CMT News

When singer-songwriter Randy Houser first heard he was nominated for two CMA Awards -- for new artist and music video -- he admits, "It pretty much freaked me out." The nominations for the 43rd annual awards were announced Wednesday (Sept. 9). While pleased that "Boots On" received the music video nomination, Houser tells CMT.com he's especially honored by being in the new artist category with Jamey Johnson, Jake Owen, Darius Rucker and the Zac Brown Band. "All of them are buddies of mine," Houser said. "There's a lot of mutual respect going on. ... It's a really tight category, and I don't know what kind of shot I have. There's a lot of those guys that had big, big years, and I'm kind of just getting started." He said he was surprised by the new artist nomination. "I knew I had made it through two rounds because being a CMA member, I get to vote for myself," he laughed. "But a lot can happen between then and now." Houser and Jamey Johnson will be co-headlining shows as part of CMT on Tour beginning Oct. 8.