Warren Zeiders has his first CMT Music Award! The singer-songwriter won for Breakthrough Video of the Year, for “Pretty Little Poison.” The No. 1 song is the title track of his freshman album, released last August.

“I guess, first things first, God is good all the time, ladies and gentleman,” Zeiders said from stage. “And if it wasn’t for Him, I would not be on this stage right now, so I’m just so grateful for that. There’s so many people to thank. Honestly, I try not to get teary-eyed, because I have my best friend with me, sitting next to me, who’s my dad, who’s been my ride or die my entire life.

 

“I wanna thank my boy, Edgar, for collaborating with me, for the success of ‘Pretty Little Poison,’ that music video,” he continued, referring to the “Pretty Little Poison” video director, Edgar Evan, “Fans, fans, fans, ladies and gentleman, thank you so much.”

Zeiders previously said that “Pretty Little Poison” was his own personal story, one he still sometimes has trouble talking about without tears.

“The reality of the situation is the song is a statement for knowing that you’re going for something for someone that you know, at the end of the day, is not good for you,” Zeiders told CMT. “You continue to keep going back for more and more. I feel that that’s a story for many people.”

“We have tendencies to do things that aren’t always good for us, and you have to learn from it,” he continued. “And I learned from it and happened to write a really good song that I love.”

Zeiders knew when he was writing “Pretty Little Poison” that it could be a hit, but he had no idea how much that song would change everything for him.

“With that song, I can remember being in the writers’ room that day and sitting down with the two writers—shout out to Ryan Beaver and Jared Kein,” Zeiders told Songwriter Universe. “I remember being together that day, and we were beating around ideas and I was like, ‘I want to write a love song.’ But a lot of my songs leans toward minor keys. There are darker keys and chords that make you feel a certain way. And putting that twist (with the title) ‘Pretty Little Poison’…she’s this beauty but you know temptation.

“She’s just so good that you can’t say no to her.” he added. “And whatever that is for you in life, that’s the broader spectrum of interpreting the song. We’ve all got that one thing in life we know is probably not that good for us, but we just can’t say no to it.”

Zeiders is headlining many of his own shows this year, on his Pretty Little Poison Tour, and also opening for Jelly Roll, on his Beautifully Broken Tour.

Find “Pretty Little Poison” and all of Zeiders’ music and upcoming shows at WarrenZeiders.com.

Photo Credit: Getty Images for CMT