Chris Young, who presents the 'One Thing Right' singer with the award during the ceremony, also hits the stage to pay tribute to Kenny Dixon with a touching performance of 'Drowning'.
- October 17, 2019
AceShowbiz - Kane Brown got emotional when accepting his award at the 2019 CMT Artist of the Year ceremony at the Schermerhorn Symphony Center in Nashville on Wednesday, October 16. The country singer broke down in tears while dedicating the trophy to his late drummer Kenny Dixon, who died in a car accident just days before the event.
Taking the stage to accept the award from Chris Young, Kane couldn't hold back his tears during his speech. Letting out a heavy sigh, he said, "I want to 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 supportive of me. I love you, man. I miss you. The band misses you."
He went expressing his gratitude to all the people who had been supporting him until now, "I love everybody. Country music, all the people in here that I talk to, that I don't talk to, just know that I love you guys. I love the country community. God bless you guys. You all stay safe. I love you all."
Later on, Chris hit the stage to pay tribute to Kenny with a touching performance of "Drowning". Prior to the performance, the bearded singer said, "I wrote this song about a friend of mine that passed away too soon in a car accident, so I kind of empathize with Kane of what he's going through and I really appreciate him allowing me to stand up here tonight and sing this in honor of his friend Kenny."
Kenny died in a single-vehicle crash on Saturday, October 12 in which speed was believed to be the cause, with drugs and alcohols not believed to be factors. It was reported that his car left the I-24 interstate about 40 miles southeast of Nashville and crashed head-on into a tree.
