Kacey Musgraves Performs 'Coal Miner's Daughter' in Tribute to Loretta Lynn at the 2023 Grammys

Lynn, a three-time Grammy winner, died at age 90 of natural causes in October 2022

An image of the late Loretta Lynn is projected on a screen while Kacey Musgraves performs onstage during the 65th GRAMMY Awards at Crypto.com Arena on February 05, 2023 in Los Angeles, California.
Kacey Musgraves plays tribute to Loretta Lynn. Photo: Kevin Winter/Getty

It's hard to believe there was a dry eye in the Crypto.com Arena when Kacey Musgraves performed a tribute to the late Loretta Lynn at the 2023 Grammy Awards on Sunday.

The country star, 34, performed Lynn's signature 1970 hit "Coal Miner's Daughter" during the awards show.

Musgraves, who strummed a guitar that read "Loretta Lynn" on the neck, went barefoot for the performance, sitting on a stool in a red dress in front of an array of red flowers while the names and faces of other artists who died in the last year flashed on the screen behind her.

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Lynn, a three-time Grammy winner, died at age 90 of natural causes on Oct. 4, 2022, at her ranch in Tennessee, surrounded by family members.

NASHVILLE, TN - NOVEMBER 05: Kacey Musgraves and Loretta Lynn perform during the 48th annual CMA Awards at the Bridgestone Arena on November 5, 2014 in Nashville, Tennessee. (Photo by Rick Diamond/Getty Images)
Kacey Musgraves and Loretta Lynn. Rick Diamond/Getty

Musgraves has long spoken about Lynn's impact on her own artistry, and the pair even performed together on multiple occasions. At the 2014 CMA Awards, the musicians shared the stage for the first time to sing a rendition of Lynn's "You're Lookin' At Country."

In an interview at the Country Music Hall of Fame in 2017, per CMT, the "High Horse" performer said she related to Lynn's "sassiness the most and her ability to look around and observe life around her."

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"She infuses humor and sarcasm, which I always appreciate," Musgraves reportedly added, "and I also relate to Loretta's love of rhinestones."

Kacey Musgraves performs onstage during the 65th GRAMMY Awards at Crypto.com Arena on February 05, 2023 in Los Angeles, California.
Kacey Musgraves. Kevin Winter/Getty

They appeared onstage together once again during an April 2019 concert at Nashville's Bridgestone Arena to celebrate Lynn's 87th birthday. During the event, per Entertainment Weekly, Musgraves performed "You Ain't Woman Enough (To Take My Man)" as well as "Coal Miner's Daughter" alongside fellow country stars including Tanya Tucker, Brandi Carlile and Brandy Clark, as well as actor Dennis Quaid.

The same month, Musgraves named Lynn and Dolly Parton as some of her biggest influences during an interview at the 2019 ACM Awards, per CMT.

"Not just because of their remarkable appearances but because of the substance that they infused into their songs," she reportedly said at the time. "I don't take that lightly that they paved the pathway for me. I grew up singing all their songs. They're ingrained in my brain. It's really important to me."

The 65th Annual Grammy Awards, hosted by Trevor Noah, are airing and streaming live from the Crypto.com Arena in Los Angeles

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