, CMT announced Music City in September 2017. This was a reality series set in Nashville. It premiered on March 1, 2018.
In 2019, Viacom bought Pluto TV. They launched several CMT-themed channels on Pluto TV. These included a channel for Western movies called CMT Westerns. There was also a channel just for the show Dallas Cowboys Cheerleaders: Making the Team.
In October 2021, CMT started showing the second season of The Last Cowboy. This reality series was created by Taylor Sheridan, who also helped create Yellowstone.
What's on CMT?
CMT mostly shows sitcoms and movies that it has bought from other companies. The channel still plays country music videos for five hours each morning. It also has a show called CMT Hot Twenty on weekend mornings.
CMT has always been one of Paramount's channels that focuses most on music. Most of CMT's original shows are about or related to Nashville, Tennessee, where the channel's studios are.
CMT mainly plays popular country songs. However, it also shows videos from other music styles like Americana. Special events on the network include the yearly CMT Music Awards. Another special is CMT Crossroads, which brings together country music artists with musicians from other types of music.
CMT Around the World
- CMT Europe: This channel started in October 1992 and closed in March 1998.
- CMT Brazil: It launched in July 1995 and closed in March 2001.
- CMT Australia: This channel started on July 1, 2020. It focuses on country music videos.
- CMT Canada: This is the Canadian version. Over time, it stopped showing country-related programs and music videos.
- The Nashville Network: This used to be a rival channel. It became a sister channel to CMT in 1997. TNN later changed to a general entertainment channel and then became Spike TV in 2003. It is now called Paramount Network.
CMT Music Channel
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| Country | United States |
|---|---|
| Headquarters | New York |
| Programming | |
| Language(s) | English |
| Picture format | 480i (SDTV) |
| Ownership | |
| Owner | Paramount Media Networks |
| Parent | MTV Entertainment Group |
| Sister channels | CMT |
| History | |
| Launched | August 1, 1998 |
| Former names | VH1 Country (1998–2006) CMT Pure Country (2006–16) |
CMT Music is a TV channel that plays only country music videos. It is a sister channel to CMT.
History of CMT Music
The channel first started as VH1 Country on August 1, 1998. It was a channel for country music videos from VH1. On May 27, 2006, the channel changed its name to CMT Pure Country. This was to connect it more closely with the CMT brand.
On January 4, 2016, the channel's name changed again to CMT Music. The channel still plays music videos in an eight-hour loop. It also promotes special events like the CMT Music Awards.
Over time, fewer TV providers offer CMT Music. This is because more people are using streaming video services. In 2021, Spectrum removed it from most of its TV packages.
What's on CMT Music?
Currently, CMT Music plays an eight-hour loop of music videos. The channel's name on TV guides is simply CMT Music. When it was called Pure Country, it had special blocks of programming:
- Pure Vintage showed classic country music videos made before 2000.
- The Edge featured bluegrass and other unique country music videos. It was first called Wide Open Country.
- Studio 330 Sessions showed live music sessions recorded at CMT's studios in Nashville.
- Pure 12 Pack Countdown was a countdown show where fans voted for their favorite videos online.
See also
In Spanish: CMT (canal de televisión estadounidense) para niños
