He doesn’t miss.
This past Friday, Cody Johnson released his new album Banks of the Trinity, which features a duet called “Shoot The Bull” with his friend, the one and only Luke Combs, in addition to a stacked tracklist of 15 other songs that you should certainly dive into if you haven’t yet.
And during a recent interview on The Kelleigh Bannen Show on Apple Music Country, Cody talked about how the song “Time Bomb” has details about his life that he’s never shared before, which includes going to jail on multiple occasions, as he admitted that he’s no saint and has plenty of flaws he wants people to know about:
“I’ve been to jail, stuff like that. People don’t know that. I’ve been locked up a few times in jail. Just overnight. I didn’t get sentenced or anything. There are parts of my life that people don’t know about and I’m like, ‘Y’all look at this Cody Johnson guy like I’m some kind of saint.’ I’m not. I am just like you.
I have daily struggles with things that you do too. I have to really work up here a lot to get my brain disciplined to where I don’t think like that guy. Let’s be a better version of that guy. That kid’s got to grow up eventually.”
Cody also opened up about the significance of “I Have,” which is essentially a cry for help as he admits he his a mere mortal with plenty of flaws who has had to ask for plenty of help in his lifetime, and he hasn’t always understood why his life is the way it is at times:
“Have you ever come down from a mountain high
And tried to climb back up, but you downhill dive
So you turn to the bottle just to get you by
Well, I have
Oh, and have you ever been crippled by an anxious fear
And took a long, hard look in the bathroom mirror
And thought, “Who’d even miss me if I disappeared?”
Well, I have
Oh, God, I’m trying to carry on, but I fear that I can’t
It feels like sometimes I’m waiting on some twisted damn plan
I’ve had enough of this white-knuckle grip
Lord, I’m just a man
Holding on with everything I have
I have, I have, I have
Is it just me or does anyone out there anywhere find it hard to believe?”
“I Have” was written by Matt Schuster, Devin Dawson and Adam Yaron, and Cody explained that it’s had a really strong reaction from women in particular, and once again, he wants his fans to know how flawed he is and how he’s gone through some very tough times… it isn’t all glitz and glamour for the country star, that’s for sure:
“I think that this song, so far the reaction I’ve gotten from this is mostly ironically, it’s weird, but mostly women relate to this song because I think that a lot of men are kind of afraid to be that vulnerable. If I could describe it in one word, it’s very vulnerable.
For me, the reason I cut it was there’s younger artists that say, ‘Man, I want what Cody’s got.’ Dude, there was a lot of very dark times to get to this sunshine and rainbow experience that I’m having now. Sleazy hotel rooms and no money and tinkering with alcoholism or drug problems or whatever, anger issues, whatever it was.
It’s like I wanted people to know, ‘Hey, when you look at me, please don’t put me on a pedestal. I’m doing the best I can just like you. I’ve got parts figured out. I’ve got parts that I don’t have figured out.’ And it’s like, have you ever had self-doubt? Well, I have. Have you ever turned to a bottle when you shouldn’t have? I have. Have you ever looked in the mirror and thought, ‘I don’t even know why I’m here.’
Well, I have… I don’t care if it’s a big hit or not. That one was kind of a personal thing. I think that was just as personal for me as like a ‘Human’ was. It was that self-reflection of like, ‘Hey, I’ve been there too. Don’t feel alone. We’ve all been there.'”
CoJo always keeping it real. He comes across as such a humble, down-to-earth family guy now, but of course, there’s always more to someone’s story and I think it’s really cool that he’s so willing to open up about the parts of his life that haven’t been so perfect.
There’s a reason he’s the reigning ACM Entertainer of the Year, and these are two easy standouts on the stellar tracklist if you’re looking for a place to start.
“Time Bomb”
“I Have”
Banks of the Trinity Tracklist
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- “Horseback”
- “Hello Lonesome”
- “Fool Proof” (feat. Brothers Osborne)
- “Take Me Back (Leave Me There)”
- “Banks of the Trinity”
- “I Want You”
- “I Have”
- “Bible for a Boy (For Jaycee)”
- “Kissing a Married Woman”
- “Every Man”
- “Motel Miss You”
- “Shoot the Bull” (feat. Luke Combs)
- “Cricket on a Hook”
- “Time Bomb”
- “Thank Somebody Country”
- “Yippy Ty Oh Hey Hey”
The full interview is available here:
