Luke Bryan admits that talking about his late brother and sister brings him comfort and emotional healing. The deaths of Chris and Kelly also affect how he parents sons Bo and Tate, and how he relates to nephew Til and nieces Kris and Jordan.

Talking to Taste of Country prior to the 2017 CMA Awards, Bryan shares that talking about his siblings is rewarding because he knows he's helping people who have experienced loss. Everyone loses people close to them in life — his tragedies just came earlier.

"At the end of the day talking about it helps you rather than compartmentalizing it than tucking it away. So it’s always better to put you’re emotions out there," the CMA Entertainer of the Year nominee says.

Bryan's brother Chris died in a car accident in 1996. His sister Kelly died in 2007, not long after Bryan made his Grand Ole Opry debut. Kelly's husband died in December 2014, meaning it was up to Bryan and his wife Caroline to help care for the couple's children, Til, Kris and Jordan.

"I try to encourage my boys to wake up and enjoy each day, seize the moment, enjoy each other," Bryan tells ToC.  "They are gonna be brothers and beat each other up, but at the end of the day, they have to teach how to truly love each other and be on each other’s side."

Previously Bryan tributed Chris and Kelley with "Drink a Beer," which appears on his Crash My Party album. What Makes You Country is Bryan's new album (Dec. 8) and he says there are a few songs he thinks his siblings would like, including "Pick It Up" and "Most People are Good."

“But my sister would have liked the drinking ones and the party songs too," he says, laughing.

The 2017 CMA Awards air on ABC on Nov. 8 at 8PM ET. Bryan is an Entertainer of the Year nominee, in addition to being a performer. He further opens up about loss and tragedy during a Monday night (Nov. 6) ABC special called Living Every Day: Luke Bryan.

Remember: The best way to watch the CMAs is on TV, with ToC on your phone!

Luke Bryan's CMA Looks Ranked Worst to Best

More From Gator 99.5