Michael W. Smith to Perform with Carrie Underwood and Little Big Town for CMA Country Christmas on ABC

Three-time GRAMMY® winner Michael W. Smith will perform on the CMA Country Christmas special to air on ABC on Monday, December 1 at 8/7c. Smith will perform two tracks off of his top-selling Christmas album – Michael W. Smith & Friends: The Spirit of Christmas – and joining him on stage will be CMA Awards host Carrie Underwood and the newly inducted Grand Ole Opry members Little Big Town. Smith made his CMA Country Christmas debut in 2013, performing with host Jennifer Nettles. Smith will perform his original song “All Is Well” with Underwood and the beloved Christmas classic “Silent Night” with Little Big Town. The 2014 CMA Country Christmas special will also feature performances by Leann Rimes, Idina Menzel, Alan Jackson, Brad Paisley, Steven Tyler and more. For more information, visit here.

Michael W. Smith & Friends: The Spirit of Christmas released only a few short weeks ago, quickly hitting No. 1 on the Billboard Holiday Albums chart. The album features a plethora of A-list guests – including the aforementioned Carrie Underwood and Little Big Town, as well as Vince Gill, Lady Antebellum, Martina McBride, Amy Grant, Jennifer Nettles, Bono and Michael McDonald. Huffington Post led the critical praise, calling the album an early “favorite Yuletide effort” and an instant “Christmas classic.”

This week, Country Weekly premiered the lyric video for Smith’s collaboration with Little Big Town – “Silent Night” – and affirmed the album as a whole saying, “The Spirit of Christmas follows the tradition of musical excellence established by Michael W.’s three previous holiday albums. If you’re a Michael W. Smith fan, there’s a reason to celebrate the holiday season early this year.” To watch the video premiere, visit here.

Last week, Smith attended the 2014 CMA Awards in Nashville and escorted members of the U.S. Marines in support of their Toys For Tots campaign. Toys were collected at the taping for CMA Country Christmas and will be distributed to children and families in need in the greater Nashville region. For more information, visit nashville-tn.toysfortots.org.

Smith is gearing up to launch the "The Spirit of Christmas Tour” which kicks off November 30 and will hit several cities in the U.S. and Canada. Partnering with Smith as the official tour sponsor is Cracker Barrel Old Country Store® and joining him on all tour dates is Dove Award-winner Rachael Lampa.