Sometimes the only thing better than a great country song is a great country duet. Fortunately, country music has plenty of hit collaborations. We found four of the best country duets of all time, which were released in the last ten years.
Videos by American Songwriter
“I’m Gonna Love You” by Cody Johnson and Carrie Underwood
Carrie Underwood joins Cody Johnson for “I’m Gonna Love You”. Out in 2024 on the deluxe edition of Johnson’s Leather album, the song is written by Chris Stevens, Kelly Archer, and Travis Denning.
“I’m Gonna Love You” begins with, “Stars are gonna light up a midnight sky / The sun’s gonna burn on the fourth of July / Tides are gonna turn with the pull of the moon / And I’m gonna love you / Birds’ll fly south when the winter comes / Snow’s gonna fall and rivers gonna run / April’s gonna rain and flowers gonna bloom / And I’m gonna love you.”
When Johnson agreed to record the song, his stipulation was that he would only do it if he could sing it with Underwood.
“I was like, ‘It’s Carrie Underwood or nobody,” Johnson recalls. “I just heard her voice; I could already hear it.”
“Never Say Never” by Cole Swindell and Lainey Wilson
Cole Swindell released “Never Say Never” with Laney Wilson in 2021. The song, which Swindell wrote with Jessi Alexander and Chase McGill, is part of Swindell’s Stereotype album.
“Never Say Never” says, “I never say never with you, I end up together with you / It’s hell and it’s heaven with you, baby / Anything’s possible, the highs are unstoppable / It’s so uncontrollable, it’s crazy. We say we won’t and then we do / You’re all I want, I never say never with you.”
The video for “Never Say Never” was shot at Brushy Mountain State Penitentiary.
“I Hope You’re Happy Now” by Carly Pearce and Lee Brice
Carly Pearce and Lee Brice put a new twist on a duet with “I Hope You’re Happy Now”. Out in 2019 from Pearce’s self-titled sophomore album, Pearce wrote the song with Luke Combs, Randy Montana, and Jonathan Singleton.
“I Hope You’re Happy Now” was inspired by Pearce’s relationship with her former husband, Michael Ray. When they met, she was dating someone else, but quickly realized that that relationship had run its course.
“I was on the back end of realizing, over the course of probably a year of staying with this person, and keeping it to myself, that I wasn’t happy anymore,” Pearce tells The Boot. So Luke was like, ‘What if I play the role of the guy?’ We kind of landed on this [idea] of ‘I hope you’re happy now.’”
“I Hope You’re Happy Now” says, “I hope you find what you were looking for / I hope your heart ain’t hurting anymore / And you keep moving on / All figured it out / And you don’t hate me somehow / ‘Cause I hope you’re happy now.”
“Half Of My Hometown” by Kelsea Ballerini and Kenny Chesney
“Half Of My Hometown” is on Kelsea Ballerini’s third studio album, appropriately called Kelsea. Written by Ballerini, along with Ross Copperman, Nicolle Galyon, Shane McAnally, and Jimmy Robbins, the song is about looking back at the place you were raised with nostalgia, even after moving on.
“Half Of My Hometown” says, “Half of my hometown’s still hangin’ around / Still talkin’ about that one touchdown / They’re still wearin’ red and black / ‘Go Bobcats’ while the other half / Of my hometown, they all got out / Some went north, some went south / Still lookin’ for a feelin’ half of us ain’t found / So stay or leave, part of me will always be / Half of my hometown.”
Ballerini asked Kenny Chesney to join her on the song since they are both from East Tennessee.
Photo by Theo Wargo/Getty Images
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