Relive the Most Unforgettable Moments from the 2017 CMAs
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The 2017 Country Music Awards, aka country's biggest night, was just that big. The evening was filled with a slew of hilarious and, yes, political moments, as well as stellar performances.
Kelsea Ballerini and Reba's duet was amazing, as was Niall Horan and Maren Morris's performance of "Seeing Blind" off the former One Direction star's first solo album, Flicker. But they weren't the only ones who made the night a memorable one. Scroll down to see our favorite moments from the evening.
1. Darius Rucker's "Hold My Hand" Singalong
After Eric Church kicked off the show with a solemn performance of "Amazing Grace" to honor the lives at the country music festival in Las Vegas, Keith Urban and Darius Rucker let a star-studded singalong of his Hootie and the Blowfish song "Hold My Hand." Everyone from Lady Antebellum to Faith Hill and Tim McGraw joined them on stage.
2. Brad Paisley and Carrie Underwood's Opening Monologue
While the hosts were told to not get political, they revealed, the duo couldn't help but get in a few choice (and hilarious) barbs aimed at the current political climate. But before they changed the lyrics to Underwood's song "Before He Cheats" to "Before He Tweets," they made sure to dedicate the show everyone who has been devastated by natural disasters and violence. "
“Las Vegas. Charlottesville. New York. Sutherland Springs,” began Underwood, referencing cities hit by violent attacks. “Historic storms in Texas, Puerto Rico, and Florida. And the list goes on and on. This has been a year marked by tragedy, impacting countless lives, including so many in our country music family. So tonight, we’re going to do what families do: come together, pray together, cry together, and sing together, too.”
Added Paisley, “The way we see it, the best way to honor our fans is to play our music—loud and proud. Our music lifts people up and that’s what we’re here to do tonight. So this year’s show is dedicated to all of those we’ve lost and to all of those who are still healing. We love you and we will never forget you.”
3. Kelsea Ballerini and Reba's Girl Power Performance
What do you get when you combine not one but two strong ladies? A really stellar performance. Ballerini and Reba, who were both nominated for Female Vocalist of the Year, sang a rendition of Kelsea's "Duets."
4. Tyler Perry's Uniting Speech
Before Perry presented the Album of the Year, he gave a speech that had the audience bursting into applause. "It's never been more important than we come together and find some common ground, spend some time listening to each other, and realizing that we are more alike than we are not alike. So great music has always been a bridge to doing just that. "
5. Pink's Understated, Beautiful Performance
If there's one thing that Pink does well, it's deliver incredible performances at awards shows and tonight was no different. The singer performed "Barbies" off of her new album Beautiful Trauma.
6. Niall Horan and Maren Morris's Duet
The duo started the performance with an acoustic version of Morris's song "I Could Use a Love Song" before transitioning into a stellar rendition of their duet "Seeing Blind" off Horan's first-ever solo album.
7. Carrie Underwood's Emotional "In Memoriam" Performance
There's nothing more emotional than In Memoriam performance, but tonight's was more emotional than usual. At the end, the show paid tribute to all the victims of the Route 91 Harvest Festival. A photo of everyone who lost their life was shown on screen with the date October 1, 2017. Understandably, Underwood was brought to tears, choking up during her performance.
8. The Debut of Keith Urban's New Song "Female"
The father of two and husband to Nicole Kidman performed his new anthem, which was largely inspired by Hollywood's recent sexual assault and harassment scandals, live for the first time. The powerful lyrics flashed on the screen behind him as he gave an emotional rendition of the tune.