What Made Luke Bryan Cry at His First ACM Awards?

The very first time Luke Bryan was at the ACM Awards, he wasn't a nominee, performer or presenter -- in fact, he wasn't even an artist with a full-length album out yet. He was just an audience member and, being at one of country music's biggest events with stars he'd looked up to for years, emotions were running high.

Some country artists (and even some fans) have grown up going to awards shows and big country events. But Bryan, the son of a peanut farmer living in rural Georgia, wasn't used to having large country acts pass through his hometown. So when events like the ACM Awards were broadcast on television, the whole Bryan family was glued to the screen.

"It was a big family night for us to sit and watch the awards," he says. "It was our opportunity to see all our stars. We never really got to see 'em perform, we didn't have an arena or anything, so they couldn't come to that, so a big chance to see our favorite performers were on TV watching the ACMs."

Back then, Reba McEntire hosted the ACM Awards show -- she did so every year from 1999 to 2010 -- so when Bryan sat in the audience for the first time ever, her very presence on that stage was too much for him to handle.

"This was like a year before my first album ever came out," recalls the singer. "I just sat in the back and ate popcorn, and I think Reba walked out, and I started crying, so that was an amazing moment."

Little did Bryan know that, years later, he would succeed McEntire as ACM Awards co-host with buddy Blake Shelton and, this year, be nominated for Entertainer of the Year and three other awards, and be performing during the show as well.

In addition to being such a big name at the ACMs, another of Bryan's dreams has come true: His very own exhibit will open up at the Country Music Hall of Fame come May.

"I remember bringing my parents to visit the museum and dreaming of something like this one day,” Bryan says. “Now to have an exhibit about my life that my family, friends and fans can come and see is just so cool.”

The 2015 ACM Awards will air live from AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas, on April 19 at 8PM ET on CBS.

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