Cody Johnson Co-Hosts 2/10-11

The co-host this week is Cody Johnson, who is in our Top 5 with The Painter. This is Cody’s first time as co-host, and he’s doing it from backstage at the Grand Ole Opry. He talks about his long rise from a prison guard and rodeo star to the national country chart. He gives credit to his wife, who is the subject of his current hit The Painter.

Cody says “The Painter is the first song for this album when I heard it, I said that’s me. It took me to that place where I met my wife where every wall I built, she saw a canvas.”

Cody said this about his wife Brandi: “She quit college, worked two jobs, I went on the road playing music, five nights a week for $500 a night.  She stood behind me, never left, she was the soft place to land, she was always there.”

Lon asked Cody about his dramatic CMA performance: “My wife didn’t know anything about it. Total surprise, she doesn’t like being in the spotlight.” So Lon asked what did she say when he returned to his seat? “She said, ‘I love you.’ And when the cameras left, she said, ‘You SOB!’  Because everyone knows who she is now.”

Cody talked about his friendship with Jelly Roll: “We are kindred spirits. We look like we represent the opposite, but we represent the same thing. He’s unapologetically himself.  I always say his face tattoos are like my cowboy hat. You can’t take ’em off.”

Cody confirmed that he has recorded a duet with Carrie Underwood: “We did record a song, it will be on the deluxe edition of Leather.  I don’t know when it’ll come out.  We have to work around a big schedule. She’s a global artist who’s not confined to country music.  We’re in no hurry. When you have something as special as what we have, you can’t put a date on it.”

Lon & Cody co-hosted the Countdown from backstage at the Grand Ole Opry, where Cody was going to perform. The next night, he headlined a sold out show at Nashville’s Bridgestone Arena: “It’s the place that people said I’d never make it. It means so much, to sell out every seat, and we could have done two nights.  Then I got to call to do the Opry the night before.  I listened to it as a kid.  I’m doing this for fun.”

Cody also has great stories this week about Morgan Wallen, Parker McCollum, Jordan Davis, Luke Combs, and Dan + Shay.

NEXT WEEK: Old Dominion

Tags: featured

Category: CO-HOST