Ashley Cooke Dishes on CMT Awards Wins, Jokes ACM Nomination Is 'Little Less Nerve-Wracking' (Exclusive)

It's been a little over a month since Ashley Cooke picked up Female Breakthrough Video of the Year at the CMT Music Awards , and now she's prepping for a big night at the Academy of Country Music Awards in Frisco, Texas, on Thursday night, where she's nominated for New Female Artist of the Year.

PopCulture.com had a chance to talk exclusively with Cooke, ahead of the big day, and she dished on her big CMT win, revealed who she's most excited to see at the ACMs, and joked that the off-camera elements of the upcoming awards show make it a "little less nerve-wracking" for her.

Speaking about taking home the Female Breakthrough Video at the 2024 CMT Music Awards, Cooke confessed, "I think because it was my first big nomination, I didn't really know what to expect. I was walking in there and I always do this when I walk in and I'm like, 'No, I'm not going to win it. There's no way. I'm not going to win it. It's all good.'"

"I will say, because it was a fan-voted award, I had a little more confidence knowing I have truly the absolute best fan base in the whole world," she continued, giving her fans the sole credit for stepping up to the plate and making sure she took won. "I feel like they're the ones that would get on every day during happy hour or power hour and vote and just kill it, so I really had faith that they were going to figure it out."

While she was torn over whether or not she believed she'd really win her category -- nominated alongside Brittney Spencer , Tigirlily Gold, and Anne Wilson -- Cooke admitted, "I walked in with some bullet points in my mind of who I'd want to thank, what I'd want to say, but I had no idea what to expect."

Turns out, there was a big surprise awaiting her inside Austin, Texas' Moody Center that night. "It wasn't until we were walking up to the seats," she recalled, "and my manager was like, 'Hey, Ashley Cooke here,' to sit down, and the 'CMT seating team was like, 'Oh yeah, yeah, we moved her. Let's put her over here by Jelly Roll and Cody Johnson by the stage.' I was like, 'OK... This is a good sign.'"

The "Your Place" singer continued, "It wasn't until then that I got really nervous, and I was like, 'Oh my God, I might have to go up there in front of an arena of people and accept an award.'

"Honestly, the funny thing is too, as I'm sure you hear other musicians say this too, as an artist performing in front of an arena or a stadium, I mean, it makes me like, excited, but I'm not nervous," Cooke went on to say, then very candidly -- and hilariously -- confessing, "public speaking in front of an arena, it makes me want to... s-- my pants... sorry for lack of better words. It's so scary."

"I can get up and play a thirty-minute set in front of 40,000 people any day, let's go," she added. "But if you're like, 'Hey, give a 30-minute speech,' I'd be like, 'No. No, just not doing it.'"

So after her big CMT Music Awards win, is Cooke better prepared for the ACM Awards , where she's nominated against Kassi Ashton, Hannah Ellis, Kylie Morgan and Megan Moroney ? Mostly.

"I think that the roster of who's nominated, the category itself, is so stacked with amazing females that I think in my mind I'm walking and being like, 'OK, I'm probably not going to win this,' and that's totally OK," she said. "I hope that whoever does win it, anybody is going to be super happy because everybody in the category has worked their complete butts off and I feel like it's... Not that I'm trying to be politically correct, it is just an amazing category. So, I really feel like it's a little less nerve-wracking."

"Also, I think with this award, they don't announce it on the actual award show stage. It's announced beforehand. So it's a little less nerve-wracking where it's a little different," Cooke added, "So we'll see what happens. I really feel like... Of course I have who I want to thank and an idea, but a lot of it just kind is off the cuff when it comes down to it. So we'll see."

Finally, Cooke teased what she's most looking forward to at the ACM Awards show this year, revealing that it's the duet performance from Nate Smith and Avril Lavigne that she's most excited about.

"I mean, if you know me, I'm obsessed with Avril Lavigne," she said, noting that she covers "Sk8er Boi," Lavigne's hit debut single, "in every single set that I play."

Cooke added, "I'm obsessed... I'm pumped to see Nate win in general just as a human because he's just such a good person, but also seeing that collaboration is such a unique thing."

Those interested in checking out the ACM Awards can stream the live event for free on Prime Video on Thursday, May 16 at 8 p.m. ET / 7 p.m. CT / 5 p.m. PT. A Prime membership will not be required to watch live. Fans can also watch the show on Amazon Music's Twitch channel.

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