“I’m thrilled to be hosting with Alison Brown, and connecting with all my bluegrass friends as opposed to my kinda dumb comedy friends,” Martin said in a statement.
“The IBMA Awards show is always one of my very favorite nights of the year,” Brown added. “I’m so honored to co-host this year with my banjo pal Steve Martin.”
Martin is a longtime lover of bluegrass, first picking up the banjo as a teenager. He's released a number of albums and even created the bluegrass musical “Bright Star ” for Broadway — a complex love story set against the American South written by Martin and Grammy-winning singer-songwriter Edie Brickell.
In addition to their hosting duties, Martin and Brown's collaborative single, “5 Days Out, 2 Days Back,” has been nominated in three categories: song of the year, music video of the year and collaborative recording of the year.
IBMA is the International Bluegrass Music Association.