Chris Stapleton to Perform with Justin Timberlake on the CMA Awards. But That’s Just The Beginning.
Well well well. In yet another bid for you to firmly affix your eyeballs to the boob tube on Wednesday, November 4th for the 49th annual CMA Awards, it has been announced that critic’s favorite and thrice-nominated SteelDriver turned songwriter turned performer Chris Stapleton will be performing with former ‘N Sync member turned solo superstar Justin Timberlake.
***UPDATE: Stapleton has told Cody Allan that the pair will perform Timberlake’s “Drink You Away” and Stapleton’s “Tennessee Whiskey” written by Dean Dillon and originally recorded by David Allan Coe.
The announcement was made on Good Morning America Monday (11/2) morning, though if you’ve been reading Saving Country Music, you probably already knew this. Justin Timberlake actually foreshadowed this moment back on December 10th, 2014 when he tweeted out . . .
REAL music fans already know. So, mainstream: @ChrisStapleton Remember that name… –jt
Justin Timberlake (@jtimberlake) December 11, 2014
Chris Stapleton told Rolling Stone about the collaboration, “We’ve always talked about finding a reason to do something together, [Timberlake] is obviously one of the greatest musical talents in the world, maybe ever, that we have. I called him up with no thought of him agreeing to it, and he was ready to start planning it right then. I said, ‘Well, I think maybe we should wait, and if we get nominated they’ll let me have [a slot].’ He was so gracious and kind to want to do it and was so excited about it, and I’m excited about it. It’ll be something I’ve never done before for sure.”
But the collaboration may only be a footnote in the grand scheme. The announcement comes at a time you’d have to be deaf and blind to not notice that Justin Timberlake is poised to make a country move. Not only as Timberlake said on numerous occasions he’d like to make a country record, on June 1st, Timberlake purchased a 126-acre parcel for $4 million in philanthropist Aubry Preston’s Lieper’s Fork community preserve just south and east of Nashville. Aubrey Preston is the millionaire who saved historic Studio ‘A’ on Music Row in Nashville from last-minute demolition in late 2014. Alan Jackson, Trisha Yearwood, and Tim McGraw are other country performers living in the Lieper’s Fork / Williamson County area, and Timberlake’s mother and stepfather live in Brentwood, just south of Nashville.
In November of 2013, Timberlake told Sirius XM’s The Highway: “I just did an interview earlier today and I said, ‘I’m America, that’s what I am.’ In all sense of the word. [I] grew up outside of Memphis, Tennessee. Listened to country music, R&B music, classic rock, you know, everything ”¦ I still got my eyes set on a Best Country Album. There is time for that.”
Then in December of 2013, Timberlake doubled down on his statements, telling The Tennessean:
“The next move for me is to sink some teeth in here [Nashville]. I’ve done it before. I got a taste of it,” (referring to the song “The Only Promise That Remains” that Timberlake wrote and produced for Reba McEntire) “”¦it reminded me of the songs that my grandfather used to make me listen to when I was a kid in a great way. It hit me, ‘Oh I wrote this song because of my childhood.’ It ended up being this thing that country radio wouldn’t play.”
“A good song is a good song is a good song,” Timberlake continued. “There’s still so much that can happen in Nashville, and I look to the future and I want to be a part of it. And I’m not just blowing smoke. I don’t say that about Los Angeles. I don’t think I would move to Nashville. I know I would move to Nashville. It’s a matter of time. And it’s what this place could offer me, to be that outlet for all these different styles.”
The Stapleton / Timberlake collaboration is one of numerous collaborations already announced by the CMA’s. The show will start off with Hank Williams Jr. singing with Eric Church in a new rendition of “Are You Ready For The Country?” originally written by Neil Young. Then Thomas Rhett and Fall Out Boy will give viewers and opportunity to take a leak or refresh their beverage when they take the stage together.
