Another Monday morning surprise drop.
After a 2025 that was filled with ups and downs, highlighted primarily by suffering a blown-out eardrum in October and following it up with his first-ever CMA Male Vocalist of the Year award just a month later, Cody Johnson is preparing to have himself quite a year in 2026.
Along with the sprawling, 28-show tour, which recently added the likes of Kip Moore, Clint Black, Randy Houser, Jon Pardi, Carter Faith and more as openers that kicked off back in February, the “Dirt Cheap” singer is also making his largest festival appearance to date, headlining California’s Stagecoach for the first time in his career on April 24th.
More importantly, CoJo has promised new music coming early and often throughout the year, recently telling Dale Brisby that fans can expect songs that won’t even appear on the new album to be released sporadically in the coming months.
“I got so many songs that are coming out periodically that have nothing to do with the album that’s already done. The whole gun is loaded; the ammunition’s there. We’re just fixing to start sending it, which will power these big, huge shows that we’re playing this year.”
Johnson would kick things off last month, surprise dropping his first true new song in over a year with the release of “Blame Texas” on Monday, March 6th. Exactly a month later, he’d keep the trend of surprise, monthly Monday releases going once again, this time releasing a cover of one of his heroes, Merle Haggard’s, 1979 deep cut, “Footlights.”
In an Instagram post announcing the cover, the “Diamond in My Pocket” singer would share that he decided to release it due to it being Haggard’s birthday (and subsequently the anniversary of his death in 2016). Additionally, he’d note that the “Mama Tried” singer’s music has been the soundtrack to his life.
“Merle Haggard’s music has been the soundtrack of my life. I couldn’t think of a better way to honor him on his birthday than by sharing our version of “Footlights.” It’s out now. Hope we did it justice.”
Though “Footlights” was never released as a single, it has remained one of the most celebrated deep cuts in Haggard’s discography. First appearing on his 1979 album, Serving 190 Proof, the track would be re-released and covered by George Jones on their 2006 collaborative album, Kickin’ Out the Footlights…Again.
As for Johnson’s cover, it serves as a beautiful celebration of Haggard’s legendary career. Adding some extra fiddle to the production compared to Haggard’s piano-heavy original version, Johnson modernizes the track a bit while still staying true to Haggard’s original composition. Given the fact that Johnson is three years younger than the “Big City” singer at the time of “Footlight’s” release, it feels like a perfect mid-career reflection for CoJo.
If you’re a fan of both Johnson and Haggard, this is nothing short of a must-listen.
“Footlights”
Cody Johnson Tour Dates
April 24 – Indio, California – Stagecoach
May 2 – Clemson, South Carolina – Death Valley (Clemson Stadium)
May 9 – Des Moines, Iowa – Casey’s Corner
May 30 – Rosemont, Illinois – Allstate Center
July 11 – Cavendish, Prince Edward Island – Cavendish Beach Music Festival
July 17 – Columbus, Ohio – Nationwide Arena with Drew Baldridge
July 18 – Columbus, Ohio – Nationwide Arena with Ian Munsick & Walker Montgomery
July 25 – Jacksonville, Florida – Vystar Veterans Memorial Arena
August 8 – Oklahoma City, Oklahoma – Paycom Center
August 22 – Knoxville, Tennessee – Food City Center
August 29 – Saint Paul, Minnesota – Grand Casinoa Arena
September 12 – Tacoma, Washington – Tacoma Dome
