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"Our momentum just kept building up and going on and getting bigger and bigger," Chesney, 36, said backstage after the CBS broadcast of the 38th annual CMA awards show in the Grand Ole Opry. "The audiences fed our energy and any entertainer can tell you that we feed off the crowd in return."
Chesney told PEOPLE that when the award for entertainer of the year was about to be announced, fellow singer Alan Jackson "touched me on the shoulder and said, 'I hope you win this.'" Jackson apparently had the lucky touch
Meanwhile, one of country music's most well-known performers, Tim McGraw, won awards for both song of the year and single of the year for Live Like You Were Dying.
"The song came to me around Thanksgiving and that’s kind of when we started knowing for sure that Tug didn’t have much of a chance, so it meant a lot to me," said McGraw of his baseball legend father who died of cancer in January. "I never played the song for him – he never heard the song because I didn’t think it was appropriate."
The tune's lyrics are about a man in his early 40s who learns he doesn't have much time to live. McGraw sings, "Someday I hope you get the chance to live like you were dying."
Written by Tim Nichols and Craig Wiseman, Live Like You Were Dying, spent eight weeks at the top of the charts this summer.
The title of musician of the year went to guitarist Dann Huff. Keith Urban was honored as male vocalist of the year, while Martina McBride took female vocalist of the year.
McBride has won the award each of the previous two years and also in 1999. She's now tied with Reba McEntire with four wins in the coveted category, reports Reuters.
Last year's vocal group of the year, Rascal Flatts, got to keep their title, while show hosts Brooks & Dunn took home vocal duo of the year honors for the 12th time.
Veteran singer-songwriter Kris Kristofferson was inducted into the Country Hall of Fame. Willie Nelson introduced him and sang Kristofferson's For the Good Times. Faith Hill performed his Help Me Make It Through the Night and Randy Travis did Sunday Morning Coming Down.
