- Morgan Wallen
- /
- News
- /
- Videos
Eric Church Presents Morgan Wallen With ACM Milestone Award: ‘I’ve Seen Him Mature As An Artist, I’ve Seen Him Mature As A Man’
Eric Church surprised Morgan Wallen as he appeared on The Ryman stage to present him with the ACM Milestone Award…
Morgan Wallen, Eric Church; Photo by Getty Images For ACM
Eric Church surprised Morgan Wallen as he appeared on The Ryman stage to present him with the ACM Milestone Award at the 15th Annual Academy of Country Music (ACM) Honors.
Following a tribute performance from Wallen’s longtime friends HARDY and ERNEST, who performed a medley of Wallen covers that included “Sand In My Boots,” “Wasted On You” and “More Than My Hometown,” Church walked onto the stage with Wallen’s ACM Award in his hand.
Wallen’s face lit up as he saw his musical hero enter the stage. Church delivered a heartfelt speech that also had the audience bursting into laughter.
“This is such an honor for me, I want to thank the Academy. The ACM called about coming to do this, they said ‘we want you to present this award to Morgan and we want you to tell a story,’ and I said I spent the last three weeks, and I can’t tell you one story that I can actually tell you,” Church joked.
Church, who wrote a song on Wallen’s record-breaking sophomore album, then admitted “it has been one of the honors of my career, and my life, to get to know Morgan over the last couple of years,” before sharing a story of their friendship.
“Whether it’s on a golf cart, a fishing boat, or over guitars late at night, I’ve seen him go through some things, I’ve seen him mature as an artist, I’ve seen him mature as a man,” Church said. ”I can tell you this, we’re very lucky to have him in country music.”
After praising Wallen, Church presented him with the coveted ACM Milestone Award, which according to the Academy Of Country Music, is “presented to a Country Music artist, duo/group or industry leader for a specific, unprecedented or outstanding achievement in the field of Country Music during the preceding calendar year.”
Wallen, who was seated in the front row of the audience with his mother Lesli and father Tommy by his side, then joined Church on stage to accept the award in front of the star-studded crowd.
“I had a whole that I typed out, before I knew any of this was going on,” Wallen said as Church watched on from side stage. ”The first concert I ever went to was an Eric Church concert in Thompson-Boling Arena in Knoxville. And man I just, I felt… it seemed to me like I could feel what he was feeling when he was singin’… I mean, it changed my life. So for you to be up here presenting this to me now is more special than I can put into words.”
The “You Proof” continued to thank everyone on his team and all those who have encouraged him to follow his dreams.
“You know, I get to do this in front of my parents who are here tonight. Thank you guys for always supporting me,” Wallen added. ”Man, thank you to everybody that’s on my team, my friends, my songwriting friends.”
Wallen then took a moment to recognize HARDY and ERNEST’s impressive performance that celebrated several of his chart-topping hits.
“HARDY and ERN, you know… I never really got to hear ’em perform like that, so that was really special for me too,” Wallen continued. “We’ve known each other a long time now, we’ve written 100 songs together, we’ve done a lot of things together and that was one of my favorite moments of all of the ones we’ve had together.”
After thanking the Academy of Country Music for bestowing the esteemed honor upon him, Wallen went on to thank God and his band.
“Thank you to God. Me and God, we’ve had some interesting do-si-dos, I guess you could say,” Wallen quipped. ”That definitely wasn’t in my speech originally. But I really am grateful for the opportunities. You know, me and my band, thank you to my band, I think they’re in here somewhere. I really am grateful for the opportunities that have been given to me, and just for everybody who’s made it possible, I thank you guys. Most of you know who you are.”
He concluded his speech by graciously thanking his fans.
”It’s been an incredible year, just to hit on the awards, so it’s been awesome. Awards are awesome, but my true measure of success is my fans, and I get to see every single night out on the road this year and for many years,” Wallen said. ”So thank you guys for supporting me, man, it means a lot to me. Seriously, thank everybody, I really appreciate it. God bless you, have a great night.”
Hosted by reigning ACM Female Artist of the Year, Carly Pearce, the 15th Annual ACM Honors took place on Wednesday, August 24 at the famed Ryman Auditorium in Nashville, Tennessee.
