Ain't Nothin' to It

Album: Ain't Nothin' to It (2019)
Play Video

Songfacts®:

  • Cody Johnson's sixth album, Gotta Be Me, was released on the singer's own CoJo label in 2016. It sold 23,000 copies in the US in its first week and Johnson quickly became one of Texas' most-sought-after talents. Warner Music Nashville won the Music Row sweepstakes and enticed Johnson to join their label after the Lone Star State native traded shots of tequila with WMN president/CEO John Esposito. This is the title track from the Texan singer's introductory Warner project, Ain't Nothin' to It.
  • Though Johnson had written the bulk of his previous material, he put out word in Nashville that he was open to songs from other sources. "Ain't Nothin' to It" was presented to him by David Lee and Leslie Satcher. A song about good men with good morals, Johnson explained to The Boot, that as the father of two daughters he hopes these are the type of males his young girls will hook up with when it's time to start dating.

    One's on year number 33
    And one just bought that diamond ring
    One says "Dad, so how'd you do it?"
    The other just laughs and says "There ain't nothin' to it"
    Just try to quit smokin' and reel back the drinkin'
    Don't always tell her everything you're thinkin'
    And dance her when she needs dancin'
    You get up and go to work, get up and go to church
    Crawl up in that bed right next to her and listen
    Instead of having all the answers


    Johnson said: "Just love on her, be there for her - that kind of sentiment from those two men, are the type of man I hope my daughters find."
  • Cody Johnson has a longstanding working relationship with David Lee and one of the reason he chose to name his debut album after this song is that Lee wrote the title tracks for all his previous records, and he's "a little superstitious."
  • Cody Johnson told Billboard that he was drawn to this song because its "moral compass" is something that he doesn't feel is being addressed in contemporary music.

    "The values of a dad telling his son, 'Listen to your wife and do things for her whenever you don't want to. And don't worry about the fights, they're gonna happen.' Those life lessons are something that I don't feel like are being discussed anymore," he explained. "And as the father of two little girls, I felt the need to put that moral compass out there."

Comments

Be the first to comment...

Editor's Picks

Director Wes Edwards ("Drunk on a Plane")

Director Wes Edwards ("Drunk on a Plane")Song Writing

Wes Edwards takes us behind the scenes of videos he shot for Jason Aldean, Dierks Bentley and Chase Bryant. The train was real - the airplane was not.

Adam Young of Owl City

Adam Young of Owl CitySongwriter Interviews

Is Owl City on a quest for another hit like "Fireflies?" Adam answers that question and explains the influences behind many others.

Why Does Everybody Hate Nu-Metal? Your Metal Questions Answered

Why Does Everybody Hate Nu-Metal? Your Metal Questions AnsweredSong Writing

10 Questions for the author of Precious Metal: Decibel Presents the Stories Behind 25 Extreme Metal Masterpieces

Sugarland

SugarlandSongwriter Interviews

Meet the "sassy basket" with the biggest voice in country music.

Donald Fagen

Donald FagenSongwriter Interviews

Fagen talks about how the Steely Dan songwriting strategy has changed over the years, and explains why you don't hear many covers of their songs.

Booker T. Jones

Booker T. JonesSongwriter Interviews

The Stax legend on how he cooked up "Green Onions," the first time he and Otis Redding saw hippies, and if he'll ever play a digital organ.