But the 2015 CMA Awards could eventually be known as the spring board for Justin Timberlake’s country move, and a big moment in country music. Whether that moment will be considered good or bad in the annals of country music history remains to be seen.
November 2, 2015 @ 7:49 am
Now the question is: what song are they planning to do?
November 2, 2015 @ 8:01 am
“Bye Bye Bye.”
November 2, 2015 @ 8:31 am
yeah and have them put a gun in my mouth while they’re at it
November 2, 2015 @ 8:03 am
They may do two songs. One of the ills of the CMA’s recently has been performances that are way too short to create a “moment.” My guess is they’ll give Timberlake as much time as he wishes.
November 2, 2015 @ 3:35 pm
I found this when searching online for more details:
“Chris tells Cody exclusively the two will perform Justin’s “Drink You Away” and Chris’ “Tennessee Whiskey.”
Read more: http://www.aftermidnite.com/onair/cmt-cody-alan-54719/justin-timberlake-and-chris-stapleton-to-14087205
November 2, 2015 @ 8:09 pm
Thanks for the heads up Robert.
November 2, 2015 @ 7:58 am
I don’t know how this will turn out, but I will hope for the best. If nothing else, Timberlake brings an audience. Hopefully, he will also bring country music. I think he’s capable of that, or about anything else in the world of entertainment. We’ll just have to wait and see what they actually deliver.
November 2, 2015 @ 7:58 am
If Timberlake respects the traditions of country music and doesn’t dance around the stage like a goof, he’s welcome.
If he doesn’t, he could be the guy in skinny jeans that takes the spotlight from Luke Bryan, which is always a good thing.
November 2, 2015 @ 8:21 am
I hope this will be a good thing. Justin is already pop, and does pop better than anyone else. Why would he purposely do country if he is just going to do pop? I think (well, I’m hoping) that his standards are too high to just join in on the pop/EDM/bro-country fads. I think he will make the switch and do it better than any of the so-called “country” guys out there now, and puts them all to shame.
November 2, 2015 @ 8:22 am
I guess I don’t get it. Let’s celebrate our genre by featuring people who are about as far from our genre as possible. Yeah, yeah, I know it is a TV show and it is all about eyeballs and ads and nothing really about the music, but still.
November 2, 2015 @ 8:54 am
Country music has also felt like it needs to apologize for itself, and that’s the reasons for these cross genre collaborations. There may be more love for Justin Timberlake than there is for Fall Out Boy among true country fans, but that doesn’t change the fact this is still a non country artists crossing over. I guess the thought with Timberlake is at least there’s a chance it will be decent, especially since Stapleton will be by his side.
November 2, 2015 @ 11:20 am
35 year old song by the Statler Brothers that’s more appropriate now than in 1980: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gYBaMs2-nuo
November 2, 2015 @ 11:57 am
+5 for mentioning The Statler Brothers.
November 2, 2015 @ 1:23 pm
That’s the issue right there. That’s why we have people like Lenny Kravitz and Meghan Trainor playing on our award shows. It’s because the record companies aren’t confident enough in our own product. If they were confident in the product they wouldn’t ask artist from outside the genre to perform at our award shows.
November 2, 2015 @ 8:42 am
Timberlake has a little more cred with me than most pop stars: he’s a Memphis boy and he generally respects the essence of the genres he works with (traditional R&B, for example) rather than defiling them for a quick buck. He’s a serious talent, so I’ll wait and see on this one.
November 2, 2015 @ 8:49 am
I’m optimistic that Timberlake’s performance will be more tolerable than most of the actual “country” artists that will be performing.
November 2, 2015 @ 8:50 am
I’ll just say this, because I have no idea which way this will go, I’m just excited to see Stapleton on network tv. It won’t be like him being in the shadows when he sung background on “Drink A Beer”.
November 2, 2015 @ 9:14 am
“Then Thomas Rhett and Fall Out Boy will give viewers and opportunity to take a leak or refresh their beverage when they take the stage together.”
I literally laughed out loud at this. I mean seriously.
