Chris Stapleton wins song of the year, honors Borderline bar victims
Chris Stapleton cleaned house at the 2018 Country Music Association Awards.
The singer-songwriter, who has won at the CMAs every year since 2015, picked up multiple awards during the show Wednesday night, including single and song of the year for his Grammywinning hit, “Broken Halos.”
When he won single of the year — where he won as a performer and producer — Stapleton said he was “thinking about the people in California right now” and he wants to “dedicate this award to them.”
He was referring to the 12 people killed at a Southern California country music bar last week — who were also honored at the top of the show held at the Bridgestone Arena in Nashville.
Garth Brooks opened the CMAs by telling the audience the event would be “dedicated to the 12 individuals who we lost far too soon just a week ago tonight at the Borderline in Thousand Oaks, California.
“Tonight let’s celebrate their lives. Let the music unite us with love,” Brooks said.
He held a moment of silence as the names of the victims were displayed on the screen.
The CMAs also took time to speak about the deadly wildfires in California.
“We send our love to you,” said co-host Carrie Underwood, also mentioning the “brave firefighters.”
Underwood kept the positive and uplifting theme going when she gave a rousing performance of her song “Love Wins.” It features the lyrics, “I believe you and me are sisters and brothers/And I believe we’re made to be here for each other.”
Dan + Shay, who lost in all four categories they were nominated in, gave an impressive performance of their hit “Tequila.” When Brothers Osborne won vocal duo of the year, John Osborne said, “I thought this was going to go to Dan + Shay. Make some noise for those boys.”