Morgane Stapleton did not perform alongside her husband, Chris Stapleton, at this year’s Academy of Country Music Awards. The couple had been set to perform a duet of “Maggie’s Song,” a ballad dedicated to their late lab-terrier.
Miranda Lambert replaced Morgane for the awards ceremony performance. Just minutes before the show was set to start, it was announced that Morgane had a “prior doula commitment” which kept her from appearing.
Miranda Lambert Replaced Morgane Lambert to Perform Alongside Chris Stapleton at This Year’s ACM Awards.
“Due to her prior doula commitment, Morgane Stapleton is unable to join Chris Stapleton at the Bluebird as scheduled,” the ACM statement read. “Miranda Lambert will instead take the Bluebird stage with Chris tonight for ‘Maggie’s Song.'”
Lambert, who was already set to sing her new duet with Elle King, “Drunk (And I Don’t Want to Go Home),” had a busy night! She also performed with Jack Ingram and Jon Randall, making it a robust ceremony for Lambert fans.
“Maggie’s Song,” recorded by Chris, and his wife singing backup, tells the story of the couple’s rescue dog who recently passed away.
“I told her she was a good dog / And I told her goodbye / Run, Maggie, run,” Chris sings. “With the heart of a rebel child / Run Maggie, run / Be just as free as you are wild.”
“It’s all true stuff,” Stapleton told the Los Angeles Times about the touching song. “There’s no embellishment in it,” before saying, “That one was hard to sing. I kept crying through a lot of it.”
Lambert did a great job staying true to Chris’s vision for his song, as evident by the Instagram post he shared following their duet. “Thank you to @mirandalambert & all my friends at the ACMs,” he captioned a photo of himself with Lambert.
RELATED: Miranda Lambert Reveals ‘Special Moment’ She Had With Ex-Husband Blake Shelton
Chris was nominated for more awards than any other male artist. His name was found in prestigious categories like entertainer, male artist, and album of the year. Spoiler alert! His track, “Starting Over,” won song of the year and the album of the same name won album of the year.
Although Lambert was leaned on heavily for the performances at the ACMs, she did not take home any wins. Of the four categories she was nominated in, the county star failed to score a win.
That does not mean that Lambert did not win some hearts with her performance with Chris.
“Best performance of the night,” one person commented on the photo that Chris shared on Instagram.
Lambert also shared images on Instagram following her multiple performances including a photo of herself singing alongside Chris.
“Feeling so thankful that I get to sing country music with some of my favorite artists and favorite people,” she captioned the post. “Thank you @elleking @chrisstapleton @jonrandallmusic @jackingram for inspiring me and for sharing your stage with me.”
YOU MIGHT ALSO LIKE: 25 Baby Names for Girls Inspired By Country Music Stars & Songs
“Morgane Stapleton we missed ya,” her captioned continued. “Stepping in for @morganwithane … that’s some big boots to fill. I hope I did you both proud on Maggie’s Song. One of the best songs of all time.”
We do not know what “prior doula commitment” kept Morgane Stapleton from performing with her husband, but we do know that Miranda Lambert did a most excellent job singing backup for Chris Stapleton.
Mamas Uncut is THE online place for moms. We cover the latest about motherhood, parenting, and entertainment as well – all with a mom-focused twist. So if you're looking for parenting advice from real parents, we have plenty of it, all for moms from moms, and also experts. Because, at the end of the day, our mission is focused solely on empowering moms and moms-to-be with the knowledge and answers they’re looking for in one safe space.