CMT Music Awards 2022: Red Carpet Evacuated Amid Lightning Storm

The energy wasn’t the only thing that was electric at the 2022 CMT Music Awards.

The red carpet at the April 11 ceremony was temporarily paused due to a storm beating down on the Nashville Municipal Auditorium in Tennessee, where the event was held. Celebrity arrivals were just getting underway when guests and crew were asked to briefly evacuate from the carpet due to lightning. 

The awards’ official livestream was halted, as well as feed of the carpet from local news outlet The Tennessean.

“The red carpet is being delayed for lightning in Nashville,” The Tennessean reported in the chat of its YouTube stream, explaining that “we are just waiting for everyone to get back in place!”

When things were back up and running, stars like Carrie Underwood, Maren Morris, LeAnn Rimes and Jessie James Decker made their way down the red carpet.

The weather delay was not the first hiccup the CMT Music Awards experienced this year. Just hours before event, Kelsea Ballerini announced that she cannot attend the ceremony in person and will instead perform her hosting duties, which she’ll share with Anthony Mackie, virtually after testing positive for COVID-19 this week.