Maren Morris Praises ‘Brave’ Taylor Swift, Sinéad O’Connor and Billie Holiday for Dismantling the Status Quo: They Were All Told to ‘Shut Up and Sing’

variety.com:

Meredith Woerner Deputy Editor, Variety.com Changemaker of the Year, Maren Morris celebrated her honor at the Variety Hitmakers, presented by Sony audio, by listing off the women who inspired her including Taylor Swift, Sinead O’Connor and Billie Holiday.

Introduced by singer and songwriter Maggie Rogers, her colleague praised Morris for using her voice to uplift others. to fight for gender and racial equality, and to re-imagine traditionally exclusive spaces, “specifically in the world of country music.” “She does it all with her head held high and with a sense of humor,” Rogers said. “Like when Tucker Carlson referred to her as a ‘lunatic country music person,’ she turned around and decided to name her fans ‘The Lunatics.'” “If Maren is crazy, all I can say is, I hope I’m crazy too,” Rogers concluded before inviting Morris to the stage with a round of applause.

In front of the crowd, Morris thanked Rogers and joked, “I’ve also had a cocktail, so I’m crying already.” Morris recalled her first days in Nashville, over ten years ago chasing her childhood dream of becoming a musician. “I have the photos of the awful outfits my mom put me in as a kid-performer to prove it,” the singer joked. “Cheetah print cowboy hats, satin pants from Limited Too.

I was the country Lizzie McGuire.” Listing off her astounding amount of “mountaintop career moments,” including chart toppers that crossed over into different genres and her Grammy award, Morris paused to reflect. “All the while knowing, the system I was achieving success in was deeply fractured.