Lainey Wilson triumphs at Academy of Country Music Awards; Chris Stapleton wins top honor

0

Lainey Wilson was seemingly everywhere at the Academy of Country Music Awards, collecting four trophies on a night that saw Chris Stapleton win the entertainer of the year 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 year for “Bell Bottom Country,” accepting the honor slightly breathless after performing her song “Grease.”

Wilson called the album a “labor of love” and said she wrote 300 songs during the pandemic. She said people often tell her how much the album means to their lives, and she said writing them “saved mine.”


Lainey Wilson performs "Grease" at the 58th annual Academy of Country Music Awards on May 11, 2023, at the Ford Center in Frisco, Texas.
Lainey Wilson performs “Grease” at the annual Academy of Country Music Awards on May 11, 2023, at the Ford Center in Frisco, Texas.
AP

When she won female artist of the year, co-host Dolly Parton handed her the trophy. “I can’t believe I just met Dolly Parton, first of all,” Wilson said.

She gave credit to the female artists who preceded her and the sacrifices she knew they had all made: “I’m up here because of y’all. Because of people like Dolly Parton, paving the way.”

“For the little girls watching this, this stands for hard work,” Wilson said, referencing her trophy. “If you’re going to be a dreamer, you better be a do-er.”


Chris Stapleton accepts the Entertainer of the Year Award on stage during the Academy of Country Music Awards at Ford Center at the Star in Frisco, Texas, on May 11, 2023.
Chris Stapleton accepts the Entertainer of the Year Award on stage during the Academy of Country Music Awards at Ford Center at the Star in Frisco, Texas, on May 11, 2023.
AFP via Getty Images

Stapleton owned the stage at the end of the night, winning the ACMs’ top honor.

“I am shocked, truly,” Stapleton said. “By any imaginable metric, I don’t deserve this. … I’ve never thought of myself as somebody who would win this award.”

He dedicated the award to his children at home, saying they sacrifice a lot of time with him and his wife because of his career.


Hosts Garth Brooks, left, and Dolly Parton speak at the 58th annual Academy of Country Music Awards on May 11, 2023, at the Ford Center in Frisco, Texas.
Hosts Garth Brooks, left, and Dolly Parton speak at the annual Academy of Country Music Awards on May 11, 2023, at the Ford Center in Frisco, Texas.
AP

Dolly Parton performs "World On Fire" at the 58th annual Academy of Country Music Awards on on May 11, 2023, at the Ford Center in Frisco, Texas.
Dolly Parton performs “World On Fire” at the 58th annual Academy of Country Music Awards on on May 11, 2023, at the Ford Center in Frisco, Texas.
AP

Breathless moments weren’t uncommon during the performance-heavy show.

Cole Swindell won the night’s first award, song of the year, for “She Had Me at Heads Carolina.” He had just performed the song with Jo Dee Messina.

Swindell later won single of the year for the same song. “Thank you country music fans, that’s all I’ve ever been,” he said. “I don’t know what I ever did to get this fortunate.”


Lainey Wilson accepts the award for Album of the Year at the 58th Academy of Country Music Awards in Frisco, Texas, on May 11, 2023.
Lainey Wilson accepts the award for Album of the Year at the 58th Academy of Country Music Awards in Frisco, Texas, on May 11, 2023.
REUTERS

Singer-songwriter HARDY entered the show as the leading nominee and collected four awards. “Wait in the Truck,” his duet with Wilson, who was the second-leading nominee, won the music event award.

“Thank you Lainey, you absolutely killed it,” HARDY said. He credited her with making people believe in the song, which references domestic violence and seeking revenge.

“This was a song about real life,” Wilson said. “I didn’t want people to relate to this song, but a lot of them do.”


Carly Pearce performs a medley at the 58th annual Academy of Country Music Awards on May 11, 2023, at the Ford Center in Frisco, Texas.
Carly Pearce performs at the 58th annual Academy of Country Music Awards on May 11, 2023, at the Ford Center in Frisco, Texas.
AP

Old Dominion frontman Matthew Ramsey used the band’s win for group of the year to address recent divisiveness and gun violence. He referenced the party atmosphere of the show but said he also recognized that “there are people obviously hurting in the world right now trying to figure out how to make sense of the divisiveness and shootings and things like that.”

Ramsey continued: “We are most proud to be able to make music for people that are hurting right now. So thank you for including us in the party and allowing us to make music for whoever needs it.”

Garth Brooks and Parton hosted the two-hour awards show, streamed live on Amazon Prime from the Ford Center at the Star in Frisco.


Cole Swindell performs "She Had Me At Heads Carolina - Remix" at the 58th annual Academy of Country Music Awards on May 11, 2023, at the Ford Center in Frisco, Texas.
Cole Swindell performs “She Had Me At Heads Carolina – Remix” at the annual Academy of Country Music Awards on May 11, 2023, at the Ford Center in Frisco, Texas.
AP

The easy 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 happy 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 Up to be Cowboys” by Cody Johnson.

The show opened with Keith Urban performing, fittingly given the location of the show, his song “Texas Time.”


Ed Sheeran performs "Life Goes On" at the annual Academy of Country Music Awards on May 11, 2023, at the Ford Center in Frisco, Texas.
Ed Sheeran performs “Life Goes On” at the annual Academy of Country Music Awards on May 11, 2023, at the Ford Center in Frisco, Texas.
AP

Trevor Rosen, from left, Matthew Ramsey, Brad Tursi, and Geoff Sprung of Old Dominion accept the award for group of the year at the annual Academy of Country Music Awards on May 11, 2023, at the Ford Center in Frisco, Texas.
Trevor Rosen, from left, Matthew Ramsey, Brad Tursi, and Geoff Sprung of Old Dominion accept the award for group of the year at the annual Academy of Country Music Awards on May 11, 2023, at the Ford Center in Frisco, Texas.
AP

Texas references and celebrities ran throughout the show. Cowboys quarterback Dak Prescott and Hall of Famer Emmitt Smith presented the first 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 due to 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 “must be killing him.”

Hailey Whitters and Zach Bryan have won best new artist honors.

Stay connected with us on social media platform for instant update click here to join our  Twitter, & Facebook

We are now on Telegram. Click here to join our channel (@TechiUpdate) and stay updated with the latest Technology headlines.

For all the latest Entertainment News Click Here 

Read original article here

Denial of responsibility! Rapidtelecast.com is an automatic aggregator around the global media. All the content are available free on Internet. We have just arranged it in one platform for educational purpose only. In each content, the hyperlink to the primary source is specified. All trademarks belong to their rightful owners, all materials to their authors. If you are the owner of the content and do not want us to publish your materials on our website, please contact us by email – [email protected]. The content will be deleted within 24 hours.
Leave a comment