Chris Stapleton Wins 'Entertainer of the Year,' But It's What He Did After the Show That Has Fans Cheering
Country music star Chris Stapleton marked Friday night by winning his first Entertainer of the Year award from the Academy of Country Music.
And when the show was over, he was just another working man.
After the annual academy awards show was over, Stapleton was photographed doing a little cleanup.
According to Billboard, the unscripted moment at the Ford Center at The Star in Frisco, Texas, came as Stapleton and his entourage were leaving the main room at the center.
And so, still wearing the jacket and jeans that were his show clothing, Stapleton grabbed a leaf blower to deal with confetti on the floor.
Stapleton posted the photo on his Twitter account, along with a quote from one of the night’s big winners, Female Artist of the Year and Album of the Year winner Lainey Wilson.
“If you’re gonna be a dreamer, you better be a doer.” — @laineywilson
📸: @ShearerPhoto #ACMawards pic.twitter.com/u4LjGUbqiH
— Chris Stapleton (@ChrisStapleton) May 12, 2023
“If you’re gonna be a dreamer, you better be a doer,” Stapleton posted.
The website SavingCountryMusic.com had a lot to say about the incident.
“Similar to the photo of Stapleton in Wal-Mart last year buying supplies for flood victims, it wasn’t supposed to make it to the public, but it did,” the site noted.
“The shot really symbolizes the kind of Entertainer of the Year Chris Stapleton is. It also symbolizes the kind of Entertainer of the Year country music should want."
Over at the website WhiskeyRiff, writer Casey Young commented, "A picture’s worth a thousand words, as the old saying goes, and this says everything you need to know about the kind of man Chris is."
In February, Stapleton achieved a niche in Super Bowl fame with one of the most resounding renditions of the national anthem to grace the game.
In his acceptance speech Friday night, Stapleton said others could have been on stage in his place, Billboard noted.
“I’m shocked, truly. By any imaginable metric, I don’t deserve this,” he said.
An incredible moment, an incredible speech and an even more incredible ⭐️ ENTERTAINER OF THE YEAR ⭐️
Congratulations, @chrisstapleton! #ACMawards pic.twitter.com/LBwVl7m5u4
— ACM Awards (@ACMawards) May 12, 2023
“There are so many other great people in this category," he said.
"I get up there, and I stand up there and play music, that's what I try to do every night. And I write songs and make records and I never thought of myself as somebody who would win this award."
This article appeared originally on The Western Journal.
