Jason Aldean is gearing up for his next tour, which will start at the heels of his massive, 30-track double album — and he had something to say about a possible collaboration with one of his guests on tour, Gabby Barrett.
Aldean delivered a powerhouse performance of “If I Didn’t Love You” at the 57th Academy of Country Music Awards in Las Vegas on Monday night (March 7). The rendition included a jaw-dropping entrance by his duet partner, Carrie Underwood (and Aldean admitted he “was scared for her” when Underwood descended from the ceiling. “I was nervous the whole time until she got on the ground.”)
The smash song isn’t the first time Aldean has collaborated with talented women. Aldean also released “Don’t You Wanna Stay” with Kelly Clarkson in 2010, and “Drowns The Whiskey” with reigning ACM Entertainer of the Year Miranda Lambert in 2018. When asked at the ACMs whether Aldean had a new song in the works with Barrett, the “Rock And Roll Cowboy” singer responded:
“I think Gabby’s super talented. I mean, she’s one of the best female singers we got that’s sort of coming up right now… There’s no plans as of right now (for a duet).
“To me, I kind of let the song steer the ship a little bit. If we found a song that worked for her… I would absolutely love to work with her at some point. I’m always kind of open to that with anybody.”
Aldean noted that, male or female, he’s always interested in collaborating with fellow artists. The possibility of a duet is “not why we brought her out there, just, I’m a fan of what she does.” Still, “I’m open to all that stuff always.”
“I feel like I’ve had chemistry with all of them,” Aldean said of his previous duet partners. “But for me, it kind of depends on the song.” Lambert was a “no-brainer” for “Drowns The Whiskey,” for example. “I love working with all of them, I love working with other artists in general… I’m definitely down to do it again.”