Watch Sam Hunt Cover Reba McEntire’s ‘Fancy’ at CMT Artists of the Year Ceremony

In one of the most talked about performances during the recent CMT Artists of the Year ceremony, Sam Hunt closed out the show by performing a cover of Reba McEntire‘s “Fancy.” The song, one of the most well-known of McEntire’s career, is from her 17th album, Rumor Has It, released in 1990.

Hunt sang the song after McEntire had been awarded the CMT Artist of a Lifetime honor. Lady Antebellum also paid honor to McEntire by singing, “Is There Life Out There,” prior to Vince Gill‘s touching tribute to the country music icon.

In the video, McEntire can be seen singing along as Hunt performs the classic hit. Although fitting that he used the song to pay tribute to McEntire, the 34-year-old has been including the song in his set list for his own shows for years.

McEntire accepted the Artist of a Lifetime honor by praising Thomas Rhett for his boldness in praying for Kane Brown during the live broadcast, after Brown marked his first public appearance at the ceremony since the death of his drummer, Kenny Dixon.

“Thomas Rhett, God bless you for praying in front [of us],” McEntire said from stage. “You’re special. That took guts. But as you said, that might not be aired on this but He knows. It better be aired! It better make the cut. Because that’s what we need in our lives, is a little more God. We’ve got to give this world back to God.

“We’ve got to give Him the focus and the attention that He needs,” she continued. “I love this business. I love country music. It’s fun. I love the competition and I love y’all. Thank you very much for this. I love my family, my friends. You all are super. Thank you all so much!”

Hunt just announced the release of a new single, “Kinfolks.”

“When I think of ‘kinfolks,’ when I think of that phrase, I think of my family, but also I think of my people back home – beyond family,” Hunt said of the song. “It’s my buddies who’ve been a part of my story from the beginning. I’ve made a lot of new friends and met a lot of new people who are important to me since I’ve moved away, but that core group is still my core group. It’s like that old saying, ‘you can’t make old friends.’”

Photo Credit: Getty Images for CMT/Viacom