King of Country – George Strait received the 2024 Willie Nelson Lifetime Achievement Award from the Country Music Association (CMA). Artists and elite of the genre gathered on Wednesday to pay tribute to him.

The Willie Nelson Lifetime Achievement Award is a prestigious award that recognizes artists who have made significant contributions to the country music genre. Strait has a whopping 44 chart-topping hits on Billboard’s Hot Country Songs chart.

Jamey Johnson, Miranda Lambert, Parker McCollum and the show’s 2024 CMA co-host and CMA Entertainer of the Year winner Lainey Wilson gave inspiring performances to celebrate Strait.

Johnson, a Grand Ole Opry member, performed “Give It Away,” a song he co-wrote with Strait. Lambert and McCollum, the Texans, joined forces to make “Troubadour” a timeless classic.

McCollum shared a personal anecdote: “George Strait’s music was playing when I was in the womb because my mother was such a fan of his – it’s the earliest music I remember hearing and falling in love with as a child was up.”

“She, like me, is a Texan. “But she is also a true superstar in her own right who I have been a fan of for as long as I can remember. It is always a special honor to work with her and learn from her,” McCollum said of Lambert, after reaching a career milestone performing with Lambert.

After the tributes, George Strait took the stage with Chris Stapleton for a duet on “Honky Tonk Hall of Fame” from his recent album “Cowboys and Dreamers.” It was followed by a standing ovation from the audience, after which Strait thanked the CMAs and the artists who performed his songs on stage.

He also added: “I want to thank my family who are all here tonight. My wife Norma, my son Bubba, his wife Tamara, my grandchildren Harvey and Jillian,” Strait said. “Especially Norma, who has supported me for almost 53 years – it’s been an amazing 53 years.”

Strait debuted in 1981 with the album Strait Country and has since sold more than 100 million albums. With a career spanning three decades, his net worth is estimated at a whopping $300 million.