November 2, 2015 @ 8:17 pm
Yeah, that was hilarious. I may like Fall Out Bouy, but when I heard that they would be performing with Thomas Rhett, I was so confused and angry, that I even made a little rant on YouTube talking about it. Seriously, who wants these two to perform together?!
November 3, 2015 @ 3:50 am
Me too. I actually like Fall Out Boy, but what are they doing at a country show?
November 2, 2015 @ 9:17 am
I’m all for it. Let’s face it. Country music is never, ever going to get over its fixation with mainstream crossovers. I have a lot of faith in these two guys to do it right. It will be a show stealer for sure, but it still won’t get me to watch the show. I will find that performance online afterwards.
I’m all for Timberlake’s continued involvement in country, as well. He’s got zero reason to do it other than he actually respects the music. That’s not a guarantee that it will be good, but its a reason to be optimistic.
November 2, 2015 @ 10:37 am
You’re absolutely right about that, that “country” music seems it will never get over the crossover fixation, for the worst and most motivational of reasons-too much money in it. That’s why “purists”, “traditionalists”, whatever one wants to call us, despair.
November 2, 2015 @ 9:29 am
So is Timberlake collaborating with Stapleton because he likes Stapleton’s album, or because he thinks the Stapleton co-write “Crash And Burn” is the future of country music? If it is the latter, then we’re in trouble.
November 2, 2015 @ 10:18 am
He’s collaborating with Stapleton because the two are friends. But as I attempted to point out above, it’s all a formality. This is Justin Timberlake’s opportunity to introduce himself to the country market. That is what this is all about, and the performance in the grand scheme will be a footnote. It will be huge for Stapleton, and a spring board for Timberlake.
November 2, 2015 @ 9:37 am
According to Rolling Stone Country Stapleton and Timberlake are friends. Stapleton called Timberlake and asked him to perform with him on the show.
http://www.rollingstone.com/music/news/justin-timberlake-chris-stapleton-to-duet-on-cma-awards-the-ram-report-20151102
I’m a huge fan of both and respect Timberlake and his musical talent. Born and raised in Memphis and his respect for music genres, I think it could be the only highlight of the show. Looking forward to fast forwarding to the performance and reading Trigger’s live blog of the show.
November 2, 2015 @ 9:40 am
I have mixed feelings about this. On the one hand, the fact that Stapleton will be performing live in prime time on a high profile event like the CMAs is amazing. This could be a HUGE opportunity for him. On the other hand, he will have to share the spotlight with a much bigger name in Justin Timberlake, and unfortunately stunt collaborations on TV shows like this can often actually detract from the power of the performances. Then again, I also assume that having Timberlake involved will draw a lot of extra media attention and word of mouth, which means more people sharing the video, talking about it, and being introduced to Chris Stapleton as a result.
I guess it all depends on the quality of the performance. And since Stapleton is the one who set this up instead of just having a random duet partner thrust on him by TV producers, I trust that it will actually be done well. But personally, I think I would rather Stapleton just go out there by himself and blow people away.
November 2, 2015 @ 9:51 am
It’ll be so sad when Justin Timberlake of all people proves he’s more country than any of the bros or metro-bros. He’s already more country than Sam Hunt.
On the subject of country music always apologizing for itself and wanting mainstream crossovers: “We gotta prove our music ain’t about dogs dyin’! We gotta prove we’re just pop music sang with a southern accent, so people won’t look down on us!” Give me a break. This is supposed to be country music. It’s supposed to have its own sound, its own vocal style, and its own themes. There’s no need to get rid of everything that makes it unique and copy other genres just because you think people think your music is inherently boring or cheesy. You’re only pushing away your core constituents in favor of competing with other genres who will obvious beat you at their game.
Dear Country Music,
Don’t fight yourself. Don’t you realize that by forsaking your roots, you are “admitting” that country is inferior to other genres when it really isn’t? Embrace your traditions, your legacy, and your true fans. Stand proud before other genres as something unique. Country music, just snap out of it. Come back to us.
