After performances from Mariah Carey, Bebe Rexha, Tate McRae, and more, country music icon Morgan Wallen headlined Sunday night’s Billboard Music Awards with a special, Atlanta-themed presentation. Before accepting his 11 BBMA trophies though, the most of any artist at the 2023 ceremony, Wallen was introduced by former Atlanta Braves baseball players Tom Glavine and John Smoltz — members of the tragic 1998 team that inspired Wallen’s March 2023 hit “’98 Braves.”
“We may have come close in ’98, but this guy hit it out of the park tonight,” Smoltz said while standing next to Wallen at Atlanta’s Truist Park.
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Once taking control of the mic, Wallen gave a heartfelt speech where he thanked both his fans and Billboard, promising to not let the nearly dozen new trophies change him.
“You know, like the song says, you win some you lose some,” he said. “Last award show I went to, we came home empty-handed. This one, I don’t have enough hands for ’em all. So, either way, I promise I’ma stay the same regardless if [I] come home with 10 or zero. I’ma give y’all my all every single night. Every single time I go into the studio. So thank you, all of these awards are really just for my fans. So thank you. You took a boy from Tennessee driving a two-door Toyota Tacoma and turned me into one of Billboard‘s top artists. God bless y’all.”
Christening these aforementioned BBMA honors, which included Top Male Artist, Top Hot 100 Artists, Top Country Artist, Top Country Male Artists, Top Country Album, Top Streaming Song, Top Country Song, and more, Wallen then performed “’98 Braves” in front of Smoltz, Glavine, and a few dozen more of his loyal fans. With guitar in hand, his smooth twang and commanding stage presence proved without a shadow of a doubt why he was the No. 1 guy Sunday night.
Check out the performance below.
Photo via Youtube/Billboard Music Awards
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