Jason Aldean has won the evening's biggest honor, Entertainer of the Year, at the 2018 ACM Awards. There was tight competition amongst the nominees this year, which also included Garth Brooks, Luke Bryan, Chris Stapleton and Keith Urban -- a diverse group of incredibly talented artists.

Aldean's win was a perfect way to cap off country music's first big night back in Las Vegas, Nev., since the Route 91 Harvest Festival shooting in October. Aldean, who was onstage when the tragedy occurred, was sure to make note of it.

"It's been a rough year, and I just want to say thank you to everybody that reached out to us, that showed us love and support ... It meant the world to us," Aldean said onstage. "To my Route 91 people, you guys are in our hearts always. I love you guys, and we love Las Vegas."

Aldean's win earned a standing ovation and loud cheers from the crowd.

Aldean is no stranger to this award: He was nominated from 2011-2015, and then finally heard his name called as the Entertainer of the Year in 2016, 2017 and now 2018.

While reflecting on the prestigious award in early April, the singer noted, "When I started in this business, there were two things I wanted: a platinum record on my wall, and I thought it'd be really cool to win Entertainer of the Year." He considers the award to be reflective of time on the road and onstage.

"To me, that's a road warrior award," Aldean says. "It's about being on the road, entertaining people at your shows."

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