Often times, Nashville goes to great lengths to sell you on how ‘real’ an artist is. Sometimes they’re not quite as genuine as they are advertised to be…but then again, sometimes they really are.
When you see husband & wife duo Joey+Rory, you don’t need to be told that what they have is genuine. Just listen to their music or listen to them talk and you can tell that what they have is the real deal…not just as a musical duo, but as a couple. The deep connection they have doesn’t just shine through their music, it’s the reason their music shines.
Which is why their newest album, aptly titled Album Number Two, wasn’t born from the success of their 2008 debut. It’s actually the result of a night in Nashville ten years ago, when a gorgeously gifted singer named Joey walked into an ‘In The Round’ songwriters performance. Between finding her seat and the end of the show, she felt drawn to the man onstage simply through his songs. While she wasn’t able to meet him that night, she did two years later and over a cup of coffee, she told the songwriting single-dad exactly how she felt. A few short months later, she wasn’t just a singer named Joey anymore. She was Mrs. Rory Feek.
For the next 5 years, Joey and Rory lived a simple but glorious life reveling in their roles as husband & wife on the farm where they reside in Pottsville, TN. Joey fell right into place as Mom to Rory’s two daughters as she continued her quest for a solo career, eventually recording an album for Sony that was never released. Rory continued to build his status as a hit songwriter punching out chart-topping songs like Blake Shelton’s “Some Beach,” Clay Walker’s “The Chain of Love,” and most recently Easton Corbin’s #1 hit “A Little More Country Than That” along with cuts by Kenny Chesney, Randy Travis, Collin Raye, Reba and many others.
But in 2008, their quiet life changed after they reluctantly auditioned for a reality TV show, CMT’s Can You Duet Season I, at the urging of a co-writer.
“There was not an ounce of me that thought ‘Here is this beautiful woman and great singer in Joey, but throwing in her 42-year-old, overall-wearing husband will be the magic combination,’” Rory says with a laugh. But it was magic. Joey+Rory became fan favorites ultimately finishing 3rd and landing a record deal with Vanguard / Sugar Hill Records.
Their debut album The Life Of A Song quickly spawned a Top 30 hit with “Cheater Cheater” and in the blink of an eye, the duo was everywhere…touring coast-to-coast and overseas. Their success with radio/video airplay and album sales propelled them into several nominations for both industry and fan-voted awards, including winning the 2010 ACM Award for Top New Vocal Duo.
The quick success was not something the couple anticipated, as they hadn’t thought of their life together as extraordinarily compelling. Fans across the country thought differently. “The response to the first album has been amazing,” reflects Joey, “Now, I can’t wait for them to hear our new record.”
Album Number Two is built in much the same manner as The Life Of A Song not because it was a successful formula, but because those are the kind of songs these two like to hear. According to Rory, while he has had success writing songs for other artists, teaming up with Joey has allowed him the freedom to become a different kind of songwriter. At the same time, the pairing has unleashed Joey’s full potential as a singer as well.
“As a songwriter you have to imagine being somebody different every time you write a song, but the magic of being an artist is you get to be you, to write what you want to say…and I have never had the chance to do that before. I’m not sure Joey ever got to be herself either because there were always teams of people telling her how to dress, not to sing about this and so on. There is none of that anymore. We are 100% ourselves here.”
That freedom is paying off in spades for them. Rory is quick to point out that most of the decisions are led by Joey. In his eyes, “This is her dream,” he says, “I just get the best seat in the house to watch it happen!” As much as they are a duo both onstage and in life, he’s happy to be the man standing just outside the spotlight so that the world can focus on his songbird of a wife.
Led primarily by Joey’s honey-laden vocals, Album Number Two covers all the bases from their signature tongue-in-cheek style of the title cut to “That’s Important To Me,” a song that encapsulates the down-to-earth values that define Joey+Rory both as a couple and a duo alike. There are songs about love (“Born To Be Your Woman”), about cheating (“God Help My Man”), and about faith (“Where Jesus Is”). Songs about cowboys (“All You Need Is Me”), horses (“The Horse Nobody Could Ride”), and about fame (“Farm To Fame”). Most striking however, is the album’s lead single, a working man’s anthem and a tip of the hat to country music fans and concert-goers, “This Song’s For You” featuring the Zac Brown Band that Rory wrote on a tour bus with Zac Brown.
Not all of the songs on Album Number Two are newly written, which ironically is another product of having been turned loose of any inhibitions or corporate direction. A prime example is “My Ol’ Man,” a song resurrected from Rory’s files that is so powerful it punches you in the heart with little more than bare-knuckle lyrics and a lush piano.
Through a mixture of traditional country flavor and new millennium marketing, including corporate sponsorships, reality TV and a national ad campaign with Overstock.com, Joey+Rory have built an impressive fan base and won CMA & ACM nominations and awards their own way.
“TV exposure is unique,” notes Joey. “Not only do people hear our voices, they get to look into our eyes and see who we really are, on a deeper level. A lot of our fan base comes from people who seem to relate to our story and how we interact.
“It’s such a blessing to get to play music and travel and see things we’ve never been able to see before. But the highlight of it all is being able to do it together.”
With Album Number Two tucked firmly under their arms, Joey+Rory are headed out with the same intent they had the first time around.
