During the all-star Toby Keith: American Icon tribute show, Luke Bryan made a very special wardrobe decision to honor the late icon.

Bryan typically performs wearing a baseball cap, but during appearance at the tribute — which was taped in Nashville last month, and will air Wednesday night (Aug. 28) — Bryan brought out his black cowboy hat in honor of the late, great icon.

The Keith hit he sang was “Should’ve Been a Cowboy,” so it’s only fitting that Bryan would don his best cowboy attire for the occasion. But the hat had another meaning, too. He chose it in honor of his late sister, Kelly, he explained to the crowd during his performance. She gave him the hat before she died in 2007.

“This hat has been hanging in my closet for probably 15 years,” Bryan explained, according to Billboard, which previewed a sneak peek of his performance.

“I used to wear this hat every night, and ever since I lost my sister, I hadn’t put this hat [on] onstage in a lot of years,” he continues. “I was walkin’ out the house, and I said, ‘You know what? I’m just an old country boy from Georgia, but Toby Keith certainly made me want to be a cowboy.’ I’m gonna be a cowboy tonight. This is for you, Toby.”

@thetraveladdict.com Luke Bryan gets emotional at the Toby Keith tribute in Nashville at Toby Keith American Icon. #lukebryan #tobykeith #tobykeithtribute #countrymusic #countrymusictiktoks #tobykeithtributeconcert #nashville #nashvilletn #country #tobykeithamericanicon @Luke Bryan ♬ original sound – thetraveladdict