Ben Rector‘s collaboration with Thomas Rhett on “What Makes A Man” is out! The song was written solely by Rector, who knew right away he wanted to invite Rhett to sing on it with him.
“I had so much fun having collaborators on a few of the songs on the record that I immediately thought of Thomas Rhett when this song was finished,” shares the singer-songwriter. “A big part of this album for me was wanting to do things that were exciting and enjoyable, and having him on the song felt like both.”
“I’ve always been a fan of Ben’s, so when he reached out wanting to collaborate, I jumped at the opportunity to work with him,” adds Rhett. “He’s an incredible artist, writer, and performer and this song hit me as something that I could immediately connect to.”
Rector also spoke out about the song on social media.
“Earnest dad vibes from a couple earnest dads,” Rector wrote. “I hope you guys love it, let us know what you think!”
“What Makes A Man” comes on the heels of Rector’s latest The Joy of Music album, released in March. The project includes collaborations with Snoop Dogg, Dave Koz, Kenny G and Taylor Goldsmith.
“When I was making this record, I was operating from a place of wanting to find joy in the process. I wanted to do things that sounded fun, just because they sounded fun,” Rector told MusicRow of The Joy of Music. “I wasn’t constructing songs with the hope of them being a feature or anything. I was just making the art that I wanted to make and then on a couple of songs, I said, ‘Dude, it would be so fun if we got Snoop Dogg to be on the song.’ For me, the worst thing that can happen is that Snoop says, ‘No, I don’t want to do that,’ which is totally understandable. The best thing that could happen is that I’m on a song with Snoop Dogg.”
Rector has more to celebrate than a collaboration with Rhett. The Oklahoma native will make his Grand Ole Opry debut on Tuesday, August 9. Other artists performing that night include Scotty McCreery, Lauren Alaina, Mandy Barnett, Shy Carter, Henry Cho and Mark Wills. Tickets are available here.
Find “What Makes A Man” and all of Rector’s music and upcoming shows at BenRectorMusic.com.