Eric Church is one of the most well-respected country artists on the planet right now, and is currently about to release his triple album, Heart & Soul, beginning this coming Friday.
He’s also the reigning CMA Entertainer of the Year.
Which according to him, is a big responsibility now that he’s finally won it.
In a new interview released by his label, he talks about the challenges that came with Desperate Man, while also talking about how refreshing it was to bring a unique sound to country music, and put together something completely different than he’s ever done.
However, perhaps the most interesting take from the interview was his response to winning Entertainer Of The Year. He talks about the responsibility that he now feels after winning the award:
“Coming off the CMA Entertainer Of The Year, and I’ve said this in interviews and I really believe this, I did not know what that award would mean to me, because we’d never won that award and never thought we would, and I felt a responsibility.
I know what that award means in the format, I know what it means historically, and I try to live up to that. I mean I think with the vaccinations, I think with the touring, I think with the things we’ve tried to do during this, I’ve done more in that regard than I ever would’ve, because I understand the people that came before me, and I understand the people that will come after me.
So that nomination it means more to me now than it ever has, because we’ve won, and I think representing the format that I adore is something that I try to live up to.”
You gotta love it.
As you probably know, Eric was pretty pissed when Garth Brooks took home Entertainer of the Year back in 2017 after he admitted to lip syncing his performance during the ceremony.
He tore into him in an interview:
“So the winner of the biggest category of the night lip-synced in the biggest moment of the show? Fuck that. And I didn’t like his excuse at all. I felt like he was speaking for the other nominees.
I can speak for myself. I’m not lip syncing. If I can’t sing, I won’t sing, or I’ll sing badly. But at least you’ll get what you get.”
And of course, Eric got ROBBED again in 2019 before finally winning the award this past year.
It’s easy to see that the guy is one of the realist around, and it’s awesome to finally see him truly get the recognition he deserves. But not only that, it’s impressive to see someone actually taking the title seriously… AND backing it up.
He’s one of the few mainstream guys who still does things his own way, and I think we can all agree that nobody was more deserving of the award than him last year.
