Leon Bridgeshas nothing but love for rising starLil Nas X!
The 29-year-old soul singer spoke with PEOPLE during theCMT Awardsred carpet Wednesday about “Old Town Road” and the rapper behind the viral track.
“He has the elements of the essence of what country music is and I think the ‘Old Town Road’ song is a fun song,” he told PEOPLE.
“From one brother to another brother, I support him,” he added.
The 20-year-old’s country-trap track has been a topic of controversy in the country music world after it wasremoved fromBillboard’s Hot Countrychart in April because it “does not embrace enough elements of today’s country music,”according toBillboard.
Lil Nas X’s collaboration with country singerBilly Ray Cyrushas sat atNo. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100chart for nine weeks and has garnered over 308 million plays on Spotify.
Billy Ray Cyrus and Lil Nas X.Courtesy of Strategic Public Relations
“It was so obvious to me after hearing the song just one time,” Cyrustweeted in April, defending his decision to feature on the track. “I was thinking, what’s not country about it? What’s the rudimentary element of a country and western song? Then I thought, it’s honest, humble, and has an infectious hook, and a banjo. What the hell more do ya need?”
“If you look at it historically, black artists have always incorporated country music into their sound,” added Bridges. “Look atRay Charlesand it’s always been there. I 100 percent support it.”
Be sure to followPEOPLE’s full CMT Awardscoverage to get the latest news on country’s big night.
“Prior to working with Luke I didn’t know much about the modern country world,” said the “Coming Home” singer about his country collab. “It’s awesome to see this whole world of people doing their thing.”
Leon Bridges and Luke Combs.
Bridges admitted that joining forces with Combs, 29, for a rendition of “Beautiful Crazy” was nerve-racking.
“I was nervous as hell because I didn’t think I would be able to pull off learning four of his songs in time,” he said. “[Combs] came with it and was singing my songs better than I sing them. I was like, ‘Damn!'”
Bridges added a first CMT trophy to his award collection, which includes a Grammy for best traditional R&B performance of “Bet Ain’t Worth the Hand.”
The2019 CMT Awardsaired live from Nashville’s Bridgestone Arena on CMT Wednesday.
source: people.com
