I’m not sure I’ve ever seen so much speculation around two people in country music…
Since the release of Ella Langley and Riley Green‘s hit duet, the world has been hoping these two Alabama natives would end up together. The CMA and ACM Award-winning single was undoubtedly a smash hit for the duo, and given the flirty nature of the song, fans quickly began to wonder if there was a romantic spark between the two.
Despite Riley Green telling the world that Ella was “too smart” to date him, and that the two had committed to playing the act of two other famous couples like George Jones and Tammy Wynette, the internet was not convinced this was true.
“Yeah, I mean, Ella’s probably too smart to date me anyway. But I think that’s kind of the country music fan, like, they love the Tim McGraw and Faith, and the George and Tammy. And when we fist started having the success we did with that song, I kinda told Ella, I was like, ‘There’s gonna be a lot of things said, but I mean, you don’t really have to play into it or not play into it, its gonna be something people enjoy the same way we do when we go listen to those songs.’”
Even when Ella Langley said they were just very good friends, it was still not enough to convince the world that they were not together. Of course, these rumors paused when everyone decided to believe that Riley Green was seeing Megan Moroney due to some vacation footprints. Moroney confirmed they were together on vacation, but also shut down the thought that they were seeing each other in a romantic capacity.
“He was individually on his vacation with his friends. St. Barts is a popular place! It’s one of those things where if you know someone on a small island, you’re like, ‘Oh, sh*t, you’re here too.’ So it was fun.
Just because we’re hanging out doesn’t mean we’re romantically dating. You know what I mean?”
After Moroney shut down the rumors of them being together, and with Riley Green’s Damn Country Music tour kicking off, it didn’t take long for fans to think he and Ella were back together after seeing them on stage performing again.
Fans even went as far as to speculate that Green and Langley were kissing behind the stage of the American Rodeo after their performance. And just to clear that up… they weren’t.
I’ll give it to them… they know how to tell the story through their on-stage chemistry, and that’s the mark of a good song and great performers, they make you believe the story they’re telling. But wouldn’t we think they would have just come out with the truth that they were together if something was going on by then? This is Nashville… they’d totally lean into it.
However, fans have entirely changed the narrative after this week’s ACM Awards. Ella Langley and Riley Green had a night many artists dream of, taking home many awards for their number-one single. “You Look Like You Love Me” won the ACM Award in the following categories: Single of the Year, Music Event of the Year, and Visual Media of the Year. On top of that, Ella Langley was named the ACM New Female Artist of the Year.
During the awards show, Boot and Hearts Festival posted a clip of their names being called for a win, panning to the two standing up and congratulating each other. Green and Langley hug each other and the others involved on the single before heading to the stage for the acceptance speech.
@bootsandhearts Convinced “you look like you love me” will never not hit 🙂↕️ #ellalangley #rileygreen #countrymusic #acmawards #bootsandhearts ♬ original sound – Boots and Hearts
While I thought Green took a back seat during the speeches, letting Langley have her moment, given that he was the featured artist on the single, many social media users feel differently. The internet is convinced that there is bad blood between the two, clocking a slight eye roll after they hugged, given that Green did not say much on stage.
The internet quickly filled up the comments with the impression that the two are not each other’s biggest fans.
“I know a situationship gone bad when I see one.”
“She hates that man.”
“Excuse me, she looks like she hates him.”
“He did her dirty, I’m calling it now.”
“Oof, there’s some beef.”
“SHE HATES HIM.”
“The eye roll after the hug.”
“One day, I hope there is a movie about what really is going on…”
“He did her dirty, you can tell.”
“Yeah, energy speaks everything right here.”
“She hates that man, and you know what? I’m going to trust her.”
“He did something to her. Probably played her.”
“They looked very uncomfortable.”
“But why did she look sad?”
“Something is up. She seems off.”
“The reason you don’t mix business with pleasure.”
Man, y’all love some drama… what are they supposed to do make out because they won an award?
I’m no body language expert, but let me take a few guesses… maybe they were nervous going into the awards show, touring is exhausting and they were trying to make it through the night, they both had long/stressful days leading up to this moment, or the emotions were overwhelming that “YLLYLM” was winning all of these awards. They’re both rather quiet and humble, they’re both not “big talkers,” much like Miranda who she performed with earlier in the night, Ella rolls with a little bit of RBF, should I keep going? I don’t think that because they seemed “off” immediately means they hate each other.
Maybe this sudden change in narrative is our sign to let these two exist independently and appreciate the music they’ve given us. Not every famed duet couple has to be romantically involved…