Kale
November 2, 2015 @ 10:41 am
Reply from the “country” music moguls- “Roots? Traditions? Legacy? What the freak? We’ve got Lamborghinis to pay for!”
November 2, 2015 @ 10:06 am
Who actually watches these award shows? The awards don’t mean anything anymore and the performances are brutal. Chris Stapleton is a nobody anyways like none of this stuff matters. Coming from a traditional country fan.
November 2, 2015 @ 10:13 am
Millions upon millions of people watch these award shows. The CMA Awards is the singular biggest “country” music event of the entire year. I know you may think it’s not country, and that certainly is a valid opinion. But just because something doesn’t mean something you you, doesn’t mean it doesn’t mean anything to anyone else. Stapleton may be a “nobody” to you, but he’s about to have arguably the biggest opportunity bestowed by the CMA Awards in 2015. In fact, even if Stapleton ends up not performing, he already has received a massive boost this morning in name recognition simply by being linked to Timberlake. Shake your little fists all you want. That’s just the way it is.
November 2, 2015 @ 10:13 am
I think this will be great. On a side note, I saw Chris and Jason Isbell at the Ryman last week. I was in the lobby after Chris’s set and saw several people go outside so I asked the employee working the doors if I could step out and she said I couldn’t come back in from that door. I said. “those people left the show” and she said yes. They didn’t stay for Jason. Couldn’t believe it and felt bad for the people who were trying to buy tickets at the last minute.
November 2, 2015 @ 10:31 am
Justin Timberlake singing Alan Jackson’s “Love’s Got A Hold On You” at age 11. Worth the watch. Although that’s certainly more dancing than Alan has ever done on stage.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mI2ncihBpkM
November 2, 2015 @ 10:35 am
Justin is one of the most overrated artists that walks around. He went RnB to shake off his boy band image and then made disparaging remarks about the genre,then tried to shake of his RnB image to go POP and now wants to be seen as a country boy again . He is an opportunist .CMA’s and country in general needs to stop this crossover nonsense ! Have a sense of self worth ! People in the country scene walk around like country is some sort of low hanging fruit.
November 2, 2015 @ 1:55 pm
Thank you raggie. I couldn’t agree with no more. Some people like their lovin’ done country style, not Justin style. Justin Timberlake is an opportunist. No more country than Sam Hunt. The fact that he grew up in Memphis doesn’t mean he is capable of being country. He is a shallow singer with an eager grin, and an addiction to fame and attention. This desire was fueled early by Disney and is still going on. There is not one Timberlake song with any depth. There is not one Timberlake song that will stand the test of the time. He may appeal to music lovers who aren’t schooled, but to true music lovers he is little more a Michael Jackson wannabe at best. The true crime is placing him next to Stapleton. Chris Stapleton has real courage, experience, and reality in his voice. Timberlake should really be afraid. His phoney nature will be revealed next to an authentic singer. He is just trying to find another road to make money. Another genre he can steal from. He is no Randy Travis. The CMAs are just trying to maintain an audience of youth. To me this is another reason to not watch, again.
November 3, 2015 @ 12:33 am
Glad to see other people are seeing right through him .
November 3, 2015 @ 2:22 am
“.CMA”™s and country in general needs to stop this crossover nonsense ! Have a sense of self worth ! People in the country scene walk around like country is some sort of low hanging fruit. ”
Well stated , Raggie ……dead on .
November 2, 2015 @ 10:37 am
“Greatest musical talent ever”???!? JT???? Maybe to someone as pedestrian as Chris Stapleton,who has obviously checked out Prince or Stevie Wonder. What a joke, go write another Thomas Rhett song
November 2, 2015 @ 12:08 pm
I don’t think he was exactly calling him THE best singer, but just calling him one of the best. Chris Stapleton is a huge talent and could very possibly be huge in changing country music
November 2, 2015 @ 11:03 am
I hate this. I think it’s terrible. It has nothing to do with music. To be honest, I wasn’t a fan of Stapleton before this stunt and this only further proves to me he’ll sell his sole for commercial success – which is his right.
