Carly Pearce is opening up about her friendship with Riley Green. The two are duet partners on their hit single, “If I Don’t Leave I’m Gonna Stay,” from her forthcoming new Honest Woman album. But more than Green’s voice, Pearce is also a big fan of him as a person.

“I’ve known Riley for a long time,” Pearce tells Everything Nash. “We were label mates. And he’s always been the quiet, kind, respectful person that championed me. I was always a fan. My parents live in Alabama, so I think he’s always just been – he asked me how my family is and things like that. But honestly, something I want to say about him is he, in more ways than people see, has continued to pay it forward for me now that he is sitting where he is. And that means a lot to me.'”

Green has become quite the household name, in country music and beyond, in no small part because of his rugged good looks. But Pearce maintains that who Green is on the inside is just as beautiful as who he is on the outside.

“I think he’s obviously very attractive,” Pearce acknowledges. “But he’s a great person. I feel like his talent is really just remarkable, what he’s been able to do. I went to see him in Nashville, and to see somebody with an acoustic guitar sing a song they wrote by themselves to an arena full of people sold out singing every. That’s really hard to do.

Carly Pearce and Riley Green’s “If I Don’t Leave I’m Gonna Stay” Video

Pearce and Green may have shocked some fans with their very sexy video for “If I Don’t Leave I’m Gonna Stay.” Still, Pearce stands by the decision to tell the story in real-time, using themselves instead of actors.

“I think we’ve both said separately and together that we wanted to die in the first 30 minutes, because it was so awkward,” Pearce admits. “But somewhere in there we both went for it. And then I’m like throwing my leg up on him. I mean, it’s acting. And that’s the thing: as artists, you want to push the boundaries, and you wanna tell stories. For me, I loved music videos in the ’90s. And I think there’s a lost art to the artists living out the songs in the music videos.

“And so, it was my idea, ’cause why wouldn’t I wanna do that?” she adds. “And I knew if he would go there with me, it would be something that we haven’t seen in a long time.”

What Riley Green Says About Carly Pearce and Their “If I Don’t Leave I’m Gonna Stay” Duet

Pearce might be a fan of Green, but the respect and admiration is mutual. He recently shared his thoughts on Pearce, and their incredible collaboration.

“What a great song,” Green boasts on The Big 615 Radio. “I was so excited when she texted me the song, and asked if I wanted to be a part of it. I even got to get out of my comfort zone a little bit and do some high harmonies, which is not something that I’ve done much of. So, it’s always nice when you’ve got to push yourself a little bit, musically. I’ve been a fan of her for a long time.”

It was Pearce who reached out to Green, after Devin Dawson, Seth Ennis, Jordan Minton, and Jordan Reynolds wrote Pearce a song that could be a duet with him

“I’ve been a huge fan of Carly and her voice for a long time, so it was cool to get the text from her about this song,” Green says. “The harmonies were unique and there was something really different about it. I’m glad she thought of me for this song. It’s awesome to get to do something together.”

Honest Woman will be out on August 28.

Photo Credit: CMA / Camden Hall