'CMA Best Of Fest': Lil Nas X relives epic 'Old Town Road' performance with Billy Ray Cyrus and Keith Urban
Fans were treated to the best walk down memory lane with the CMAs 'Best of Fest' featuring performances from top country stars, both old and new.
Following epic performances from the likes of Carrie Underwood, the night of country's best continued with Thomas Rhett's 'Life Changes' and it truly is one of the best songs for the times. "Would've seen @ThomasRhett at #CUSA2020, but that got cancelled. Boo," shared one fan, adding, "Thank you, #CMAfest for showing this special." Another said, "@ThomasRhett is a performer through and through and thats a FACT," and one fan tweeted, "'Life changes' is such a sweet and amazing song #CMAfest #bestoffest @ThomasRhett I love you so much."
Miranda Lambert's epic 2007 performance of 'Kerosene' was up next and as the CMA Twitter shared, "@MirandaLambert rocking out on stage is always a MOOD." Fans got to relive one of their favorite Lambert performances of all time. One user tweeted, "Aww baby @mirandalambert from 2007!! Whatever happened to that mohawk dude in her band?" Another said, "KEROSENE IS STILL MY JAM!!!!!" and one fan quipped, "2007 Miranda Lambert really had 10 year old me singing Kerosene so hard like who hurt me?"
One of the biggest moments of the night was, without question, Lil Nas X's 2019 performance of 'Old Town Road' featuring Billy Ray Cyrus and Keith Urban, making for a gorgeous combination of country stars from across genres and towns. One fan stated, "This “old town road” performance is incredible," while another shared, "Old Town Road.....crazy how huge that song was, Keith Urban singing & playing with them was [fire] tho." Another fan stated, "Old Town Road got better and better every time I heard @LilNasX and @billyraycyrus! But they should re-release it with @KeithUrban, that #CMAFest version was insane!" and one fan tweeted, "That old town duet with @KeithUrban @billyraycyrus @LilNasX was lit."
"Name a better trio...@billyraycyrus @lilnasx @keithurban," asked one fan, adding, "I mean, come on, they had @nissanstadium singing along with thunderous roars!" Some lucky viewers who missed the performance the first time around got to see it for the first time tonight, sharing, "Never saw the @LilNasX @billyraycyrus @KeithUrban version of Old Town Road! Loved it!"
One fan joked, "Confession: still don’t know how to do this dance .... but the fact that @KeithUrban is playing banjo on #OldTownRoad makes up for it," while another stated, "Keith playing the damn banjo is so HOT!" Of course, the debate around Lil Nas X's legitimacy as a country artist still exists. One viewer shared, "How are you gonna have a rap song on the best of a country show? Terrible," but others openly criticized the artist's detractors, stating, "Aw remember when all the cry baby racist white people got mad about Lil Nas X being apart of country music culture. Like this guy is mad fun, shut up and vibe with the horse song."