November 2, 2015 @ 8:18 pm
Would that be a sole from Nike or Gucci?
November 3, 2015 @ 2:12 pm
Ha! No. Stapleton is an avid fisherman. He’d sell a day’s catch of sole to be mainstream.
November 2, 2015 @ 11:32 am
I’m all for this as long as it gets Chris Stapleton’s music To the people. I want him to be huge so talented & his voice is just one of the best in any genre!
November 3, 2015 @ 6:43 am
Agreed. The bottom line is Chris Stapleton should be a huge star in the music world. His music may appeal to outlaw and traditional country fans, but based on Traveller, I see a lot of potential commercial appeal in his music, including cross-genre appeal. A lot of people are hungry for authenticity and genuine talent in music, especially in our current digital, Autotune and Pro-Tools corrected, image-driven music culture, and Chris Stapleton has both of those qualities in spades. I mean, mainstream music fans go gaga over acts like Adele and Sam Smith, simply because they can actually, you know, sing and have a modicum of human soul, even if their actual material is mediocre in my opinion. Stapleton also has a powerful voice, with a unique quality to it that invariably catches people’s attention, plus he has great songs to back it up. (Although, he apparently won’t be performing any original songs on this occasion.) Anyway, maybe one day he can eventually become a figure like Willie Nelson who is respected by both true country music lovers and by the broader music world at large.
By the way, I bet Chris also has a fairly good chance of landing a performing slot on the Grammys this year.
November 2, 2015 @ 11:56 am
^Sigh! The only one who will get something out of it is Justin Timberlake.He will enjoy all the ass kissing from the desperate country music industry and all the attention . He will pat himself on the back for saving another genre .
November 2, 2015 @ 12:10 pm
Timberlake might be the one who benefits the least from the appearance, and probably has the most to lose. It will most certainly drive up viewer numbers which will benefit all the performers and nominees and the CMA, with Stapleton getting arguably the biggest boost of all. Yet Timberlake with a generally positive favorability throughout the populous is playing the same stage as Thomas Rhett, Florida Georgia Line, and Luke Bryan.
But we can’t lie to ourselves about what this is. It’s a pop crossover collaboration, regardless how much people may love Stapleton and Timberlake.
Timberlake is ingratiating himself to the country crowd with this move. But any benefit he gets will probably be down the road.
November 2, 2015 @ 12:17 pm
I would have figured it would had been Alan Jackson they they could duet “Love’s Got a Hold on You”. “Friend’s in Low Places” is also in JT’s wheelhouse. It’s almost like the song was written for his voice. (Heavy amounts of sarcasm obviously). I think if Justin wanted to do something great in country music he should bring back the old country crooners. He is much more suited for that then the lane he’s currently going down. Maybe someone could slip him Webb Pierce’s greatest hits?
November 2, 2015 @ 12:38 pm
I will take Justin Timberlake Over ANY bro-country artist! Justin Timberlake IS talented not just lucky (Luke Bryan, FGL etc) Chris Stapleton is Accomplished and very talented in country music. I can only hope this will be the BEST PERFORMANCE of the night. I will take watching Chris Stapleton and Justin Timberlake Over “Mr. Tight Jeans” and his stale singing about “stripping it down” for all of his pre-teen fan base watching the CMA awards.
November 2, 2015 @ 12:38 pm
I have no intentions of watching the CMA’s anyway. I lost respect a long time ago for these shows. But, here not too long ago, you reported that Hank, Jr. was going to start out with a Waylon Jennings/Neil Young song, “Are You Ready For The Country”. Now, at the same time they are also going to this collaboration between Timberlake and Stapelton and well as Fall Out Boy and Thomas Rhett. I don’t think the CMA’s know which way they want to go, musically. I mean I know they want to appeal to the fans that like the traditional side of country music, or shall I say the older country music. But, they still want to appeal to the mainstream 40 side, too. They may be just trying to make sure there is something for everybody with those lineups to try to get their ratings up.
