Luke Bryan's honky tonk love strings recently got tugged by Chris Stapleton, with the hip shaker declaring he "finally got to do a real intimate moment" with the singer-songwriter.
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Bryan kicked off this week with an appearance on The Tonight Show with Jimmy Fallon and took the moment to gush over Stapleton and their shared history. And honestly, it sounded a bit like the "Country Girl (Shake It for Me)" singer would like to take Stapleton "Huntin', Fishin' and Lovin' Every Day."
"It was an amazing night," a wistful Bryan told Fallon of his recent "Luke Bryan & Friends" sold-out concert, in which Stapleton joined him on stage.
"Chris Stapleton actually wrote one of my songs, 'Drink a Beer,' that historically was one of my most emotional songs," the 50-year-old explained. "This was before Chris became Chris. He actually performed it with me at the CMA Awards, and he is the background singer on the actual record."
However, looking into his eyes as they harmonized together, Bryan couldn't help but notice how much Stapleton had grown as a performer since those days.
"He and I finally got to do a real intimate moment," Bryan swooned. "The interesting thing that I didn't know about Stapleton is... He's such an amazing singer. I have him as my No. 1 on Mount Rushmore, by the way. He's my favorite singer."
Luke Bryan Shares the Moment He Realized He Was 'Falling in Love' with Chris Stapleton
Then the "Drunk on You" singer admitted that as Stapleton gazed at his lips, he found himself "falling in love" with the burly, rugged country star.
"He really stares at you," a starry-eyed Bryan recalled. "Like, while he's singing at you. Because he's watching your lips. And as he's watching your lips, it's very intimidating. And then the whole time I'm kind of falling in love."
Not long after the Sept. 24 performance at Bridgestone Arena in Nashville, a lovelorn Bryan took to Instagram to thank Stapleton and several other high-profile country artists who joined him on stage that evening.
"Nashville, you're too good to me," he wrote alongside several snapshots from the big night. "Thank you to the fans and to my friends @jasonaldean @dariusrucker @carrieunderwood @chrisstapleton @dierksbentley @kanebrown for making last night an unforgettable one."
" data-instgrm-version="14" style="background:#FFF;border:0;border-radius:3px;margin: 1px;max-width:540px;min-width:326px;padding:0;width:99.375%;width:-webkit-calc(100% - 2px);width:calc(100% - 2px)">The comments section was filled with fans still buzzing from the concert.
"Unforgettable is exactly what it was. Thank you!!!" one top comment read. "You were Awesome!! Thank you for a fun night!" another fan added.
Perhaps noting the chemistry between Bryan and Stapleton, another fan wrote: "You ALWAYS leave your heart on the stage."
