Luke Bryan has a long history of attending the Academy of Country Music Awards. The 44-year-old was first nominated for an ACM Award in 2007, taking home his first ACM trophy in 2009, for Top New Solo Vocalist of the Year. Luke also hosted the ACM Awards for five years, from 2013 to 2017, the first three of those years with Blake Shelton. So it’s no surprise that his favorite memory of those years as a host involves one specific moment with Blake.

“My favorite memory of hosting the ACMs was when I was with Blake, and I was up for Entertainer of the Year,” Luke recalled to Circle All Access. “Blake just kept saying, ‘It’s yours, it’s yours. You got it, you got it. And when I won, he picked me up. It was a wonderful moment. Very emotional for me. My life flashed in front of my eyes, and certainly I will never forget that.”

Luke has won the ACM Award for Entertainer of the Year twice, but has been nominated in the category every year since 2012. For him, the nomination is almost as important as taking home the coveted trophy.

“Anytime you’re nominated for an ACM Award for Entertainer of the Year, it’s as good as winning,” Luke stated. “It’s amazing, because you’re always out there working hard, doing your best shows as possible. To be nominated by the ACMs is just the cherry on top for your year. It just feels great to be in the room.”

Luke recently spoke out about the Entertainer of the Year category, and Garth Brooks’ surprising CMA Award win for the night’s highest honor over Carrie Underwood.

“My thought is, if we go for a long period of time and Carrie Underwood never wins a CMA Entertainer of the Year, that’s quite disturbing for me because she’s done everything you can do to win it in my opinion — and that goes for Eric Church,” Luke shared with Everything Nash and other media outlets.

Luke is nominated again this year for an ACM Award for Entertainer of the Year, a category he shares with Eric Church, Luke Combs, Thomas Rhett and Carrie Underwood. The ACM Awards were originally scheduled for April 5 in Las Vegas, but moved to September 16 in Nashville, because of the coronavirus pandemic. The show, hosted this year by Keith Urban, will take place at the Grand Ole Opry, Ryman Auditorium and Bluebird Cafe. The ACM Awards will air at 8:00 PM ET on CBS.