00:00Hi, so you have been at this for so long and you've just been grinding and pushing and things are really starting to explode for you.
00:10And this is your first ACM award, so I mean, talk about finally getting one of these trophies in your hands.
00:15Well, first of all, it's great to see you, Becca, and it feels so good.
00:19Yeah, it really does, and it's quite an honor, I have to tell you.
00:22It's a humbling privilege, and Kelly and I were totally shocked backstage when Riva presented this to us and surprised me with the trophy, and I always wanted to win one.
00:33Now look, it's life-changing, it truly is.
00:36You never really know exactly what it feels like until you do win one, and I would definitely say this is one of my top three highlighted moments in my whole musical career, and I'm so grateful for that.
00:48Hey, Chris.
00:49Hey, what's up, Billy?
00:50Congratulations.
00:51Thank you, man.
00:52Thank you very much.
00:53Since we didn't get to see it, take us back to that moment when you found out you won and tell us your immediate reaction.
00:58What was the first thing you did?
00:59I was totally taken by surprise, and you know, I'm like so unsurprisingly usually, but my whole team, including my wife, which I cannot believe she didn't tell me.
01:09And so I was standing backstage and I heard Riva coming down the hall in typical Riva fashion, loud, proud, and ready to be there.
01:16It was awesome because it was exactly, if you could ever have planned it, it was exactly how I wanted it to be.
01:23You know, and she changed her life once again.
01:26I mean, she presented me with awards.
01:28She's my favorite, you know, entertainer of all time, and it really meant a lot to me.
01:32It really did.
01:33It was very special, and you know, I used to tell people before I ever won an ACM, or anywhere for that matter, I used to say, you know, I got into this for music and songs, and I truly did.
01:44And I still stand by that.
01:45But boy, once you win the trophy, it's like, hard to beat.
01:48It really is.
01:49Hey, Chris.
01:50Hey, hey, hey.
01:51Once you win an award like this, especially for such an important song and such a beautiful video, can you just kind of address what it means to you to have these important events or something that was so special to you and to so many people?
02:05Yes, and first of all, thanks for coming there.
02:07The video, all the credit goes to Shane Tarleton from Warner Brothers, Mike Dupree from Warner Brothers, and all credit goes to where credit is due.
02:16I had, you know what, I had an incredible team, and that first means a lot to me.
02:22It means a lot to me that people would even take time to give me a record deal, give me a shot, that people would play my music, and that I get the opportunity to make music videos.
02:30I tell people all the time, they say, boy, it must be a long journey making a music video.
02:34Not really.
02:35It's a great privilege.
02:36Not everybody gets to do it, and certainly not everybody gets to win an award for once.
02:40So, you know, making a video for Drunk Girl, it really touched my heart, and it touched my heart in the surprising way because most people watch their video treatments over and over and over again, and they watch all the edits.
02:51I didn't watch any edits.
02:52I watched it when it was done, and I watched the final product, and that's how much I trusted my team and continue to trust my team.
02:59And when you have a good team, you can never lose.
03:02So I celebrate this with everybody, and it means the world to me, and honestly, it's very validating, I think, for the song.
03:10And, you know, I'm just the guy who got to write it, sing it, perform it, and collect the trophy, but I'm really proud to be the one that takes it.
03:23I just wanted to talk about your versatility.
03:26I mean, you've got this very poignant, beautiful song, Drunk Girl, and now you're out there with Good Vibes.
03:32I mean, it's got to be a fun time now just to be on this journey and be able to sort of explore every facet of you as an artist.
03:38It is.
03:39Thank you for mentioning that.
03:40You know, Good Vibes is doing so well.
03:42They tell me it's one of my fastest-moving singles right off the bat since I've ever had since Fix a Drink and Boat.
03:49But I love up-tempo songs.
03:51I do.
03:52I love having fun, too.
03:53If anybody's ever seen me live, they know that a lot of my show is rowdy, raucous, and just honestly, it's more about entertainment than anything.
04:01But Drunk Girl reminded me that it's also about a song, and it's also a great reminder that you can slow down every now and again and really sing to people and perform for people and, frankly, just tell a story.
04:14And I love playing stories.
04:15I love writing songs.
04:16It's an honor to be a songwriter, and to have a hit, you know, to your credit is a big deal.
04:21And the versatility, that's a great point.
04:25That's something that I never really focused on until Drunk Girl.
04:29And I'm glad that I did, and I'm glad that my team prodded me to focus that way.
04:33A lot of that credit goes to my wife and Chris Lacey because we have all our song meetings together, and that's how we pick stuff.
04:40And, you know, for most people in the world's eyes, Drunk Girl was a big step.
04:44It was a leap.
04:45It could have really failed miserably.
04:46It could have really worked well.
04:48Thank God it really worked well.
04:49And it broadened my horizon.
04:51It broadened my fan base.
04:53It became a global thing other than just—it was bigger than just country music,
04:58which is something I never set out to do because, believe me, I love country music.
05:02It's all I've ever wanted to do.
05:04I'm just proud that I have a song that crossed over like it did and connected with so many people for the right people.
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