CMA Awards Performances Preview

The CMA Awards is packed with tons of performances from some of today's hottest country artists and a couple with some Hollywood flavor this year. Word has it the show will kick-off with a star-studded opening number.

Carrie Underwood will certainly have a busy night. Not only is she co-hosting the show, but she is expected to perform twice. The Female Vocalist and Album of the Year nominee is slated to open the show, along with her co-host Brad Paisley and guitar-slinger Keith Urban, with her tune 'Songs Like This,' according to 'Access Hollywood.' The Oklahoma native will also perform the ode to her mother, 'Mama's Song,' later in the show.

Brad, who is nominated for three awards and will be vying for a fourth consecutive Male Vocalist trophy, plans on debuting a new song, 'This is Country Music,' that will most likely be included on his next studio album; while Keith, who competes against Brad in a pair of categories including Entertainer of the Year, is set to perform 'Put You in a Song,' the first single from his new album, 'Get Closer,' due in stores next week.

Viewers will also catch nine-time nominee Miranda Lambert with two performances, starting with 'That's the Way That the World Goes 'Round,' the scorching John Prine cover from her Album of the Year-nominated 'Revolution.' Her second performance will be with Sheryl Crow on 'Coal Miner's Daughter' in a tribute to Loretta Lynn's 50th anniversary in the music business. Miranda's fiancé, Blake Shelton, will make it all about the show as he performs his recent chart-topper 'All About Tonight.'

Lady Antebellum will perform their latest hit, 'Hello World,' at the CMAs, where they're nominated in five categories, including the night's top honor, Entertainer of the Year.

Kenny Chesney, who pulled in a nod for Musical Event of the Year for 'I'm Alive' with Dave Matthews, heads back to his recent No. 1 'The Boys of Fall' to perform for the CMA crowd, which makes sense since the DVD of the same name hit WalMart stores this week.

Vocal Group of the Year nominee Rascal Flatts will perform their single, 'Why Wait,' from their upcoming 'Nothing Like This' album, due in stores next week. The trio will use portions of their humorous video, which stars actor David Arquette and comedians Carrot Top and Ron White.

The reigning CMA Entertainer of the Year and nominee for this year's Female Vocalist of the Year trophy, Taylor Swift, will reportedly perform a very emotional 'Back to December' from her new album, 'Speak Now.' The tune is widely believed to be about former beau, actor Taylor Lautner.

Dierks Bentley is nominated for three awards, including Album of the Year for his critically-acclaimed bluegrass-influenced 'Up on the Ridge.' He will perform the title cut, and the performance will feature a very special guest, of sorts. "We discovered the joy of fog, the Fogmaster 5000 was on overdrive during rehearsals, so there was fog everywhere," Dierks tells The Boot, adding, "It's just great to get a chance to perform on the CMAs. I love to be a part of the CMA Awards."

Oscar-winning actress Gwyneth Paltrow will make her live country music singing debut on the show, performing the title cut from her upcoming film, 'Country Strong.' Vince Gill, who performs with her on the soundtrack, will also join her on stage to sing harmony.

George Strait, who is up for Male Vocalist and Album of the Year for 'Twang,' will perform his current single, 'The Breath You Take,' while Sugarland will play their latest chart-topper, 'Stuck Like Glue.'

A couple of special collaborative performances will feature the Zac Brown Band with Alan Jackson on their No. 1 song, 'As She's Walking Away,' while Jason Aldean welcomes Kelly Clarkson on stage to perform their duet, 'Don't You Wanna Stay,' from his new album, 'My Kinda Party.'

Reba McEntire, who just released her 'All the Women I Am' album this week, and Kid Rock are also scheduled to perform.

CMA Awards presenters are Tim McGraw, Sara Evans, Darius Rucker, Luke Bryan, Easton Corbin, The Band Perry, Little Big Town, Jerrod Niemann, LeAnn Rimes, Chris Young, Martina McBride and Kellie Pickler, as well as NASCAR driver Jeff Gordon and ABC television stars JoAnna Garcia ('Better With You') and Ty Pennington ('Extreme Makeover: Home Edition').

In a late addition today, 'Country Strong' actress Leighton Meester was added as a presenter to introduce Taylor Swift's performance.

Rodney Atkins will host the pre-telecast show.

Fans can watch all of the performances when the '44th Annual CMA Awards' are telecast live from Nashville's Bridgestone Arena, tonight (November 10) at 8:00 PM ET on ABC.