Country music star Chris Stapleton had the best night of his work life on Wednesday (Nov. 4). Not only did the Traveller singer sweep the CMA Awards, but he also invited his personal friend and Tennessee native Justin Timberlake on stage to duet with him on two songs.
The two performed Stapleton's "Tennessee Whiskey" and Timberlake's "Drink You Away" with all the soul they could muster, the latter of which sounded truly intriguing with a country twinge to it. The duo were backed by a full horn section and backup singers to boot. If you're surprised by JT's country music affiliation, don't be, as the singer has previously collaborated and performed with other influential artists in the genre such as Garth Brooks and Reba McEntire.
The performance was no surprise, as Timberlake revealed the collaboration earlier this week via Twitter, posting a picture of Stapleton and captioning "Honored to share the stage with this BADASS. Wed night. Memphis x Nashville."
According to Rolling Stone Country the two had been looking to perform together for some time. "Timberlake is obviously one of the greatest musical talents in the world, maybe ever, that we have. I called him up with no thought of him agreeing to it and he was ready to start planning it right then," said Stapleton. "He was so gracious and kind to want to do it and was so excited about it, and I'm excited about it. It'll be something I've never done before for sure."
The CMAs were held at Nashville's Bridgestone Arena, and Chris Stapleton won Male Vocalist Of The Year, Album Of The Year and New Artist Of The Year for his debut album Traveller, which is out now via Mercury Nashville.