November 2, 2015 @ 4:59 pm
I’m very disappointed by this pairing. I expected that Stapleton would be with someone very traditional. What puzzles me is why many on social media are so “rah rah” over this when it’s just another pairing with a pop artist? I think that Justin’s performance may just take away from Chris. I can’t imagine the demographic watching this show prefers Chris over Timberlake and will be lauding Chris instead of Justin Thursday morning.
November 2, 2015 @ 5:02 pm
Good music is good music. I really get tired of folks saying they hate cross overs and those pop/rock artists should stay off our turf. A few of the ones that did it right:
Rolling Stones
Elvis
Gram Parsons
Ray Charles
Roy Orbison
Johnny Cash
Are these not “roots”?
November 3, 2015 @ 12:36 am
ummm,the people you listed have actually talent .Justin on the other hand does not.
November 3, 2015 @ 5:48 am
The rock of their day was mostly very blues-derivative, country also has some blues roots (via Jimmy Rodgers), so it wasn’t a great leap for them understand and even love some country music (especially as country music sounded in their day). Ringo Starr did a perfectly credible version of “Act Naturally”, and he had a life-long love of country music. Glitzy pop acts “crossing over” are another matter, they don’t even understand the roots of their own rock-derived pop, much less those of country. Heck, the bros of country music don’t understand or know, why would the young pop artists have a clue? I will never ever forget or forgive that stupid “Old Farts and Jackasses” remark from that clown whose name I can’t be bothered to remember, no matter who else did forgive him. Not because I’m an old lady (either you get old or you die young, I love life, myself), but because that’s how little he even pretended to acknowledge that his midget azz stood on the shoulders of giants, or he wouldn’t even be here.
November 4, 2015 @ 12:39 pm
Dead Flowers is a brilliant country song.
November 2, 2015 @ 5:26 pm
I wouldn’t say I’m “happy” about this but JT does have actual talent. And he seems to have an appreciation for actual music regardless of genre. Maybe it’ll just be a nice duet?
November 2, 2015 @ 8:04 pm
Speaking of bad Thomas Rhett new “die as a happy man” hit #1 on Hot country songs chart, and Old Dominion “Break up with him” hit #1 on country airplay, and Florida Georgia Line “Anything goes” hit #1 on mediabase charts.
November 2, 2015 @ 8:06 pm
Not a JT fan, not a Stapleton fan. I can think of millions of things more fun than seeing that. Like bamboo’s shoved under my fingernails..
I’m sure my local watering hole will have plenty of Rebecca Creek and spit cups for me.
November 2, 2015 @ 8:18 pm
Justin Timberlake and Chris Stapleton would be interesting, Thomas Rhett and Fall Out Boy sound like a pop performance, and Hank Jr and Eric Church would be good rocking performance.
November 2, 2015 @ 8:19 pm
I look at this in the vein of Willie Nelson (or George Jones) collaborating with Ray Charles. I’ll take two great singers like Chris and JT up there over pretty much any mainstream act.
November 3, 2015 @ 2:36 am
Sheryl Crow , Steven Tyler , Bon Jovi , Kid Rock , Lionel Ritchie , Jewel , Jessica Simpson, Justin Timberlake . Just tweet the world your musical intentions , step over here , sign your name and pretty much anybody who says he is ‘ going country’ can go country ( Rhett , Hunt , Eldridge , Gilbert , Aldean .) Sure they’ll come across like fools but there are enough people who don’t give a damn whether Justin or Sheryl Crow sing ‘ Country’ , Hungarian Folk music or Gregorian chants . THEIR FANS AREN’T FANS OF THE MUSIC . THEY ARE FANS OF THE PERFORMER . They wouldn’t know a good song from a bad one and obviously don’t care . THAT is not what matters to them. Its the FANDOM that matters …..and that’s all . Anyone who would fall for the insincerity of a totally pop artist deciding he’s really a country artists DESERVES the half -baked product they’ll undoubtedly get . I recall an old SCTV episode where a couple of laid-off dock workers see that a law firm in the big city is hiring lawyers and decide to apply . THAT is exactly how comical these POP GOES THE COUNTRY acts come off .
