One question and one question only.
As a country music fan, we often think that everyone knows everyone in the space. But that’s far from the case. Just because two people might share the limelight does not mean that they have crossed paths or shared a conversation with one another.
Country artists are just like us, fans sometimes, and will ponder questions about what inspired a song, why they changed a band name, or why they embrace a particular style. Ella Langley is like us in times like these and has questions regarding some of her country music colleagues.
Langley recently sat down with Bev Rainey from Country Nights Live, and she was asked what the one question is that she’s dying to ask one artist in particular, if the opportunity arose. Langley initially reacts with a hilarious statement:
“I have a lot of questions for a lot of people.”
But after a few moments of thinking, the person and the question pop into Langley’s mind.
“Oh. Does Eric Church need his sunglasses? Like, are there prescriptions in there? Or is it now… did it start out not, and then did he put it in there? Like, I just wanted to know.
It’s part of the thing, I understand. One time he did put them down and I saw his eyeballs and I was like holy s**t. But that would be my question, probably.”
HA. Her reaction to seeing his eyeballs is a top-notch response.
@withbevrainey @Ella Langley has ONE question for you, @Eric Church … 🕶️ “What’s the deal with the shades, man?” 😎😂 Catch the full convo on Country Nights Live with Bev Rainey—where no question is off-limits and the tea is country strong! 🎤 #CountryNightsLive #EllaLangley #BevRainey ♬ original sound – Country Nights Live
Luckily for Ella Langley, we have the answer for her.
Back in 2012, the “Talladega” singer was asked about his sunglasses after he and other country artists paid tribute to Levon Helm with a benefit concert. Backstage, Church was stopped and asked about his sunglasses, and he revealed that the accessory choice wasn’t as exciting as some people would’ve hoped:
“I wear contacts, and my eyes don’t do real well with lubrication. We would play all these bars and clubs and the bar can lights… I’m 6’3” so they’d bake my contacts and they’d fall out. So I ended up being blind on stage.
Somebody suggested to put glasses on, and it worked. What’s funny is that it stuck. It was never thought out. We never thought, ‘This would be good.’ We actually at the time thought, ‘This is not good,’ you know? But it ended up being a thing.”
And even when he discovered the shades inside as a solution, the long-term plan wasn’t to keep them on forever. That being said, as Eric Church continued to play more shows and release more music, the shades became an essential item and an accessory that provided him with an extra boost of confidence. Church elaborated on how the sunglasses became part of his look while talking to Today’s Willie Geist on an episode of Sunday Sitdown.
The look became permanent when his signature album Chief came around:
“It just started happening, and then I did it again. I would take nights off, you know? This wasn’t a thing. I didn’t go, ‘Hey, I’m gonna wear shades.’ I’d wear them a couple of nights, and if that worked, I’d take them off… then the contacts would pop out again. So I just started wearing them.
Over time, it became a little bit of, I don’t want to say a cape. But it became a little bit of a cape. Because I was able to put the shades on, and after I’d play a couple of shows, (it signified that) it’s showtime. It gave me a different mentality. It gave me a different mindset.
And then it stuck, once Chief happened, then it was like (my thing). I’m the only guy that goes to the beach and takes my shades off. I become anonymous as soon as I pull them off. It’s the Clark Kent opposite.”
Well, there you have it, Ella Langley. That’s why the Chief sports his sunglasses on and off stage.
