Maren Morris never expected to hear her name declared as the winner of the 2020 ACM Award for Female Artist of the Year. The Texas native, who shared the category with Miranda Lambert, Carrie Underwood, Kelsea Ballerini and Kacey Musgraves, was stunned when she found out she won, especially among so much talent.
“Miranda’s clinched it nine or ten or more years in a row, and she deserves it, so I just feel like, I never really saw myself winning this,” Maren shared in a virtual press conference after her win. “I feel like when I vote on that award in years past, it’s for not the best singer of the bunch, because that’s so subjective, but I feel like that goes to someone that your peers think had a massive, monumental year. So I’m just so humbled that my Nashville community, and my industry peeps think that my year has been big, because part of it has been in 2020, which has been kind of a sh– show. So I feel like someone saying that I had a good year is so much validation.”
Maren thanked her husband, Ryan Hurd, six-month old son, Hayes, and people on her team from stage after accepting the trophy, later realizing there were many more people she wanted to thank.
“I’m in shock still,” Maren maintained. “I feel like the Female Vocalist award is just so monumental. The women that have gone before me and won that award, that’s who I really should have thanked. Now I’m just realizing I completely brain-farted on that one. I was like, ‘Did I miss anyone? Oh, all the women that came before me with this huge award, thank you!’
“I am so inspired by every single woman in that category,” she continued. “I’m friends with every single nominee in that category, so I know how much we uplift and support each other in this community, so it just feels amazing to walk away with that. And to also walk away with Musical Event, with Miranda and Caylee and Tenille and Ashley. So it’s just been the night of the ladies.”
Maren also got to perform her current single, “To Hell and Back.” The song, which Maren wrote with Jessie Jo Dillon and Laura Veltz, is from her GIRL album. After being forced to forced to postpone her RSVP: The Tour this year, because of COVID-19, getting to sing from the stage of the Ryman Auditorium was that much more meaningful for her.
“The performance itself was so emotional, because we were at the Ryman,” Maren acknowledged. “It had been months since I’ve gotten to see my band, so even though we were performing for no audience, I felt like, ‘Hey, at least we’re getting to play live music for the first time in almost a year.’ We didn’t want the song to end. We could have just kept going, because it was like, ‘When are we going to see each other next?’
“So it was emotional, and I think just after you have a kid, especially, you kind of have to fit back into your artist girl shoes and you’re not just like the mom for a second,” she added. “It was a lot to absorb, but I had so much fun up there.”
See the complete list of winners here.
