The ACM Honors were a full-circle moment for Kelsea Ballerini.
The multiplatinum singer/songwriter performed at the 15th annual show last night (August 24) in Nashville, where she paid tribute to ACM Poet’s Award recipient Shania Twain by performing “Man! I Feel Like a Woman!” during the event.
Before taking the stage, the 28-year-old hit the red carpet in the Country queen’s iconic gown that she wore to the 1999 GRAMMYs.
“Kelsea reached out, and Shania was more than happy to lend her the dress and thought it [was] really fun,” the rep said, according to PEOPLE.
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The crystal gown, designed by Marc Bouwer, is a fashion staple that marks an important milestone in Shania’s career. She took home two GRAMMYs on that night 23 years ago, where the 56-year-old won best country song for “Man! I Feel Like a Woman!” and best female country vocal performance for “You’re Still the One.” She also performed during the show.
Ballerini looked stunning as ever in the iconic gown, telling E! News, “I’m in Shania’s dress from the Grammys in 1999, unaltered. I got it twenty-four hours ago. When I was asked to be a part of honoring her, obviously my first thought went to what can I sing, but then my second thought went to, she didn’t just change the music industry from her voice and her songs, she changed it in every way in fashion and the way that she pushed every boundary.”
This isn’t the first time Kelsea and Shania have collaborated. In 2017, Ballerini joined Shania on stage at Stagecoach, followed by a remix of her single “Hole In The Bottle“ in November 2020. Most recently, Ballerini appeared in Twain’s 2022 Netflix documentary “Shania Twain: Not Just a Girl” where she discussed the impact Twain has had on women in country music.
Ballerini is finishing up the year strong, as she’s set to release her fourth studio album Subject to Change on September 23. The first single off the album, “HEARTFIRST,” is currently Top 30 and climbing at Country Radio. She is also set to embark on the exclusive 10 night only HEARTFIRST TOUR in the fall. This headline jaunt launches on September 24th at Radio City Music Hall and hits the Greek Theatre in Los Angeles, CA on October 6th plus additional major markets coast-to-coast.
You can catch Kelsea’s performance when the ACM Honors airs on Tuesday, September 13 @ 8/7c on FOX. Other celebs that are confirmed to make appearances include Dierks Bentley, The Warren Brothers, Brooks & Dunn, Dan + Shay, Jordan Davis, ERNEST, Jesse Frasure, Vince Gill, Ashley Gorley, Mickey Guyton, HARDY, Wynonna Judd, Avril Lavigne, Little Big Town, Morgan Wallen, Lainey Wilson and more.
For more Country news, visit CelebSecretsCountry.com.
