Rising star Dasha, in an exciting surprise, won 2024 Female Song of the Year at the People’s Choice Country Awards on Thursday night (September 26).

Dasha’s hit song “Austin (Boots Stop Workin’)” bested country veterans and stratospheric superstars in the category, besting artists like Beyoncé, Miranda Lambert, Lainey Wilson and others.

No one was more surprised than the singer herself. Dasha was visibly shocked when her name was called, and as she took the stage she still didn’t seem to quite believe that her song would win the category at the fan-voted awards show.

“I felt like a newbie this year,” she admitted at the podium, “and you guys just opened your arms to me.”

“Austin” and the line dance that Dasha came up with went viral on TikTok when she was still a little-known independent artist without a big team behind her.

Read more: Dasha reveals the secret behind her viral hit “Austin”

“I wrote this song with a big broken heart with some of my friends,” she explained on stage. “I was independent. I had no label, no management and this year everything changed. Thank you to my OG team, you know who you are. Thanks. I love you, I love you.”

Dasha’s win is one of several first-time wins for the People’s Choice Country Awards to date. Shaboozey also won his first major country award Thursday night, and Machine Gun Kelly scored an unexpected win when his collaboration with Jelly Roll, “Lonely Road,” took home a trophy.

The 2024 People’s Choice Country Awards aired live from the Grand Ole Opry House in Nashville on NBC and streamed on Peacock.