This Week’s Backstage Country Host: Riley Green
This week on Backstage Country, Kelly Ford’s co-host is country music singer and songwriter Riley Green!
Tune in and listen as Green talks about his latest album, Don’t Mind If I Do, the song that gave him his first triple platinum record, his collaborations, and “Worst Way” or as Ford calls it, “the best, most country booty call song in a long time.”
Is Ella Langley Riley Green’s Favorite Collaborator?
Green collaborated with Ella Langley for “You Look Like You Loved Me” and “Don’t Mind If I Do.” Ford mentioned they have good and strong chemistry. “Well, I’ve been a fan of Ella for a long time, and I think growing up in Alabama, we both are from pretty similar areas, and we both had a lot of the same influences growing up. So, I think that helps a lot,” Green said. He added, “Each time you do a collaboration, you want somebody that has similar music tastes, and it’s been a lot of fun.”
Triple Platinum Record
Ford asked Green about his first big hit that earned him his first triple platinum record, “I Wish Grandpas Never Died.” It’s a song that resonated with many people and Green shared he wrote the title down on a plane ride back from his grandfather’s funeral. “I didn’t really know exactly what it was going to be, but I knew I wanted to write something that was a tribute to them and, you know, the values they taught me growing up.”
He admitted that he initially wrote the song for himself. “It wasn’t something that was going to make the record. I think I played it at a show in Georgia, and somebody videoed it, and it got a couple million views in about a week. So I went to the label, said we might need to record this and had a different single hit country radio. We ended up swapping singles.”
“Worst Way”
Ford said “Worst Way” is her favorite from Green’s recently released album. Green, however, admitted that “It’s not really where I usually live as a songwriter, on that, sexy love song type place. But it’s certainly something I’m going to start leaning into a little bit because that song has become a huge hit for me and it’s been really, kind of crazy to watch how it’s become one of the biggest moments of our live show.”
From October 28 to November 1, Riley Green will delight county music fans with his country boy charm, funny anecdotes, and of course, classic and trending good ol’ country music. Know more about him, his music, and tour dates here.
