Jana Kramer shared her experience of the domestic violence she encountered at the hands of her first husband, Michael Gambino, during a tearful speech at the Safe Horizon’s Champion Awards.

The “I’ve Got The Boy” singer was on hand to receive the Safe Horizon’s Voice of Empowerment award for bringing awareness to domestic violence.

“I didn’t know if anyone would believe me so I just I hid and I hid and I hid,” Jana said during her speech. “Finally I was just like, ‘I don’t want to live my life like this anymore.’ So I prayed to my grandpa and I said, ‘Please just take me away because I don’t want to be this person.’ I was a girl full of light and energy and charm and this man just broke me down to absolute nothing.”

Jana told her story of physical abuse— “he went to jail for attempted murder on me”—during  National Domestic Violence Awareness Month in 2016. The stunning singer revealed the abuse on Good Morning America, hoping to help others going through similar situations.

Watch as Jana accepts the Voice of Empowerment award and speaks about her domestic violence experience.