For Luke Bryan, one of the biggest career-defining songs for him was “Drink a Beer.” The song, a multi-platinum, No. 1 hit for him, was written by Chris Stapleton and Jim Beavers, and included on Bryan’s 2013 Crash My Party project.
Bryan, who had already had hits like “Country Girl (Shake It For Me),” “Rain Is A Good Thing,” “I Don’t Want The Night To End” and more, says the success of “Drink a Beer” changed, quite literally, everything for him and his career.
“I was obviously known as the party guy and the fun guy,” Bryan shared with Everything Nash and other outlets during a recent media event. “I was able to really do ‘Drink a Beer,’ and the fact that I took a Chris Stapleton demo with [my] voice and really made it a career kind of song for me.”
Still, for all of the success that “Drink a Beer” brought for Bryan, it also became a point of frustration for him, when the song failed to earn any major awards nominations, in spite of its commercial success, and its heartfelt appeal.
“That time in my career when ‘Drink A Beer’ maybe didn’t get recognized with Song of the Year nominations, and Single, those are the down days, because I always thought those were, artistically, maybe my best work ever.”
“Drink a Beer” might not have gotten the industry recognition it deserved, but ten years later, the song is still a mainstay in Bryan’s set list each night, and one of the highlights of his shows.
“Really, the last month, I’ve started really focusing on people in the crowd, more than ever when I sing ‘Drink a Beer,'” Bryan shares. “When you look out there, and 60 percent of your crowd is emotionally overwhelmed by the song, that tells me it’s just a timeless, beautiful thing.”
“Drink a Beer” has also provided Bryan some of his favorite memories with Stapleton, which began before the “White Horse” singer had become a household name.
“I never will forget Chris singing background on the CMAs with me, and I never will forget, Chris came out and performed it with me at Gillette Stadium,” Bryan remembers. “This was probably the summer before Chris did the [Justin] Timberlake performance at the CMAs. I remember looking at Chris, and even Jim Beavers, the other writer — watching those writers watch the crowd sing ‘Drink a Beer’ is one of the highlights of my life.
“And I think a lot of times in your life, you’ve never really seen Chris Stapleton’s eyeballs,” he adds with a laugh. “When we were singing it that night in Gillette, I looked at him, and his eyes were lit up. I think he truly understood what he had written in the moment. It was something to share with him that was pretty special. I’ll never forget that.”
Bryan just celebrated having 30 No. 1 singles, including “Drink a Beer.” Find all of Bryan’s music and upcoming shows at LukeBryan.com.