Kelsea Ballerini, 31, and Noah Kahan, 27, united at the 2024 CMA Awards for a stunning performance of their collaboration, “Cowboys Cry Too.”
Live from Nashville’s Bridgestone Arena, the country superstars teamed up to deliver an emotional television debut of their fan-favorite duet.
Donning matching all white ensembles, the pair of hitmakers brought the song to life as they traded verses. Ballerini opened the track by singing the first verse and chorus. Kahan later joined in for his own verse, and then the pair harmonized on the second verse and chorus.
“’Cause cowboys cry too/ They may not let ’em fall down in their hometown thinkin’ they still got/ shit to prove/ That well runs deep/ But when he’s showin’ his skin, lettin’ me in, that’s when he’s toughest to me/ I never knew cowboys cry too,” Ballerini and Kahan sang on the chorus.
Co-written Kelsea Ballerini alongside Noah Kahan and Alysa Vanderheym, “Cowboys Cry Too” appears on Ballerini’s fifth album, PATTERNS.
“In our world and culture and echo chamber of highlight reels and pretty things, sometimes real feelings start to feel like something you just set aside or push down to keep up.” Kelsea shared of the track in a press release. “Especially the way so many men grow up, that kind of toxic masculinity mindset of ‘saddle up, brush it off’. I wanted to write my perspective and essentially celebrate the vulnerable men in my life, and Noah adding his really unfiltered perspective into it just brought it to life in a more meaningful and beautiful way.”
Of the track, Kahan adds, “It’s the writers who are willing to go to the awkward places that inspire me. Kelsea is one of those, and I knew if we could find something we both believed to sing, it would expand how we look at the way we live, what society decides and we should reject. ‘Cowboys Cry Too’ is everything I believed our collaboration could be.”
Kelsea Ballerini and Noah Kahan first met at the 66th Annual Grammy Awards in February of 2024, where they complimented each other’s songwriting. Ballerini later chatted with Kahan via social media DMs and discussed the idea of collaborating on a song, which later came to fruition with “Cowboys Cry Too.” The pair first joined forces at the 59th ACM Awards to perform a mash-up of “Mountain With A Views” and “Stick Season.”
2024 CMA Awards
The 2024 CMA Awards featured memorable performances from Luke Bryan, Lainey Wilson, Post Malone, Ashley McBryde, Shaboozey, Chris Stapleton, Cody Johnson, Eric Church, Bailey Zimmerman, Megan Moroney, Luke Combs, Kacey Musgraves and more.
The three-hour broadcast showcased a star-studded lineup of one-of-a-kind collaborations and unforgettable moments. Ella Langley and Riley Green delivered their chart-climbing viral hit, “You Look Like You Love Me,” while Kelsea Ballerini and Noah Kahan, along with Post Malone and Chris Stapleton, debuted their fan-favorite duets, “Cowboys Cry Too” and “California Sober,” respectively.
Additionally, Dierks Bentley, Molly Tuttle, Sierra Hull, and Bronwyn Keith-Hynes paid tribute to the late Tom Petty with a rendition of “American Girl.” Thomas Rhett and Teddy Swims combined their current singles, “Somethin’ Bout A Woman” and “Lose Control,” in a dynamic mashup, and Brooks & Dunn and Jelly Roll performed “Believe,” a standout track from Brooks & Dunn’s latest release, Reboot II.
An impressive lineup of presenters were also on hand to give out the awards and introduce performances, including Simone Biles, Clint Black, Jeff Bridges, Mark Collie, Jordan Davis, The Oak Ridges Boys, Mitchell Tenpenny, Dustin Lynch, Caleb Pressley, Freddie Freeman, Little Big Town, Carly Pearce, Katharine McPhee, and Billy Bob Thornton, among others.
Co-hosted by Luke Bryan, Peyton Manning, and Lainey Wilson, the 58th Annual CMA Awards aired live from Nashville’s Bridgestone Arena on Wednesday, November 20, on ABC and will be available to stream on Hulu starting November 21.
