The 53rd Academy of Country Music (ACM) Awards nominees will be announced on Thursday, March 1. But for one winner, likely nothing will top last year’s ceremony, and not just because he walked away with a trophy.
“Last years ACM awards…,” his wife, Brittany Aldean, shared in an Instagram post, along with a photo of the stunning couple. “We found out on the plane ride to Vegas that we were going to have a baby!…then Jase won entertainer of the year⭐️ What a great trip it was😍”
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The happy parents welcomed son, Memphis, on Dec. 1, 2017, bringing a bright spot into what turned into a challenging and painful few months for the Georgia native.
On Oct. 1, Aldean was on stage at the Route 91 Harvest Festival in Las Vegas, when a gunman opened fire, killing 58 people. In spite of all of the tragedy, Aldean knows how much different his time on stage could have ended.
“We finally started getting all of our gear back, and my bass player opened up his bass, and there was a bullet lodged in his bass,”Aldean said earlier this year. “We were that close. My bass player who stands to my left had a bullet lodged in his guitar.”
For Aldean, having Memphis became part of the healing process.
“One of the things that helped me personally was the birth of my son,” he noted. “Within a couple of months, I saw the worst thing you could possibly experience and the best thing you could possibly experience, with him being born. It gave me a reason to look forward to the new year.”
The 2018 ACM Awards won’t be Aldean’s first time back in Sin City. The tunesmith returned to Vegas one week after the shooting to visit some of the victims in the hospital.
Aldean was also nominated for Male Vocalist of the Year last year, with the award going to Thomas Rhett. Reba McEntire will announce the ACM Awards live on CBS This Morning on Thursday, March 1.
The 53rd Annual ACM Awards will air live from Las Vegas at 8:00 PM ET on CBS.
Photo Credit: Instagram/BrittanyAldean
