American singer-songwriter Riley Green is making waves again, this time teaming up with rising star Ella Langley on the duet “You Look Like You Love Me.” The song is quickly climbing the charts and racking up impressive streaming numbers.
But Riley’s not stopping there—his solo track “Worst Way” is also catching on, making 2024 look like it could be his best year yet.
Right now, Riley is in the UK, gearing up to open for Morgan Wallen at the huge BST Hyde Park show on July 4. He recently sat down with Smooth Country’s Eamonn Kelly to talk about the concert and his new music.
On working with Ella, Riley shared, “Ella’s from Alabama, just like me, and I’d heard her name for a while. A promoter I’ve worked with would often bring her out to open for me. She’s got a fantastic, very country voice—exactly what I enjoy.”
He went on, “She joined me on tour this year with Tracy Lawrence and me. Being on the road together like that is one of the most natural ways songs and ideas come about. A buddy of mine played me this song, and I ended up writing the second verse. Honestly, nobody expected it to take off the way it has.”
Riley also gave a little sneak peek about collaborating with Luke Bryan, hinting that their work might show up on his next album.
“Usually, collaborations happen through managers or agents, but I just text Luke directly,” Riley said. “I’ll send him a song I’m proud of and see if he wants to jump on it.”
In the interview, Riley also opened up about his unexpected start on the reality show Redneck Island.
“I’m not really into reality shows,” he said. “I never thought I’d go that route, but I was doing construction work when someone came to a show and asked if I wanted to be on a CMT show. I figured, maybe it could help my music career.”
He added, “It was a tough experience—no phones, stuck in a house for a month. I don’t think it made a huge difference for me, but it gave me insight into how those shows work. I was careful not to do anything stupid because they tend to make people look crazy.”
Riley joked, “I think I was pretty boring—I slept most of the time!”