November 3, 2015 @ 5:58 am
“THEIR FANS AREN”™T FANS OF THE MUSIC . THEY ARE FANS OF THE PERFORMER .”EX-actly. Considering that the “country” bros don’t even care about the traditions of country music, I think it’s safe to assume, in the face of a lack of evidence to the contrary, that the pop stars visiting the world of what’s considered “country” these days won’t care more. I could be proven wrong, but number one, I doubt it, and number two, it’s not even much of a “crossover” to cross over to “bro-country” and its relatives. If I turned out to be wrong, lucky us (country music fans).
November 3, 2015 @ 7:48 pm
“I recall an old SCTV episode where a couple of laid-off dock workers see that a law firm in the big city is hiring lawyers and decide to apply .”
Ha!
We may not agree on much, but I got a pretty good laugh out of this comment! It shows exactly how screwed up the economy is for regular people.
November 3, 2015 @ 4:13 am
I can’t get over how many folks comment that they don’t like Chris Stapleton. I have never heard of the steel drivers but when I first heard about Chris (on this blog) I checked his stuff out, and bought the cd. Amazingly talented singer with great song selection on his album.
November 3, 2015 @ 8:52 am
People have different tastes. I recognize that he is talented, but I listened to the Traveller samples on iTunes and didn’t like any of the songs, and I personally don’t like his voice — but if there are people who like his voice and the songs on Traveller, that’s great.
November 3, 2015 @ 2:10 pm
For what it’s worth, the album takes some time to sink in.
If I had judged the album based on my initial impressions via 30 second samples and whatnot, I wouldn’t have predicted that I would end up enjoying it as much as I do.
Currently, I would put it at or near the top of the list for best country album of the year.
November 3, 2015 @ 2:21 pm
I’m with you, his voice drives me nuts. I think only Carrie Underwood’s voice has a worse effect on me. But, that’s a matter of taste.
I also find his music too bluesy for my taste and none of the songs are really original.
I’ve tried shelving the album and going back to it at later dates, but I still don’t like it.
However, I rooted for him because I felt it was a victory for our kind of music.
November 3, 2015 @ 8:28 am
For those not familiar with JT’s “Drink You Away” https://youtu.be/tfyMrMfn__I?t=1m45s. I can see this working out pretty well. I assumed they’d do Tennessee Whiskey or When The Stars Come Out since they were the only two from Chris’s album that I could see working with JT. Good to see that they went with Tennessee Whiskey. More than anything, I’m just excited for the exposure Chris will get by having JT perform with him. I’d bet most people watching the CMAs still don’t know who Chris is. Instead of being a quick performance that fades into a commercial break, Chris is getting a real performance slot and it will hopefully be a performance that people remember and talk about after the show.
November 3, 2015 @ 11:47 pm
Just going to place this article about how Chris Stapleton and Thomas Rhett are good buds here and see who notices.
http://abcnews.go.com/Entertainment/wireStory/chris-stapleton-thomas-rhett-alike-34939013
November 4, 2015 @ 7:40 am
I noticed. It’s a good look at how small the town truly can be once you get a few contacts in your book. Thanks for posting for all to see. Also with the resurgence of Studio A I wouldn’t be surprised if you see more and more non country acts coming into that studio. We may see more cross genre co-writes and duets in the future on tape then on the tube. Timberlake most likely will put something down at RCA A.
November 4, 2015 @ 7:57 am
Sigh. Well, at least he avoided saying anything at all about Rhett’s music.