There are great performances… and then there are CMA Fest moments — the kind fans talk about for years, replay on YouTube until the soundboard breaks, and swear were “better than anything on the actual broadcast.” Terri Clark and Lainey Wilson’s explosive duet of “Poor, Poor Pitiful Me” sits firmly in that legendary category.
It happened under the warm Tennessee night sky, with a crowd of more than 60,000 fans filling Nissan Stadium, buzzing from hours of music but still hungry for more. Terri Clark walked onto the stage with her guitar held high, the kind of entrance only a true country trailblazer can make. The crowd roared — but they had no idea what was about to happen next.
Halfway through the first verse, the lights suddenly shifted to bright gold, and the opening stomp of Lainey Wilson echoed from backstage. A split second later, Lainey burst onto the stage in full flare — bell-bottoms swinging, hat tilted low, voice fired up and razor sharp. The reaction? Immediate CHAOS.
Fans screamed. Terri grinned. And together, they launched into a version of “Poor, Poor Pitiful Me” so fiery it felt like the entire stadium tilted forward.
Terri brought the classic grit.
Lainey brought the modern swagger.
And that signature harmony between them? Pure magic.
Every chorus hit harder than the last. Terri’s twang wrapped perfectly around Lainey’s southern soul, creating a sound that felt both nostalgic and brand-new. You could see artists in the pit — even the ones with platinum plaques of their own — turning to each other and nodding like, “This is it. This is THE moment.”
The crowd became part of the performance, shouting every lyric, waving hats overhead, singing until their voices cracked. When Terri stepped back and let Lainey tear into the final chorus with that powerhouse growl she’s known for, the stadium SHOOK.
After the last note, the two women laughed, hugged, and slapped high-fives like longtime partners in crime. The applause stretched on and on, echoing through the Nashville night.
To this day, clips of the performance keep resurfacing, and every time they do, fans flood the comments with the same message:
“WHO ELSE remembers THIS incredible moment?”
Because real fans don’t forget magic — and Terri Clark + Lainey Wilson delivered exactly that.
