In a new instalment of Morgan Wallen Radio on SiriusXM, Wallen reveals why he decided to record ‘Up Down’ with Florida Georgia Line instead of ‘You Make It Easy’ early on in his career. The Sneedville native ended up giving the latter to Jason Aldean.

‘Up Down’ has become a touchstone for the rowdy, genre-blurring sound of Wallen's debut project, If I Know Me, as well as a much-loved staple of the country titan's setlist. It's a raucous, party-starting anthem - but as Wallen recalls on Morgan Wallen Radio, he nearly decided to record ’You Make It Easy’ instead of ’Up Down’.

The ‘Last Night’ chart-topper begins by paying tribute to the Florida Georgia Line boys, Tyler Hubbard and Brian Kelley, for being Day One supporters of his musical journey. Wallen wrote a lot with THubb and BK during his If I Know Me era, with FGL being signed to the same management as the ‘Love Somebody’ crooner at the time.

Wallen highlights FGL's influence, “‘Up Down’ with Florida Georgia Line, some probably would say that was my breakthrough moment. ‘The Way I Talk’ had just not done so well on the radio. Still, ‘Up Down’, with the help of the guys from Florida Georgia Line, you know, their co-sign, it really meant a lot to me in that moment of my life”.

Wallen goes on to share how he was weighing up whether to keep ‘You Make It Easy’ and record it himself, when he was sent a live-wire, electric-guitar-fuelled earworm called ‘Up Down’, written by Brad Clawson, his good buddy HARDY and CJ Solar, “To give it a little more back-story, I had actually just written ‘You Make It Easy’, and I was trying to decide if I was going to keep ‘You Make It Easy’ for myself, or if I was going to give it away. And ‘Up Down’ kind of came in around the same time”.

Ultimately, it was a case of choosing which song would add more to his live concert experience, “For me, I wanted to focus on what my live show was going to be like, so I ended up choosing ‘Up Down’ as my single and letting ‘You Make It Easy’ go to Jason Aldean. So that was a pretty important moment, I think an important choice that I made to focus on my live show right then and there. I think it was a good decision. And also, Jason Aldean did a great job with that song”.

In the end, it was a stellar choice on both counts, with ‘Up Down’ blossoming into a massive hit for Wallen, while ‘You Make It Easy’ became his first major smash as a songwriter. Aldean's rendition of the romantic ode reached No. 1 in May 2018. Since then, Wallen has penned a slew of tracks for Aldean, including ‘Whiskey Me Away’.

Given how formative a role the FGL duo played in Wallen's ascent, with ’Up Down’ feeling like a passing of the Bro-Country baton in many ways, it would feel like a brilliant full-circle moment if Wallen is involved in THubb and BK's reunion next year.

After the blockbuster FGL reunion at CMA Fest 2026 this summer, the two artists have been hinting at the prospect of 2027 shows. Wallen opened for them at the start of his career, and we'd love to see FGL joining forces with modern country's most dominant artist for a colossal reunion tour. ‘Up Down’ remains a fan-favourite in Wallen's catalogue, but if this trio get back together on-stage, the popularity and streams of that throwback hit would surely soar through the roof.