Deana Carter’s Iconic Barefoot CMA Win Remembered At Grand Ole Opry Nearly 30 Years Later
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In the evening of Sunday, Nov. 8, the 60th CMA Awards were celebrated at the Grand Ole Opry.
Performing in the Circle of the Opry were many artists who had big moments of their own at the CMA Awards.
Among them was Deana Carter, who won the CMA Award for Single of the Year in 1997, accepting that award in an iconic manner.
That moment from nearly 30 years ago was projected on the screen of the Opry on Nov. 8, with Deana Carter then taking the stage to perform the song she won the CMA Award for: “Strawberry Wine.”
See her performance, and take a look back at her 1997 CMA Award acceptance speech, below…
Watch Deana Carter Sing “Strawberry Wine,” And Revisit Her 1997 CMA Victory
From 1974 to 2004, the CMA Awards were held at the Grand Ole Opry.
On Nov. 8, 2026, the occasion of the 60th CMA Awards led to the Grand Ole Opry celebrating that milestone, bringing out several major talents who made the CMA Awards special.
Back in 1997, Deana Carter’s acceptance of the CMA Award for Single of the Year, for her 1996 song “Strawberry Wine,” was an instantly iconic moment.
Presented by Ricky Skaggs, the competition was steep for Deana Carter.
The other nominees included George Strait, nominated for both “Carried Away” and “One Night At A Time;” Pam Tillis, for “All The Good Ones Are Gone;” and Tim McGraw and Faith Hill, for their duet “It’s Your Love.”
Opening the envelope to reveal the winner, Skaggs declared, “Oh, you ain’t gonna believe this!”
From there, after building the suspense and hyping the audience up, he announced that Deana Carter had won.
Coming from backstage, as she had just performed that night with Skaggs, Deana Carter suddenly leapt in the air, over and over again, accentuating the fact that she was barefoot. She then jumped into Ricky Skaggs’ arms before accepting the award.
Graciously, she thanked the other nominees in the category, saying, “You guys make me happy, and inspire me to write, too.”
Notably, “Strawberry Wine” also won the CMA Award for Song of the Year, with the award being presented to its writers, Matraca Berg and Gary Harrison.
While Ricky Skaggs was slated to appear at the Nov. 8 event at the Opry, he was reportedly sick and was unable to attend, so an opportunity to recreate Deana Carter leaping into Skaggs’ arms will have to wait for another day.
See Country Rebel‘s exclusive footage of Deana Carter’s performance of “Strawberry Wine” at the Grand Ole Opry’s celebration of the 60th CMA Awards, here:
Revisit Deana Carter’s exuberant 1997 acceptance of the CMA Award for Single of the Year, leaping into Ricky Skaggs’ arms, with Carter sharing about that moment, here:
Watch the raw broadcast footage of the moment Deana Carter won the CMA Award for Single of the Year, here.
Watch the music video for “Strawberry Wine,” here:
The 60th CMA Awards will be held on Nov. 18 — keep up with Country Rebel for the live coverage of the award show.
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