Brad Paisley shared how he really felt about Carrie Underwood tying for Entertainer of the Year at the 2020 Academy of Country Music Awards earlier this month. For the first time in history, two artists won the biggest award of the night, when both Carrie and Thomas Rhett took home statues.
The American Idol alum’s latest win also made history as it marked the first time a woman has won the category three times. The mom of two was previously crowned ACM’s EOTY in 2009 and 2010.
Brad spoke candidly this week about the shocking moment the tie was announced by host Keith Urban on September 16. He admitted he thinks Carrie has been worthy of the prestigious award for the past several years and thinks she should continue to win it for the next several ceremonies.
“That’s kind of tricky, because Thomas has done so well, so you don’t want to diminish him,” the “Waitin’ on a Woman” singer said, per 94.5 Country’s tweet .
“But, look, I’ll just say, if she wins it the next four years, there’s still making up for lost time with her. She’s deserved it a lot longer. She deserved it last year. She deserved it the year before that. She really should have won it already.”
Plenty of fans supported the country star’s sentiment on Twitter.
“EXACTLY, Brad,” one person tweeted .
“No Doubt… Brad! Great Call of the Truth!” another wrote .
“It’s just facts,” a third tweeted via a GIF.
Brad also appeared to reference the controversy that surrounded his “Remind Me” duet partner after she was passed over for the same award at the 2019 Country Music Association Awards .
Garth Brooks was given the honor, which saw intense backlash from fans on social media. The choice was particularly controversial, as the 2019 ceremony was designed to recognize the women of the genre.
The “Friends in Low Places” singer has since taken his name out of the running from ever winning in the category again. He admitted the wave of negative responses made him step aside and also said he thought the “Before He Cheats” singer would win.
Carrie and Brad previously co-hosted the CMAs together for more than a decade, with the former taking to the stage in 2019 with Reba McEntire and Dolly Parton . Both have now stepped back and will not helm the 2020 ceremony set to take place in November.
The “Something in the Water” vocalist is nominated in the CMA EOTY category again. She’ll go up against Eric Church, Luke Combs, Miranda Lambert, and Keith Urban.