2024 was a whirlwind for Ella Langley. After breaking out with the saucy Riley Green duet “You Look Like You Love Me,” the Alabama native became a household name seemingly overnight. In May 2025, Langley was the most-awarded artist at the 60th annual ACM Awards, taking home the New Female Artist of the Year trophy and sharing a stage with Miranda Lambert. Understandably needing a break, she stepped back from live performing, canceling all shows scheduled for the month of August. Now, the “Weren’t for the Wind” singer, 26, is back on the road and thriving. During a recent stop in Texas, she tipped her hat to one of her favorite artists from the Lone Star State.
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“One of my favorite artists out of Texas is Cody Johnson,” Ella Langley told the Thursday (Oct. 16) crowd at Houston’s 713 Music Hall. “He’s one of my favorite people to watch, to take notes from. I feel like he’s a rodeo announcer and a preacher all at the same time. You know?”
Fans Call For Ella Langley, Cody Johnson Collab
Footage of Ella Langley’s shout-out to Cody Johnson made it to social media, where fans immediately began banging the drum for a duet between the two.
“Cojo and Ella Langley collab,” declared one TikTok user.
[RELATED: Ella Langley Gives Fans a Glimpse of Next Album With “Choosing Texas”]
Langley is far from alone in her admiration for Cody Johnson. The “Dirt Cheap” crooner, 38, recently clinched his first-ever Entertainer of the Year nod from the Country Music Association. He will face off against Luke Combs, Chris Stapleton, reigning titleholder Morgan Wallen, and Lainey Wilson at the 59th Annual CMA Awards on Nov. 19.
Johnson also scored a nomination for Male Vocalist of the Year, along with Music Video of the Year and Musical Event of the Year for the Carrie Underwood collab “I’m Gonna Love You.”
“So thank you, Carrie,” Johnson said during a recent appearance on The Luke Branquinho Show.
The “‘Til You Can’t” singer got his start riding bulls on the rodeo circuit, and he says life on the stage is not so different from the ring. “I treat it like that, where on Friday night, everybody’s like, ‘Man, that’s a great show.’ And I’m like, ‘Yeah, but I left that on the table. I screwed that up. I got lost here. You know, I felt like I could have done this better,’” Johnson said. “So the very next night, Saturday night, I come out with a different type of aggression. I’m not going to make those same mistakes, even though nobody saw the mistakes. It doesn’t matter. You don’t get the gold buckles or Entertainer of the Year without worrying about those things.”
Featured image by Scott Legato/Getty Images
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