Copyright Billboard
CMT’s flagship show, the Hot 20 Countdown, will conclude at the end of the year, Billboard has learned from sources. The program, hosted by Cody Alan and Carissa Culinar, has run on CMT since 2013. The show counts down the 20 hottest country music videos and features appearances by country artists. The Hot 20 Countdown is the last original regular music programming on the channel, which has experienced continual cutbacks in staff and programming over the past year and a half. This spring, for the first time since its debut in 2002, the CMT Awards were paused as parent Paramount Global merged with its new owner, Skydance Media. That deal closed in August. Though non-music related, CMT does still air original programming, with the Taylor Sheridan-produced The Last Cowboy, a horse-reining rider talent competition. The sixth season premieres on Friday (Nov. 7). Last week, it was announced that Yellowstone creator Sheridan will leave Paramount in 2028 for a new deal with NBCUniversal. As with the other Paramount-owned linear channels, there has been a massive talent drain at CMT over the past 18 months, including Leslie Fram, senior vp of music strategy and talent, who left last fall, as did director of music and talent Stacy Cato, vp of production; Quinn Brown, vp of production; and Ray Sells, senior director of production, among others. This fall, there have been more cuts and buyouts, including Donna Duncan, vp of CMT music and talent, who left in September. Last week, as around 1,000 people were cut across Paramount, Margaret Comeaux, the highest-ranking executive still at CMT, who serves as senior vp of production, music & events, announced she will leave the company in December after 24 years. (Comeaux also serves as an executive producer on Hot 20 Countdown.) Melissa Goldberg, who had been CMT’s vp of digital and social, left the company to join sports and entertainment company Teton Ridge in October. Even before the merger, Paramount Global had been chipping away at original content on CMT and other websites. In June 2024, Paramount stopped producing original content for many of its cable channels’ websites, including CMT.com, which had been a robust site for years, and began directing visitors to content on Paramount+ and other sister outlets. CMT’s daytime programming consists primarily of classic sitcoms, including Reba, Roseanne, Mama’s Family, King of Queens and Golden Girls, as well as movies like Raiders of the Lost Ark. Music videos run overnight between 12 a.m. and 6 a.m. In addition to new episodes premiering on Saturday mornings, the Hot 20 Countdown repeats on Sunday mornings. In broader Paramount Skydance news, the company announced today that George Cheeks, chair of TV media, who oversees CBS, will now also oversee the cable networks. Lauren Weir, who reports to Cheeks, will oversee programming for Paramount TV Media, including CMT. Billboard has reached out to Paramount for comment.
