When Carrie Underwood was putting together her Cry Pretty album, any hope of winning an award as a result of it was far in the back of her mind. The superstar picked up her fifth win for Female Vocalist of the Year at the 2018 CMA Awards on Wednesday (Nov. 14), resulting in a tear-filled moment as she collected the honor.

When she made her way backstage after her speech, she was still in shock. The win is a full-circle moment, coming one year after a serious fall outside her home that left her with a broken wrist and more than 40 stitches in her face. She also revealed in September of 2018 that she had experienced three miscarriages before her current pregnancy. She poured all of those hardships into Cry Pretty. The powerhouse singer says that during the album creation process, she was working to outdo herself.

"I would be lying if I said I didn't want awards, because I am a competitive person ... When you're making an album, you want it to be better, you want to push yourself as an artist," she says. And the effort she put into Cry Pretty makes her CMA win that much more humbling.

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"For me, with all the ups and downs that we've been through, plus making an album on top of all of that, this one definitely means a lot," she says of the accolade. "I love these, I love these shows. I love the CMAs, I have such a respect for this show and this organization."

Underwood and her longtime cohort Brad Paisley co-hosted the CMA Awards for the 11th time in 2018 and used their opening monologue to announce that she's expecting another baby boy. Underwood also brought her anthemic new single "Love Wins" to the stage.

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