Past recipients of the Crystal Milestone Award include Jason Aldean, Garth Brooks, Kenny Chesney, Gayle Holcomb, Jennifer Nettles and Taylor Swift.

Five days earlier, on April 1, a new album paying tribute to Haggard will hit stores. Titled Working Man's Poet: A Tribute to Merle Haggard, the 20-track album (see the full track list below) features an impressive range of contemporary artists covering some of Hag's most classic songs.

Toby Keith performs "Carolyn"; Luke Bryan and Dierks Bentley take on "Pancho & Lefty" (a song written by Townes Van Zandt but turned into a No. 1 by Haggard and Willie Nelson); Jason Aldean turns out the ballad "Going Where the Lonely Go"; Randy Houser offers up "Misery and Gin" and "Ramblin' Fever"; Jake Owen performs "Make Up and Faded Blue Jeans"; and Merle's song Ben Haggard sings "Mama Tried" and "Sing Me Back Home."

In addition, Joe Nichols sings "Footlights," a song that also appears on his 2013 album Crickets (the song is also among Haggard's own favorites from his own catalog).