Introduced by Taya Kyle, the wife of “American Sniper” Chris Kyle, Brooks sang “All-American Kid” while some service members filed through the audience to stand in the aisle and on the stage of the 50th anniversary of the awards.
Milestone honoree Garth Brooks performs at the 50th annual Academy of Country Music Awards at AT&T Stadium on Sunday, April 19, 2015, in Arlington, Texas. (Chris Pizzello/Invision/AP)
“All-American Kid” speaks of a hometown hero who joins the military and serves three tours of duty, bringing back a silver star and battle scars:
He stepped off the plane
In his combat boots
He saluted the red, the white and blue
And the whole town cheered
And his mama cried
Another hometown boy
Made it home alive
Got his picture in the paper and the headline read “Welcome Back All-American Kid”
Yeah, this song is for those who never did
Come back all-American kids
At these last words, Brooks emotionally closed his eyes and then removed his cowboy hat to applaud the service members who stood on stage and in the audience.
Watch the performance:
