Kane Brown Brings The House Down With Energetic ‘Like I Love Country Music’ Performance During ‘CMT Artists Of The Year’

“It honestly feels so amazing just to be recognized,” Brown shared.

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Lauren Jo Black

| Posted on

October 14, 2022

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9:41 pm

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Kane Brown; Photo by Getty Images for CMT

Kane Brown earned a standing ovation with his show-stopping performance of his latest chart-topping hit during the 2022 CMT Artists Of The Year celebration.

The country superstar wowed the star-studded crowd with his performance of “Like I Love Country Music,” a tune that shouts out country legends Willie Nelson, George Jones, Alan Jackson, Brooks & Dunn and compares his love for his wife to his love for country music. 

Kane Brown and Katelyn Brown; Photo by Jason Kempin/Getty Images for CMT
Kane Brown and Katelyn Brown; Photo by Jason Kempin/Getty Images for CMT

“Baby, I love you like I love country music / You get me high as Willie, girl / You get me gone as Jones / You turn me on as much as I turn on my radio / Let’s take our time, walk the line /Kinda like Johnny and June did / Yeah, let’s do this / Baby, I love you like I love country music,“ Brown sings on the chorus.

The performance also included several backup dancers, who delivered a perfectly choreographed dance routine to the chart-topping hit.

YouTube video

Following his performance, “Thinking ‘Bout You” singer and soon-to-be tourmate Dustin Lynch took to the stage to present Brown with his CMT Artist Of The Year trophy. 

Brown returned to the stage to accept the prestigious honor. 

“I just want to say, thank you CMT. This is awesome. It honestly feels so amazing just to be recognized,” Brown said. 

He went on to thank his wife, Katelyn Brown, who was all smiles in the crowd. The Browns’ also celebrated their fourth wedding anniversary the same day as the show’s taping. 

”I want to thank my beautiful wife. It’s our [fourth] anniversary today. I love you babe,” Brown continued. “I also want to thank my team, Martha, Ken, everybody at Sony, I love all you guys, like I said I say this every year, Lainey [Wilson] said it earlier, I just feel like Nashville is our home. We’re just one big family, and that’s what I love about country music. I feel like everybody supports each other. So I love you guys, and thank y’all so much for this. See y’all.”

The 2022 CMT Artists Of The Year celebrated the success Carly Pearce, Kane Brown, Cody Johnson, Luke Combs and Walker Hayes have seen throughout the past year. 

Alan Jackson was honored as the CMT Artist Of A Lifetime. The prestigious honor, presented by Ram Trucks, was previously awarded to Randy Travis (2021), Reba McEntire (2019), Loretta Lynn (2018), Shania Twain (2016), Kenny Rogers (2015) and Merle Haggard (2014).

Lainey Wilson was named the 2022 CMT Breakout Artist Of The Year. Wilson is the fifth recipient of the award, following Mickey Guyton (2021), Ashley McBryde (2019), Kelsea Ballerini (2016), and Chris Stapleton (2015).

Cody Johnson, Carly Pearce, Walker Hayes, Alan Jackson, Kane Brown and Lainey Wilson; Photo by Catherine Powell/Getty Images for CMT
Cody Johnson, Carly Pearce, Walker Hayes, Alan Jackson, Kane Brown and Lainey Wilson; Photo by Catherine Powell/Getty Images for CMT

The 90-minute concert event featured performances from Jackson, Pearce, Johnson, Brown and Wilson. Hayes joined forces with Ciara for a never-before-seen performance of their “Y’all Life” remix. Riley Green also took the stage to honor Luke Combs.

A heartwarming tribute to the late Loretta Lynn, who passed away earlier this month at the age of 90, also took place during the star-studded event when her sisters, Crystal Gayle and Peggy Sue Wright, performed in her honor.  

In addition to a star-studded list of performances, the show also included presenters: Chris Stapleton, Dan + Shay, Dustin Lynch, Rascal Flatts’ frontman Gary LeVox, Kelsea Ballerini, Yellowstone’s Kelsey Asbille, and Shane McAnally.

Dale Earnhardt Jr. appeared remotely from his annual Dale Jr. Foundation charity event in North Carolina to present Combs with his 2022 CMT Artists Of The Year award.

The 2022 CMT Artists Of The Year premiered on Friday, October 14 at 9/8c on CMT.

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Lauren Jo Black

Written by

Lauren Jo Black

Lauren Jo Black, a University of Central Florida graduate, has immersed herself in the world of country music for over 15 years. In 2008, she co-founded CountryMusicIsLove, eventually selling it to a major record label in 2015. Following the rebranding of the website to Sounds Like Nashville, Black served as Editor-in-Chief for two and a half years. Currently, she assumes the role of Editor-in-Chief at Country Now and oversees Country Now’s content and digital footprint. Her extensive experience also encompasses her previous role as a Country Music Expert Writer for Answers.com and her work being featured on Forbes.com. She’s been spotlighted among Country Aircheck’s Women of Influence and received the 2012 Rising Star Award from the University of Central Florida. Black also spent time in front of the camera as host of Country Now Live, which brought live music directly to fans in 2021 when the majority of concerts were halted due to the pandemic. During this time, she hosted 24 weeks of live concerts via Country Now Live on Twitch with special guests such as Lady A, Dierks Bentley, Jordan Davis, Brett Young, and Jon Pardi. Over the course of her career, she has had the privilege of conducting interviews with some of the industry’s most prominent stars, including Reba McEntire, Blake Shelton, Luke Combs, Carrie Underwood, Luke Bryan, Miranda Lambert, Lainey Wilson, and many others. Lauren Jo Black is a longtime member of the Country Music Association and the Academy of Country Music.