Garth Brooks Suggested Trisha Yearwood for ACM Awards In Memoriam Performance

During the ACM Awards this month, Trisha Yearwood honored members of the country music community who have died this year, performing her song “I’ll Carry You Home” from an empty Grand Ole Opry House in Nashville. According to ACM Awards Executive Producer RAC Clark, it was Yearwood’s husband, Garth Brooks, who was initially tapped for the In Memoriam segment, but the country star had a different idea.

“We started with the idea of individual performances honoring Kenny Rogers, Charlie Daniels and Joe Diffie, then I said, ‘Folks, I think this is a mistake. We’ve lost so many people. Why not Jimmy Capps, considering we’re at the Opry House?’” Clark recalled to Country Aircheck. “That’s when I turned to the folks at the Academy and said, ‘You’ve got to curate this list.’” He shared that the team approached Brooks about having him perform his hit “The Dance,” but he suggested his wife instead.

“We talked to Garth about ‘The Dance,’ and he responded, ‘Listen to Trisha’s song,’” Clark said. “Of course, it was so appropriate. Plus, I knew she could do the setup from a hosting perspective. It looked so great and we didn’t want to just drop in a package at the end. [Director] Glenn Weiss was saying he wanted to go slow. We had a bumper for a sponsor, but we moved that away and it ended beautifully.”

“I’ll Carry You Home” is from Yearwood’s 2019 album Every Girl and was written by Gordie Samson, Caitlyn Smith and Troy Verges. Last week, she released a music video for the song, which honors the people that have “carried Yearwood home over the years,” including her parents, sister and extended family.

“‘I’ll Carry You Home’ is almost like a prayer,” Yearwood said in a statement, via The Country Daily. “For me, it’s very much about the people in my life that have my back, and also my strong spiritual belief that God’s got me, no matter what. I believe that. It’s really like a prayer. It’s just one of the most beautiful songs that I’ve heard.”

Yearwood performed the “I’ll Carry You” again this week during Monday’s episode of Brooks’ weekly Facebook Live series, Inside Studio G. The latest episode saw Brooks debut a new 360-degree stage, which was outfitted with screens allowing for a live virtual audience, which included Yearwood, who called in to chat and sing.