Riley Green loves ’90s country music. The 37-year-old says it’s his favorite era of music, and one he feels compelled to keep supporting today.
“I grew up in the ’90s,” Green tells CMT. “That was probably my biggest influence, were those artists from the ’90s. I got to take Tracy Lawrence out on tour with me. Alan Jackson, Tim McGraw, George Strait, the list just continues. It’s so cool to get to shine a bit of light to a younger demographic. ‘Cause there are some fans that I always say ’90s country to them is early 2000s country. So keep shining a light on that era of music, because there’s something that’s so special about it.”
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Riley Green Reveals Plans For New Music in 20026
Green has a Top 10 hit right now with Ella Langley and their “Don’t Mind If I Do” duet. The song, which Green wrote by himself, is the title track of his latest album, and likely the last single he will release from that record. The Alabama native says he will have new music by early next year, to coincide with the launch of his headlining Cowboy As It Gets Tour. The tour begins in April.
“We’re going to go into the studio this fall, and probably release new music between now and then,” Green tells Billboard. “And then try to have the whole album out around the time the tour starts.”
Green has had plenty of success, with hits like “Worst Way,” “I Wish Grandpas Never Died,” and more. The success only proples Green to work harder than ever.
“I think on the creative side it doesn’t really slow down,” Green Green explains on Sirius XM’s The Highway. “And people might think when you have a big record or something, it’s kind of like, ‘Well, I can relax.’ And that’s just not the case. It’s really like, ‘Where’s the next one at?’ And for me, when I was writing all the songs for Don’t Mind If I Do, it really never stopped. I was kind of in that mindset of I need a lot of songs right now. And it’s exciting to be able to continually record new music. I think that’s the most fun part of it is writing and recording.”
Green has yet to reveal a title or track list for his next record. But he does hint he has plenty of songs to choose from.
“I’ve got a lot of songs that we’ve already got demoed and I’m really excited about,” Green tells Country Living. “So we’ll start looking at a timeline for releasing new music and hopefully an album somewhere at the top of next year. It’s a great time. It’s always nice when things seem like they’re working.”
The Story Behind Riley Green and Ella Langley’s “Don’t Mind If I Do” Duet
Green already had a No. 1 hit with Langley, on “You Look Like You Love Me.” When Green wrote “Don’t Mind If I Do,” he never intended for Langley to sing on the song with him, until he heard her sing it.
“I didn’t plan on her being on that song,” Green says on Apple Music Country‘s Kelleigh Bannen. “I wrote it as a duet, but I had her come by the studio to put a female vocal on it just to hear it so I could potentially pitch it around, and she just crushed it. It sounded so great. We are from very similar areas in Alabama, and I think we grew up listening to the same kind of music. So maybe that’s why our voices go so well together, and we’ve got the same kind of twang.
“Even having those two duets wasn’t a planned thing,” he adds. “It just kind of happened. I’m happy for her success, and it’s fun having her on the road to do those two songs and have those two hits with her.”
Photo Credit: David Higgs