Dubbed “Country Music industry’s favorite night,” ACM Honors recognized several special honorees, including ACM Triple Crown Award recipient Miranda Lambert, ACM Spirit Award recipient Chris Stapleton, ACM Poet’s Award recipient Shania Twain, ACM Milestone Award recipient Morgan Wallen and ACM Film Award recipient Yellowstone.
Performers and presenters included Kelsea Ballerini, Dierks Bentley, The Warren Brothers, Brooks & Dunn, Dan + Shay, Eric Church, Jordan Davis, ERNEST, Jesse Frasure, Vince Gill, Ashley Gorley, Mickey Guyton, HARDY, Wynonna Judd, Avril Lavigne, Little Big Town, Morgan Wallen, Lainey Wilson and more.
ACM Award winner and Grammy nominee Trace Adkins was also on hand to perform his cover of “A Country Boy Can Survive,” from the brand new FOX country music drama MONARCH, in which he stars alongside Susan Sarandon and Anna Friel.
ACM Honors premiered on Tuesday, September 13 at 8/7c on FOX. The show will be available to stream the following day on Hulu.
Lauren Jo Black is a longtime country music journalist, editor, host, and media personality whose work has helped shape the conversation around country music for nearly two decades. As the current Editor-in-Chief of Country Now, she has become one of the genre’s most respected voices, interviewing hundreds of country music’s biggest stars, including Dolly Parton, Garth Brooks, Reba McEntire, Shania Twain, Randy Travis, Luke Bryan, Carrie Underwood, Blake Shelton, Luke Combs, and countless others. Over the course of her career, Black’s written work and interviews have reached billions of country music fans worldwide. A 2009 graduate of the University of Central Florida, Black began her career by founding Country Music Is Love, one of country music’s earliest independent digital publications, which she later sold to a major record label in 2015 before it was rebranded as Sounds Like Nashville. She then served as the publication’s Editor-in-Chief for more than two years. Her work has also appeared in Forbes, and she previously served as the Country Music Expert for Answers.com. Widely recognized for her expertise, Black has appeared as a featured guest on The Bobby Bones Show, BobbyCast, and Scripps News Morning Rush, providing insight on country music’s biggest moments. She has also hosted Country Now Live, a concert series featuring performances from artists including Lady A, Dierks Bentley, Riley Green, Jordan Davis, Dustin Lynch, Gabby Barrett, Brett Young, Jon Pardi, Kip Moore, Chris Young, and more. The series has welcomed thousands of fans in person while reaching millions more online. In addition, she hosted Connect With Country Now, a weekly interview series featuring conversations with rising country stars. Throughout her career, Black has earned a reputation for discovering and championing artists long before they become household names. She has covered Luke Bryan since the early days of his career, beginning when he was writing songs for other artists, including Billy Currington’s No. 1 hit “Good Directions,” before stepping into the spotlight with his debut single, “All My Friends Say” and eventually becoming one of biggest names in music. She also gave Megan Moroney her first opportunity to walk a major red carpet as Country Now’s official guest correspondent at the 2022 CMA Awards. An interview she conducted in 2018 for Forbes.com with Luke Combs that inspired his multi-week No. 1 hit, “Doin’ This.” She has also hosted stages at CMA Fest, moderated an industry panel at Country Radio Seminar, and helped lead important conversations about the evolving landscape of country music media. Beyond journalism, Black has also used her platform to support charitable causes and highlight organizations making an impact. Through Country Now Live, she has helped raise awareness and support for St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital, while also advocating for animal rescue through Country Now’s Pupdate series, spotlighting organizations including MuttNation Foundation, Wags & Walks, and Proverbs 12:10 Animal Rescue. Black has been recognized as one of Country Aircheck’s Women of Influence and received the 2012 Rising Star Award from the University of Central Florida. She is a longtime member of both the Country Music Association (CMA) and the Academy of Country Music (ACM). After nearly 20 years covering country music, Lauren Jo Black has spent her career telling the stories behind the artists, songs, and moments that have shaped the genre. Her first-ever book, Country Music Forever: An A-to-Z Celebration of Icons, Songs and Stories, brings that same passion and firsthand knowledge to the page, celebrating not only the legendary artists and timeless songs that have become the soundtrack to generations of fans, but also the places, traditions, and cultural moments that have made country music one of the most beloved genres around the world.
You may also like
Country Next
Playlist
On Repeat
Get the latest country music news delivered straight to your inbox.
