So yeah, overall, the ACM Awards Show last night wasn’t the best…
I mean, come on…
But that doesn’t mean there weren’t any bright spots or cool moments.
Sure, it was the lowest rated ACM Awards in history, and they got nearly ALL of the categories wrong, but hey, let’s find the positive, right?
Here’s some of my favorite moments:
The Classics Came Back
Blake Shelton busting out “Austin” followed by Alan Jackson singing “Drive.” Although it was only two, it was great to hear some classics brought on stage again.
Lots of Miranda Lambert
You really can’t have enough Miranda, and she did it all, opening the show with Elle King and their song “Drunk (And I Don’t Want To Go Home),” filling in for Morgane Stapleton on Chris’ performance of “Maggie,” and brought the heart of Texas with Jon Randall and Jack Ingram in an acoustic performance of “In His Arms.”
Front and center is where she belongs.
Ashley McBryde Singing Something Other Than “One Night Standards”
Ashley McBryde is one of the most underrated artists on the planet, but I’ve always believed she wasn’t doing herself any favors by performing “One Night Standards” every time she got a moment in the spotlight.
Her latest album was pure gold, top to bottom, so it was great hearing her latest single “Martha Divine.” And oh yeah, and she absolutely crushed it…
Bluegrass Getting Its Moment In The Sun
So yeah, it was Dierks Bentley and a U2 song, but still, it was great to hear bluegrass sound during a mainstream country event. The mandolin was absolutely fantastic and man, oh man, do War and Treaty have angelic voices. While I wish it was just about anything other than a U2 song, the performance was stellar.
Carrie. Freaking. Underwood.
Do I even need to say anything else? Carrie’s indescribable talent was on full display during her medley of Gospel songs sang with Cece Winans. Starting a capella and ending with possibly the greatest high note of all-time, this was a performance for the history books.
A Spontaneous Clay Walker Appearance
Who saw that coming? Clay Walker took just about everyone by surprise when he announced the Album of the Year award. Seeing him was great, but man, wish we could have added to the classic songs with a “She Won’t Be Lonely Long” performance.
Chris Stapleton Winning Album of the Year
One of the few winners I completely agree with. Ashley McBryde’s Never Will and Brothers Osborne’s Skeletons were fantastic, but Chris yet again stood out from the rest and delivered a stellar record. Well deserved.
Thomas Rhett’s Acoustic Performance of “Country Again”
Credit where credit is due, Thomas Rhett did a great job. It’s by far the most country we’ve seen him be in years and that makes me happy. I have high hopes for his upcoming album and this performance gave me a little more confidence he’s turned the corner for good.
Eric Church
Because…. duh.
