Kane Brown Emotionally Dedicates His Artist of the Year Award to His Late Drummer

It was an emotional night for Kane Brown. The singer/songwriter made his first public appearance since the tragic loss of…

Lauren Jo Black

| Posted on

October 16, 2019

8:30 pm

Kane Brown, CMT Artists of the Year

It was an emotional night for Kane Brown.

The singer/songwriter made his first public appearance since the tragic loss of his longtime drummer, Kenny Dixon, to accept the CMT Artist of the Year Award. Understandably, Brown skipped the red carpet prior to the show but felt that it was important to be there to accept the award, which he emotionally dedicated to Dixon during his acceptance speech.

After being introduced by one of his good friends and frequent collaborators, Chris Young, Brown took the stage and delivered a heartfelt speech.

“Thank y’all so much,” he began. “I wanna dedicate this to my drummer, Kenny. He started with me coming out of Chattanooga off Facebook. People didn’t think we would make it. He was with me the whole time. He was so supportive of me. I love you, man. I miss you. The band misses you.”

.@kanebrown dedicated his award to his drummer Kenny Dixon.

Rest in Peace Kenny. The country community will remember you. ?#CMTAOTY pic.twitter.com/gSFV07Ae3Z

— CMT (@CMT) October 17, 2019

As his emotions began to take over, Brown dialed it back a bit and went on to thank his management, fans, CMT and “everybody that’s helped me get where I’m at.”

Kenny Dixon, 27, passed away on Saturday (Oct. 12) after reportedly losing control of his car while traveling on Interstate 24 in Christiana, Tenn. He leaves behind a fiancée and young son.

Brown paid tribute to Dixon on Sunday, writing, “Love you so much dude!!! You started all of this with me from the start in 2015 when no body else believed we would make it out of Chattanooga playing for 500 people and your last show was in a Fn Stadium my guy I know u will be watching over us with that red neck accent that we all love and you will never be replaced bro!!! I promise u that!! ”

Dixon will be laid to rest on Sunday, October 20.

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.