Country singer Kellie Pickler paid tribute to her cancer-survivor best friend during a performance on U.S. Tv on Tuesday (01Oct13) as she helped to kick off America's National Breast Cancer Awareness Month.

The star appeared alongside her pal Summer Holt Miller on a special episode of breakfast show Good Morning America to encourage women to get regular check-ups.

She took to the stage to sing her track Someone Somewhere Tonight, but her voice cracked at the end of the song as an emotional Pickler reached out to Miller and said, "I love you", as the pair hugged on air.

Pickler famously shaved her head last year (12) to show her support to Miller, who underwent a double mastectomy in August, 2012, two months after doctors found a tumour in her breast.

The special Gma show also featured messages from stars including Katy Perry, Kelly Rowland, The Band Perry and breast cancer survivors Christina Applegate and Sheryl Crow, who all took the network's Pink Pledge, stating, "I pledge to help women learn the facts about breast cancer and what it means to be high risk... Find out about the different breast cancer tools of detection... and know when I should get screened for breast cancer."