Wynonna Juddis comforting fans after her performance at theCMA Awardssparked concern.
The country singer surprised the audience as she joinedJelly Rollon stage for the award show’s opening performance, andthe two sang a passionate duet renditionof the rapper’s hit single, “Need a Favor.”
Afterward, fans and viewers expressed theirconcernon social media about Judd, 59, as they noticed her gripping her duet partner’s arm during the performance and appearing less comfortable than she usually is on stage.
The “No One Else on Earth” singer took to Instagram after the show to address the concerns, as shespoke outfrom aboard a plane as she left Nashville for an upcoming show in Texas.
Frank Micelotta/Disney via Getty Images
She continued of her pre-show nerves, “I could cry right now, but I’m not going to, because I’m such a fan of his, and he asked me to sing and I said absolutely.”
Addressing fans’ concerns about her gripping onto the country star, she said, “I got out there and I was so nervous that I just held on for dear life. And that’s the bottom line.”
“I’ll be on stage tomorrow night with the people I love the most, and with you, the fans I love the most,” she said. “And all is well.”
Jelly Roll (left) and Wynonna Judd perform at the CMA Awards in Nashville.Terry Wyatt/Getty
Terry Wyatt/Getty
In August,Judd spoke to PEOPLE about the upcoming touras she revealed that performing live is “one of my absolute favorite things to do.”
“Coming out of The Judds tribute tour, for me, it was time to get back to the intimacy again. It’s years celebrating not only being in country music for 40 years, but me as a soloist — I have so much to celebrate.”
Judd’s slew of solo shows comes a year and a half after thedeathof her mother and former partner,Naomi Judd.
Jelly Roll (left) and Wynonna Judd perform together during the opening number of the 2023 CMA Awards.Terry Wyatt/Getty
She recalled the time when she was first embarking on a solo career as akin to “feeling all the feelings that one feels when you move away from home and go to college.”
“You’re out on your own and all of a sudden you don’t have the comforts of home. I went through that professionally as well as personally.”
Never miss a story — sign up forPEOPLE’s free daily newsletterto stay up-to-date on the best of what PEOPLE has to offer, from juicy celebrity news to compelling human interest stories.
She added that she placed a lot of pressure on herself at the start of her solo career, as she felt she had to “prove” herself. Now, she gets to “enjoy.”
“Now I don’t have that kind of pressure. I don’t have that on myself,” Wynonna shared. “I just want to enjoy myself and enjoy it with the fans because they’re my family. Especially now that Mom is gone, I rely on the fans more than ever.”
source: people.com
