Lainey Wilson may not have walked away with the Video of the Year award – but the country music singer had her dreams come true at Monday's CMT Music Awards.
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The Things A Man Oughta Know singer spoke exclusively to HELLO! US ahead of the 2022 ceremony and admitted that just being nominated at country music's only fan-voted awards show was an honor. "It's all about the fans," she told us.
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"We do this for the fans. We wouldn't be able to do this without them. So, for them to be involved directly is pretty special."
Speaking of her nominations – which also included Best Digital-First Performance – Lainey added: "It is an honor to be nominated in the first place. I've been going to the CMT Music Awards since I was 14 with my family and grew up dreaming to be a part of the show. Being nominated is just one step closer to taking it home."
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But if she did have to lose out on collecting the Video of the Year award, she couldn't think of anyone more deserving than Jason and Carrie.
© Photo: Getty ImagesLainey lost out to Carrie Underwood and Jason Aldean
"Would love to see my ol' tour mate Jason Aldean take home a win with Carrie Underwood," she admitted.
Lainey also performed her duet, Never Say Never, with Cole Swindell on the night and admitted that she finds singing in front of her industry peers much more daunting than performing for her fans.
"I feel more confident in front of people that I know showed up to see me," she confessed.
© Photo: Getty ImagesLainey performed her duet with Cole Swindell
Lainey wasn't the only talented musician to take to the stage at Nashville's Municipal Auditorium.
A who's who of country music singers lit up the stage with show-stopping performances, including Mickey Guyton and Black Pumas, Kane Brown, Cody Johnson, Miranda Lambert, Maren Morris and Ryan Hurd, Carly Pearce, Keith Urban, Jason Aldean and Bryan Adams and so many more.
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