Justin Timberlake and Chris Stapleton’s bromance has spent the last few years blossoming, so the two decided to put their friendship to the test by working on a song together and what came out was their masterpiece known as “Say Something.”
The chilled-out track didn’t start as a calculated plan though; Timberlake casually invited Stapleton out to Los Angeles for a writing session and randomly asked the country singer to throw his vocals down on a special track. Even though Stapleton was taken aback by the kind offer, he never expected that he’d wind up recording with a pop icon but didn’t want to miss the chance.
“I really just went out to Los Angeles to write songs with him,” Stapleton said to Billboard during a recent interview. “It’s a very fluid process with him, there’s a lot going on. That was one of those things where there wasn’t necessarily a plan. He was like ‘All right, you hop in there and take a verse,’ and I’m like, ‘You want me to do what?’ … It came out great. I had a blast with him, he’s a great creative force and one of those guys that if you get a chance to work with him, you should.”
Stapleton’s work on Timberlake’s upcoming record, Man of the Woods, didn’t just stop there. The country singer also laid down the first couple guitar notes of “Filthy,” Timberlake’s first song to radio on this next project, Man of the Woods. The “Tennessee Whiskey” singer also wrote a few more tunes on the anticipated release, including a song featuring Alicia Keys, as well as some he couldn’t remember while chatting with Billboard at the GRAMMYs.
The “Say Something” video also combined talents from both men, making the clip in a matter of one take without any backing track. Adding a choir singing from the balconies above, Stapleton and Timberlake harmonize beautifully through the echoed hallways and bring the song to a new life unimaginable to the listener’s ear.
“Say Something” is available for streaming and purchase now.
