What does it feel like to be onstage performing at a major event like Sunday’s Academy of Country Music Awards?
For album of the year winner Parker McCollum, it can be distracting.
“I’ve performed several times at awards shows,” he says. “And every night that I’ve done it, I always stand out there and I’m in my head while I’m singing. I’m like, ‘That’s Chris Stapleton. That’s George Strait. That’s Miranda Lambert. The GOATs.'”
“[I’m] singing with Lee Ann Womack, country music royalty, on national television,” he continues. “And if I did it seven nights a week for the rest of my life, I still don’t think I would really feel like I belong with those people. So, maybe just for a night, I do.”
Ella Langley set a new record for the most wins by a single artist in a night on Sunday, taking home seven trophies.
“I keep wondering when this is gonna feel like real life and it [has] yet to [have] done that,” she reflects. “I’m just so grateful. I’m so grateful to be here, and I’m so grateful that I get to do what I love to do with the people that I love to do it with. I’ve wanted this my whole entire life.”
Ella went on to reveal why she got so choked up as she accepted the female artist award.
“My whole entire life, I’ve watched these award shows, and I’ve watched a lot of these people that love me and support me up here from back home in my living room on the TV. And standing up onstage and looking out at those women that have continuously had my back made me emotional,” she says.
If you missed the 61st ACMs, you can stream it in its entirety on Prime Video.
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