Following in his dad’s footsteps…
I know we’ve pretty much dispelled the silly rumors that Zach Top is the secret born son of Alan Jackson (especially after the “Chattahoochee” singer admitted he wasn’t a fan of the joke), but that doesn’t mean Top still can’t take a page from his book when it comes to this year’s CMA Awards. If you recall, back in 1999 at the 33rd annual show, Jackson pulled the epic move of stopping his own performance of “Pop A Top” to sing George Jones’ hit, “Choices.”
The country legend was originally slated to perform the single during the ceremony, but producers told him he only had 45 to 60 seconds to play a shortened version. Obviously insulted by the sliver of a time slot, Jones decided to skip out on the show and stayed home, while Jackson gave his own nod to the undeniable staple.
Now, with this year’s since resolved Sammy Kershaw fiasco, fans are still rubbed the wrong way by the fact that the ’90s singer, along with many others, was rejected from walking the carpet. While CMA has released its own statement, and Kershaw has admitted he will now attend after receiving a “heartfelt apology,” it’s still opened up a widespread conversation about the lack of recognition for the neglected foundation-building hit-makers of the industry.
Hence why Top (or any other willing artist) currently has the opportunity to pull a Jackson-Jones stunt and give Kershaw another moment of appreciation during the show. The “I Never Lie” singer is currently at the center of the conversation, thanks to a recent cryptic teaser post on social media.
Yesterday, the Washington native posted, “Next week I’ll be performing on the CMA Awards. I can promise you one thing, you won’t want to miss it.” Seemingly hinting at a surprise during his performance, fans can’t help but flood his comments, hoping it’s a secret nod to him performing Sammy Kershaw during the show:
Now, while Top’s forewarning caption could very well be a hint that he’s debuting new music or just simply trying to get people hype for the show, he’s got everyone begging him to perform Kershaw’s hits from “She Don’t Know She’s Beautiful,” “Cadillac Style, “Politics, Religion And Her.”
As a few people pointed out, though, probably the track that makes the most sense given the post features a picture of Top staring down at a mason jar filled with water, is Kershaw’s 1992 title track, “Don’t Go Near The Water.” Considering Top didn’t make any comments over the past week while the Sammy Kershaw drama was going down, there’s no telling whether he’ll be bold enough to make a statement now, but given his affinity for ’90s legends and being the poster boy for the neotraditional revival… it would make a whole lotta sense.
Of course, it’s also unclear whether Top would simply deliver a stellar Sammy Kershaw cover during the show or take things a step further by bringing the man himself on stage for a performance.
To tune in and see if everyone’s predictions are correct, the 60th Annual CMA Awards will take place next Wednesday, Nov. 18, at Bridgestone Arena, airing live on ABC and Disney+ from 8 pm to 11 pm ET.