Matthew McConaughey On The First Time He Met Jamey Johnson: “Didn’t Take His Eyes Off Camila For 1 Second”

McConaughey Jamey Johnson country music
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I’m convinced that Matthew McConaughey could take a story about putting on his socks in the morning, and turn it into one of the greatest stories of all time. Seriously, I’d kill for a chance to sit back and listen to the famed actor talk about everything under the sun.

Mr. Alright Alright Alright himself joined Justin Moore’s podcast a while back, and among a whole host of different topics, he recalled the first time he ever met country music’s own Jamey Johnson.

McConaughey remembered the first time he heard Johnson’s hit song “In Color” when it first dropped back in 2008, and realized that his That Lonesome Song album was one of the best country albums he’d heard in a long time. Later on he attended the 2009 ACM Awards in Vegas with his Brazilian model wife Camila (girlfriend at the time), and he knew he had to meet Johnson.

Sometime during the show, he found the country singer, and he walked up to introduce himself. However, when he went to shake his hand, he said Johnson didn’t look at him the whole conversation, and had his eyes straight on Camila. Camila

“I’m with Camila and when I was there to present, I think his song was up, I said ‘I like this guy Jamey Johnson, let me do that category and I’d like to meet him.’

So I head back there with Camila and he’s standing there with his red cup, and I’m shaking his hand and say, ‘Hey, Jamey Johnson nice to meet you.’

He’s shaking my hand, but he’s looking right at her going, ‘Well, nice to meet you.’

He’s staring right at Camila, just dead eye stare, not even sneaky, no slant eye, just dead red. And while he’s still shaking my hand, he stops and goes ‘God,’ and he still has my hand.

So I say, “Jamey this is my girlfriend Camila’ and he says, “I know.” 

Didn’t take his eyes off her for one second and I was like ‘I like this guy, I like this guy a lot.'”

LEGEND.

And the friendship was born… Jamey even headed off to Brazil with Matt and Camila shorty after that for a little backpacking trip. And of course, Matt and Camila would wind up getting married a few years later in 2012.

You can check out the full podcast here:

Matthew McConaughey Dons Gorilla Suit In Jamey Johnson Music Video

McConaughey is obviously superstar actor, but he has also been involved in a good amount of behind the camera work through the years as well.

Jamey Johnson released his album The Guitar Song in 2010, and decided he needed a music video for one of the songs, “Playing The Part,” which is about missing his old life and where he’s from while going through the motions to make it in the Hollywood:

“When the only LA I knew was lower Alabama
Back when me and Hannah were wishing on a southern star
Now its so complicated, I really hate it, why’d I ever want to go so far
Taking depression pills in the Hollywood Hills
Acting like I’m playing the part”

Well, when you’re friends with a hot shot (and superb talent) like McConaughey, who is certainly in the Hollywood scene but by no means consumed by it, it’s probably a pretty short list of who you call to direct the video…

The result? A 7 minutes and 25 seconds ridiculous, weird, yet clever, reflection of what most of Hollywood is: a bunch of people playing dress up and acting like they’re more important than they are.

Took me a second, but the main character being dressed as a gorilla is actually pretty smart, I mean how many people are stuck in a monkey suit and just try to play the part every day? It’s a lot…

Oh yeah, and the man in the gorilla suit? None other than McConaughey himself.

Even though he was the man directing, just couldn’t help but hop in there and show everyone how it’s done. And that dance, come on now, it was just great…

Jamey Johnson and Matthew McConaughey are pretty different in a lot of ways, but very similar in ethos. Popular outlaws, at the outskirts of the inner circle. Part of the scene, but in no way controlled by it.

I’d kill to be a fly on the wall for a night out with those two…

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