Luke Bryan took home the biggest award of the night for entertainer of the year and Miranda Lambert won female vocalist for the sixth time in a row.
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She stepped out on the CMA Awards red carpet in a low-cut sleeveless Gauri+Nainika gown with a peplum that wrapped around to join her cascading train.
The smooth performances got the delighted crowd on their feet, including Memphis-born Timberlake’s wife, Jessica Biel, who was spotted cheering from her seat.
That different flavor of country was honored throughout the evening, and Stapleton grew more and more excited each time.
For those not obsessed with country music, Stapleton recently released his debut solo album in May.
Will you be watching the CMA Awards tonight?? .
Little Big Town continued its winning streak with a prize for vocal group of the year, underlining the prowess of their inescapable single, “Girl Crush”.
The A-list audience also watched with dropped jaws, including Little Big Town, Zac Brown, Keith Urban, and many more.
Group Little Big Town had the most nominations – five – and won single of the year and song of the year for Girl Crush, a song about a lady obsessed with another woman who is with the man she wants and which was banned by several country stations.
“We didn’t think that much about it. We heard about it in the morning and it was sort of over by afternoon”, Lindsey said. It literally took my breath.
Shelton confirmed Wednesday just hours before the awards show that he and his fellow “Voice” mentor Gwen Stefani are dating. Hosted by AT&T, the pre-show can be live streamed here.
Underwood agreed with him that they “can’t ignore the break up that really rocked our world”.
Then Brad chimed in, “And on a completely unrelated note, Howdy Blake”.
The audience laughed, as did Shelton.
Following an impressive duet with Justin Timberlake and a win for new artist, the awards held in Nashville, Tenn., codified Stapleton as both a major new star and one of the genre’s most artistically significant newcomers.
“He was my first concert and I was way up in the nose bleeds so for me to actually get to be here and be this close to him is actually so wonderful”, said Sparks. Hey, the two could even make a successful band after performing like that.
Miranda Lambert opts for a black gown in a body-hugging silhouette with sexy cutout detail.
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“Brad Paisley is not doing his job if he doesn’t look down there and go ‘Ha ha!'” Shelton said before the show, adding, “We’ve had the conversations like, ‘Okay, dude”.
