Darius Rucker
Darius Rucker’s win is historic for CMAs
Darius Rucker became the first black singer to win new artist of the year at the Country Music Association Awards, joining Charley Pride as the only African-American to win a major individual award.
Rucker, whose first country album, “Learn to Live,” sold more than 1 million copies, took the stage Wednesday night to wild cheers from the crowd and shouted, “What a year!”
“First of all, to the fans, thank y’all for accepting me,” the jubilant Rucker said. “And I think most importantly, to country radio, you took a chance on a pop singer from Charleston, S.C. Thank you so much for that!”