Chris Stapleton shredded his guitar in an impressive solo during his performance of “Cold” at the 2021 CMA Awards on Wednesday night (Nov. 10) from Nashville’s Bridgestone Arena.
The singer/songwriter was introduced by his friend and host Luke Bryan, for whom Stapleton co-wrote the hit single “Drink a Beer” in 2013 with James Beavers.
With five nominations at this year’s CMAs, Stapleton had already won single and song of the year for “Starting Over” (co-written by Mike Henderson) before taking the stage to sing his soulful ballad “Cold” and would later take album of the year for the LP of the same name.
The country superstar was backed by a string orchestra as he sang his bluesy single. Donning a dark suit and an embellished cowboy hat, Stapleton and his band were framed by spotlights that lit up their audience during the performance.
“Cold” is the third single from Stapleton’s 2020 LP Starting Over, which is his fourth album to reach No. 1 on Billboard’s Top Country Albums chart.
In addition to the previously mentioned awards, Stapleton is still in the running for entertainer of the year and male vocalist of the year.
Stapleton was first awarded at the CMA Awards in 2015 with album of the year for Traveller, male vocalist of the year and new artist of the year.
Watch the full performance below:
