Congratulations are in order for Season 16 American Idol finalist Gabby Barrett. The country star has been nominated for an ACM Award! The trophies are handed out each year by the Academy of Country Music.
Gabby posted her reaction to the news on Instagram Thursday morning. Read on to find out what she’s nominated for, and what she (and husband Cade Foehner) had to say about the honor.
Carrie Underwood Congratulates Gabby Barrett for ACM Nomination
Now did you see the comments on Gabby’s Instagram? In case you missed it, how could you? Our girl Gabby just got a comment from Carrie Underwood, who just wrote “Yay! Congrats, girl!!!”
Gabby was nominated for an ACM in the New Female Artist of the Year category. She’s up against Ingrid Andress, Lindsay Ell, Caylee Hammack, and Tenille Townes. The show will be hosted by Keith Urban on April 5 at 8 pm ET/PT on CBS.
The 19-year-old singer took to Instagram to share the news and express her excitement. In a video posted from New York, she squealed with joy over the announcement. Her husband, fellow Idol finalist Cade Foehner, was with her.
Cade said he was “excited” over the news. Gabby thanked her fans and the country music industry for their “love and support.” She added that she “can’t wait to see what happens.” Neither can we!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2bW3zEtHkVg
Watch Gabby Barrett perform her song “I Hope” on “American Idol.”
Gabby’s ‘American Idol’ Success Story
Gabby Barrett finished Season 16 of American Idol in third place. However, based on how her career has gone in the time since, it might seem like she won. She was named one of Amazon’s “Artists to Watch” for 2020, had 21 millions Spotify streams in 2019, and recently hit No. 1 on the Emerging Artist chart.
Her success hasn’t been without some controversy, though. Fans of Season 16 winner Maddie Poppe were angry that American Idol invited Gabby on the show to perform her song “I Hope” last season, but failed to promote Maddie’s album. Maddie herself weighed in with her disappointment on Twitter.
More recently, there was some drama on social media after Gabby’s husband Cade tweeted that she was the most successful contestant on their season. Gabby’s dad then took to Facebook to make fun of the “liberal snowflakes” who were bothered by the tweet.
Just because the artists were competing against each other on the show doesn’t mean they have to now. There’s room for everyone to be successful.
Words by:
Jill O'Rourke Jill O’Rourke is a contributor at Talent Recap, writing news stories and recaps for shows like ‘AGT,’ ‘The Voice,’ and ‘American Idol.’ She graduated from the University of Georgia with a degree in English and Film Studies, and has been writing about pop culture since 2012, with previous bylines at Crushable and A Plus. Jill spends her free time binge-watching sitcoms and daydreaming about life as a hobbit
