Walker Hayes and Jake Owen get into “Country Stuff” in Hayes’ new single.
The track finds the singers raising a glass to all the “country stuff” they love: old blue jeans, mud on their tires, guitars and dirt roads. “You know, country stuff,” they chant at the end of the chorus.
The melody leans into Hayes’ signature style of blending production tricks with country influences — the second verse has the two in call-and-response mode as Hayes says his favorite shirts are flannel. “Me too, man,” Owen calls back.
Jack Daniels, front porch swings, sweet tea and rain on a tin roof also get shoutouts in this eclectic ode to the country lifestyle, penned by Hayes, Joe Thibodeau and Adam Stark.
“Having Jake Owen on ‘Country Stuff’ is a full circle moment for me. When I got my first publishing deal in town, Jake was one of the first artists to put a hold on one of my songs. That moment meant so much to me,” Hayes reflects in a press release. “To now be releasing a song with him on it, that’s just mind-blowing.”
“Country Stuff” is the title track of Hayes’ upcoming six-song EP that also features collaborations with Carly Pearce on “What If We Did” and hit songwriter Lori McKenna on the EP’s closing track, “Briefcase,” along with previously released songs “I Hope You Miss Me” and “Make You Cry.” Hayes rose to fame with his 2017 breakthrough single “You Broke Up With Me,” which became a Top 10 hit on the Billboard Country Airplay chart.
Country Stuff arrives in time for summer on June 4.