As the Country Music Association gets ready for its year-end celebration broadcasting live from Nashville, 2023 CMAs performer Cody Johnson joined us backstage to discuss the artistic inspiration behind the cover of his brand new album, Leather, and more.
LISTEN NOW: Cody Johnson at the 2023 CMA Awards
Talking backstage at the 57th annual CMAs with fellow equestrian Holly Hutton (Rob + Holly), Cody revealed that the grimy and gritty pair of hands featured on the cover of his 2023 album Leather are his own, snapped by his friend and photographer Chris Douglas.
Though the picture looks like an artsy production, "It wasn't really a photo shoot," Cody explains. "We were just working cows." After a day of branding and tagging 40 head of cattle, "I'm covered in spit, and rhymes with spit, and snot, and sweat, and I'm just dirty. My hands are covered with blood and I put my hands on my saddle horn, and [Chris] was like, 'Don't move!' I'm, like, 'Dude, I'm ready for a shower and a margarita... I'm done.' He's like, 'That's the shot.' Then when I saw it I was like, 'Wow, what a great eye.' He was right in the thick of it; you can get hurt if you're not paying attention. He was really great."
Diving into some of those specific "precarious situations" that horse handlers can be prone to, Holly asked Cody to list off a few battle scars and stories from his days working the ranch.
"Broke my neck," Johnson says, giving us his injury list in order of seriousness it seems. "Rodeo... my neck was cracked in like 13 fragments. But I lived with it for, like, five years." Continuing on, Cody says he's broken his right collar bone, two ribs, his left arm and right leg (both in two different places), two fingers, and dislocated a shoulder.
Worry not though, he actually says none of his bumps and bruises have hindered his guitar playing. "What's crazy," he says, "when I broke this [finger]... when I rehabbed it, I can move it further on the frets now. So, it was a good thing. I play guitar better!"
Listen to Holly's full chat with Cody Johnson above and be sure to catch all of the 2023 CMAs performances tonight (11/8) on ABC, with scheduled appearances from Cody, Kelsea Ballerini, Kenny Chesney, Luke Combs, Dan + Shay, Jordan Davis, HARDY, Post Malone, Ashley McBryde, Morgan Wallen, The War And Treaty, Zac Brown Band, and more.
Related
Listen to our CMAs Nomination Station and more on the free Audacy app
Don't miss the 57th Annual CMA Awards, hosted by Luke Bryan and Peyton Manning, airing Wednesday, November 8 at 8PM ET / 7PM CT on ABC, and available the next day on Hulu. Find more of Audacy's CMA Awards coverage at audacy.com/cma.