Texas powerhouse, Cody Johnson, is back with his ninth studio album, Leather.
Coming off of the success of his previous record, Human: The Double Album, all eyes are on Johnson for this highly-anticipated release.
Johnson announced the album’s release back on September 21st.
In anticipation of the album, Johnson released four tracks, The Painter, Work Boots, Watching My Old Flame and That’s Texas. His current single, The Painter, is currently #24 on Billboard’s Hot Country Songs chart.
One of the most striking aspects of the album very well might be the cover art, depicting Johnson’s worn-down hands resting on a leather saddle. In an interview with Billboard, the Til You Can’t singer described how he just got done working on his ranch before they were taken.
“I was working at the ranch that day, so I told my photographer Chris Douglas to come over. That’s blood and hair in that picture from castrating bulls and giving them shots that day. We didn’t stage any of that. We got started at 5:00 a.m. and worked all day and he ended up getting some incredible photos while we were working.”
For Johnson, he wanted to make Leather as authentic as possible, citing the current popularity of artists such as Zach Bryan and Jelly Roll, who is featured on the album, as key members in this push for more authenticity in country music.
“People appreciate authenticity, whether it’s me being a cowboy and singing something that reminds people of ‘90s country stuff they grew up on, or someone like the Zach Bryans and guys that are more like what probably is considered Americana, or Jelly Roll, who is completely the opposite of me, musically. But authenticity is the common thread.”
Speaking of Jelly Roll, he is featured on the seventh track, Whiskey Bent. The reflective track touches on the dangers of alcoholism and the redemption found in beating an addiction. Funny enough, Johnson did not like the song’s title at first, citing that it felt cliché.
“I hated the title. They told me the title and I said, ‘I hate it already because it sounds like an old cliché; I’m not singing that song. But then I heard the lyrics about trying to put a life and a love back together—especially the hook, ‘I’m still trying to straighten out what whiskey bent.’”
Jelly Roll was originally supposed to appear on the previous track, Jesus Loves You, a somber, brooding lament about a man who resisted the urge to kill the man who broke into his home. Jelly Roll was moved so much by Whiskey Bent, that he opted to sing on that song instead:
“He asked me what else I was working on and I played him ‘Whiskey Bent.’ He just started crying and was like, ‘Bro, I ain’t never heard a song like that. If I’m gonna be on a song, can it be that one?’ I gave him the entire second verse. It didn’t take him long to learn the song and he did incredibly.”
Johnson’s collaboration with Brooks & Dunn, Long Live Country Music, stemmed from Johnson’s 2022 CMT Awards speech where he finished with the phrase “Long live country music.” The phrase caught the ear of songwriter, Trent Willmon, who went on to write the song with Phil O’Donnell and Wade Kirby. After hearing it, Johnson reached out to Ronnie Dunn. The rest is history.
All of these songs result in an album that feels wholly Cody Johnson. You get loving nods to his wife in tracks like the pre-released, The Painter, boot stompin’ tracks like Work Boots and People In The Back and reflective tracks like Make Me A Mop. Leather is a worthy follow-up to Human that is sure to please fans of the Texas singer/songwriter.
Listen to The Painter, Whiskey Bent (feat. Jelly Roll) and Long Live Country Music (feat. Brooks & Dunn) here: