Vince Gill Hospitalized, Misses 2018 CMA Awards
Vince Gill was hospitalized prior to Wednesday night's CMA Awards, forcing him to miss the show and his scheduled performance with Ricky Skaggs.
It's not clear how serious Gill's condition is, as neither the singer or his representatives have commented. Prior to the show on the red carpet, Brothers Osborne broke the news to Kellie Pickler and Ben Aaron. John Osborne revealed Gill had been hospitalized with a kidney stone and that he'd be replacing him for the all-star medley. The duo was fairly jocular about it, with the guitarist joking, "Vince Gill’s kidney stone was the best thing that ever happened to me.”
The 61-year-old Gill is considered one of country music's all-time great vocalists and guitarists and as a Hall of Fame and Grand Ole Opry member, he was a natural choice to join Skaggs for his moment at the show. Keith Urban, Brad Paisley and Marty Stuart were amongst the talented musicians who took the stage to sing "Black Eyed Suzie," "Highway 40 Blues" and "Country Boy." After his performance, Skaggs shared that Urban actually filled in last minute for Gill, "because of a little sickness" (quote via the Boot).
Gill becomes the second artist to have to pull out of the show after Kenny Chesney canceled due to a death in the family. Chesney was nominated for Entertainer of the Year and was slated to perform "Everything's Gonna Be Alright," his CMA winning song with David Lee Murphy.
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