Luke Bryan and Zac Brown are good friends and fellow Georgia boys, but there was a big question mark over what would happen between the two superstars going into the 2013 CMA Awards.

The controversy began when Brown told a radio station in Vancouver that Bryan’s then-current single, “That’s My Kind of Night,” was “the worst song I’ve ever heard.”

That statement spread like wildfire online, causing an enormous reaction from both fans and other artists. Before it was over, Jason Aldean, Justin Moore, songwriter Dallas Davidson and more had weighed in on Brown’s comments, fueling a raging viral controversy that was still red-hot going into the awards ceremony.

Co-hosts Brad Paisley and Carrie Underwood even addressed the feud from the stage in a skit that included them assigning certain stars as feud partners, resulting in the unforgettable line from Paisley, “That Kenny Rogers is pure evil.”

As Paisley and Underwood sang an altered version of “Why Can’t We Be Friends” that addressed the controversy, Bryan and Brown ended up embracing on camera with huge smiles, seemingly putting an end to the feud once and for all.

Watch Luke Bryan’s Best CMA Awards Moments Ever

Brown told radio station Coyote 93.7 that the moment was genuine.

“We saw each other backstage, and he was like, ‘You know they’re gonna be talking about it, they’re gonna be doing stuff or whatever.’ I was like, ‘Dude, I’m in for whatever.'”

“I really do want the best for Luke,” he continued. “I love Luke’s voice, and his songs and everything that he does, and he’s from Georgia, too. It’s real. I do care about him and his family, and I do love what he does. I do love his art.”

In fact, the two have been so close that Brown has entertained Bryan’s kids on the road.

“I always keep my toys packed in my bus for my girls and other people, so Luke’s sons were on my bus, and I had some cap guns that I had got for my girls. And man, they went crazy. They loved it. So we all have fun hanging.”