Country superstar Brad Paisley brought his hilarious variety show, Brad Paisley Thinks He’s Special, to ABC Tuesday evening (Dec. 2) and while many moments of the show had fans doubling over in laughter, there was one very touching moment that left many viewers with tears in their eyes: his performance of “Alive Right Now,” a duet with a former St. Jude patient and cancer survivor named Addie Pratt.
Paisley initially met Pratt while visiting St. Jude Children’s Hospital in Memphis and their encounter left a lasting mark on him.
“I had met this girl, Addie Pratt, at St. Jude Children’s Hospital, who’s now a proud [cancer] survivor—a great example of what that place can do,” Paisley shared with Nash Country Daily. “One of the things I said when ABC gave me this show was I would like to do something good with this as opposed to just making a show. Let’s do something that serves the higher good. I can’t think of a better example of what’s great about being alive right now than a place like St. Jude Children’s Hospital. I had this idea to have a survivor sing a line from ‘Alive Right Now,’ but I had no idea this survivor was like Beyoncé. She deserves a record deal. In the show you can imagine that moment is really—it was all I could do not to cry.”
Mississippi native Addie Pratt, now 18 years old, was diagnosed with acute myeloid leukemia in February of 2016. She went to St. Jude for treatments, which was very successful and allowed her to return home in July of 2016. Pratt is now a TriDelta sorority member that has performed the National Anthem at a number of sporting events, including the St. Jude Memphis Marathon Weekend.
Listen to the touching song below.
Brad Paisley Thinks He’s Special aired on ABC and included appearances by Carrie Underwood, Peyton Manning, Tim McGraw, the Jonas Brothers, Hootie and The Blowfish and Kelsea Ballerini (among others).
