Lainey Wilson was seemingly in all places on the Academy of Country Music Awards, collecting 4 trophies on an evening that saw Chris Stapleton win the entertainer of the yr honor.
Wilson performed twice Thursday –- back-to-back –- and delivered heartfelt speeches after her wins, which put her next to fellow winners and country music legends.
She won album of the yr for “Bell Bottom Country,” accepting the consideration barely breathless after performing her song “Grease.”
Wilson called the album a “labor of affection” and said she wrote 300 songs through the pandemic. She said people often tell her how much the album means to their lives, and he or she said writing them “saved mine.”
When she won female artist of the yr, co-host Dolly Parton handed her the trophy. “I can’t consider I just met Dolly Parton, to start with,” Wilson said.
She gave credit to the feminine artists who preceded her and the sacrifices she knew they’d all made: “I’m up here due to y’all. Because of individuals like Dolly Parton, paving the best way.”
“For the little girls watching this, this stands for labor,” Wilson said, referencing her trophy. “For those who’re going to be a dreamer, you higher be a do-er.”
Stapleton owned the stage at the top of the night, winning the ACMs’ top honor.
“I’m shocked, truly,” Stapleton said. “By any possible metric, I don’t deserve this. … I’ve never considered myself as any person who would win this award.”
He dedicated the award to his children at home, saying they sacrifice loads of time with him and his wife due to his profession.
Breathless moments weren’t unusual through the performance-heavy show.
Cole Swindell won the night’s first award, song of the yr, for “She Had Me at Heads Carolina.” He had just performed the song with Jo Dee Messina.
Swindell later won single of the yr for a similar song. “Thanks country music fans, that’s all I’ve ever been,” he said. “I don’t know what I ever did to get this fortunate.”
Singer-songwriter HARDY entered the show because the leading nominee and picked up 4 awards. “Wait within the Truck,” his duet with Wilson, who was the second-leading nominee, won the music event award.
“Thanks Lainey, you absolutely killed it,” HARDY said. He credited her with making people consider within the song, which references domestic violence and looking for revenge.
“This was a song about real life,” Wilson said. “I didn’t want people to relate to this song, but loads of them do.”
Old Dominion frontman Matthew Ramsey used the band’s win for group of the yr to deal with recent divisiveness and gun violence. He referenced the party atmosphere of the show but said he also recognized that “there are people obviously hurting on the earth without delay attempting to determine tips on how to make sense of the divisiveness and shootings and things like that.”
Ramsey continued: “We’re most proud to give you the chance to make music for folks that are hurting without delay. So thanks for including us within the party and allowing us to make music for whoever needs it.”
Garth Brooks and Parton hosted the two-hour awards show, streamed live to tell the tale Amazon Prime from the Ford Center on the Star in Frisco.
The simple banter between Brooks, in his first hosting gig, and Parton carried the show’s early moments. Parton closed out the show with a performance of a song from her upcoming rock album.
A later routine involved the pair video conferencing with Willie Nelson to wish him blissful birthday. The country legend recently turned 90, and the ACMs honored him with a performance of Nelson’s hit with Waylon Jennings, “Mammas Don’t Let Your Babies Grow As much as be Cowboys” by Cody Johnson.
The show opened with Keith Urban performing, fittingly given the placement of the show, his song “Texas Time.”
Texas references and celebrities ran throughout the show. Cowboys quarterback Dak Prescott and Hall of Famer Emmitt Smith presented the primary award.
HARDY was also a nominee as a songwriter for Morgan Wallen’s “Sand in my Boots.” The country superstar didn’t perform as planned as a result of a vocal cord injury that’s halted his tour and was not in attendance when he won best male artist. Brooks took off his hat to honor Wallen, saying missing out on the show “have to be killing him.”
Hailey Whitters and Zach Bryan have won best recent artist honors.
