Country star, perennial awards show show-stealer and American Idol judge Luke Bryan performed two songs during Monday night's (March 7) broadcast of the 2022 ACM Awards: "Up" and Jordan Davis collaboration "Buy Dirt."
First came a spirited performance of "Up." The Bobby Pinson, Jeremy Bussey and Taylor Phillips co-write lists off different ways the word "up" applies to everyday life, from getting out of bed in the morning to watching a local high school football team light up the scoreboard. There's even a fishing analogy, which is fitting for a song sandwiched on the tracklist in between "Bill Dance" and "Floatin' This Creek."
"It talks about what I love and what's dear to me," Bryan said (as quoted by The Boot). "Add to that the fact that the songwriters used just a simple word as 'up' to create so many images is pretty special."
Davis then joined Bryan for a crowd singalong-sparking rendition of "Buy Dirt," written by brother duos Jordan and Jacob Davis and Josh and Matt Jenkins.
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Fittingly, Davis first met Bryan at an awards show.
The performances came on a night when Bryan wasn't on the ballot to defend his 2021 Entertainer of the Year award. In fact, were it not for three nominations shared with Davis for "Buy Dirt" (Single of the Year, Song of the Year and Music Event of the Year), Bryan would've been snubbed altogether by the academy.
The 57th Academy of Country Music Awards (ACM Awards) take place on Mon., March 7 at Allegiant Stadium in Las Vegas. This year's hosts are Dolly Parton, Gabby Barrett and Jimmie Allen. The show airs exclusively on Amazon Prime starting at 8 p.m. EST. Check Wide Open Country for full coverage before, during and after the broadcast.
