watch Sturgill Simpson busk for the ACLU outside last night's CMA Awards

The CMA Awards happened Wednesday night (11/8) in Nashville where Garth Brooks took home the coveted Entertainer of the Year Award. This year the awards got some major flack for initially asking the press not to focus on the Las Vegas shooting, gun control, or politics (which they later appologized after backlash, including criticism from co-host Brad Paisley). Sturgill Simpson, who wasn’t nominated this year, was there…outside Bridgestone Arena where he busked with signs that read “‘Struggling’ country singer…Anything helps (all donations go to the ACLU)” and “I don’t take requests but I take Questions about anything you want to talk about…because fascism sucks.” He streamed the whole thing via Facebook Live and took questions, ranging from the subject of Donald Trump to whether he prefers Kanye or Drake. You can watch an archive of the livestream, below.

Inside Bridgestone Arena, the CMAs started on a somber note but then Paisley and cohost Carrie Underwood lightened the mood with jokes, including a few gentle jabs at our president. Paisley sang a parody of Underwood’s “Before He Cheats” with lyrics aimed at Trump, afterwards adding “Right now he’s probably in his PJs, watching cable news, reaching for his cell phone.”