“Our plan is the same as it’s always been - to show up, do what we do and hope that magic will happen,” says Rory. “As hard as we work, we ultimately know that God’s plans are a lot bigger and better than we can make ourselves. Just having the chance to record and release ALBUM NUMBER TWO is proof of that!”
This Song's For You
Joey + Rory Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
This song's for you
And if you put eight honest hours in,
For eight hours worth of pay, this song's for you
If it's taking all you got these days just to make ends meet,
You'd like to give a piece of your mind
To those fat cats on Wall Street, this song's for you
If you go to church on Sunday
And you try to do what's right, this song's for you
If you've been known to drink a beer,
And raise hell on a Friday night, this song's for you
If you wish we didn't have to go,
And send our boys to war,
But you still think this country of ours is sure worth dying for
This song's for you, you know who you are
We're up on this stage, but you're the star
You're why we, do what we do
We want you to know, this song's for you
Now if you love country music,
As real as it comes, this song's for you
And if you came here tonight,
Hoping you might hear you some, this song's for you
If you paid your hard earned money to that bouncer at the door,
To hear the kind of songs that you don't get to hear much anymore
This song's for you, you know who you are
We're up on this stage, but you're the star
You're why we, do what we do
We want you to know, this song's for you
You might've lost a friend, a job,
Or someone broke your heart
But just like you might need it to,
The healings in the tune
This song's for you, you know who you are
We're up on this stage, but you're the star
You're why we, do what we do
We want you to know, this song's for you
You deserve so much more it's true,
We want you to know, this song's for you
The song "This Song's For You" by Joey + Rory is a song that is dedicated to the working class and blue-collar people who are the backbone of the country. The song is an ode to those who go to work every day and put in their eight-hour shifts for a modest paycheck. It also praises those who go to church, those who enjoy a beer on a Friday night, those who love country music, and those who pay money to a bouncer to hear the kind of songs that are not played on the radio anymore. The song acknowledges the difficult times many people face, from the struggle to make ends meet to the unrest of sending sons and daughters off to war, but it reminds the listener that the country is still worth fighting for.
The chorus of "This Song's For You" is a reminder to the listener that they are the true star, even though the musicians are up on stage performing. The song calls on the listener to remember that when they are feeling down, they can find healing in the tune. The lyrics express gratitude to the everyday people and praises them for being the reason why the musicians do what they do. The song's message is one of unity and recognition of the struggles and sacrifices that the working class makes every day.
Line by Line Meaning
If you got up this morning then you went to work today,
If you started your day with the intention of working for a living,
This song's for you
This song is dedicated to you
And if you put eight honest hours in,
And if you worked hard for eight hours,
For eight hours worth of pay, this song's for you
and all you have to show for it is what you earned in those eight hours, this song is dedicated to you
If it's taking all you got these days just to make ends meet,
If you're struggling to make enough money to make ends meet these days,
You'd like to give a piece of your mind
You'd like to express your frustration and dissatisfaction
To those fat cats on Wall Street, this song's for you
to those wealthy people who seem to profit off your struggles, this song is dedicated to you
If you go to church on Sunday
If you believe in going to church on Sunday,
And you try to do what's right, this song's for you
And you try your best to live your life the right way, this song is dedicated to you
If you've been known to drink a beer,
If you're the type of person who occasionally enjoys a beer,
And raise hell on a Friday night, this song's for you
and enjoy letting loose on a Friday night, this song is dedicated to you
If you wish we didn't have to go,
If you'd rather not go to war,
And send our boys to war,
And send our young men off to fight,
But you still think this country of ours is sure worth dying for
but despite that, you still believe that our country is worth fighting and dying for
This song's for you, you know who you are
This song is dedicated to you and you know exactly who you are
We're up on this stage, but you're the star
Even though we're performing on stage, you're the one who's most important
You're why we, do what we do
You're the reason why we do what we do
We want you to know, this song's for you
We want you to know that this song is dedicated to you
Now if you love country music,
If you're a fan of country music,
As real as it comes, this song's for you
If you appreciate authentic, genuine country music, this song is dedicated to you
And if you came here tonight,
And if you came to our performance tonight,
Hoping you might hear you some, this song's for you
hoping to hear something you like, this song is dedicated to you
If you paid your hard earned money to that bouncer at the door,
If you spent your hard earned money on the bouncer at the door to enter the venue,
To hear the kind of songs that you don't get to hear much anymore
To listen to the kind of songs that are rarely performed anymore
You might've lost a friend, a job,
You might have lost a friend, a job,
Or someone broke your heart
Or someone broke your heart
But just like you might need it to,
But just as you might need it,
The healings in the tune
the healing can be found in the music
You deserve so much more it's true,
You deserve so much more than this, it's true,
We want you to know, this song's for you
We want you to know that this song is dedicated to you
Lyrics © Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC
Written by: BRYAN ADAMS, GRETCHEN PETERS
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
Logan Washburn
Joey + Rory did an amazing job with this song. Choosing the Zac Brown Band to sing with them was a good choice as well. R.I.P. Joey Feek.
Violet Miller
THIS is country music! Thank God for Joey and Rory. I love them and their music. I never saw "Can you duet?" Did they win? They sure should have. They are great!
Bobby Gzzz
They said got 3rd..but in my books they number 1...the real deal home town songs..
Ken Yount
Just found Joey and Rory tonight. This is the music I've been craving for years. Love "The Bible and the Belt."
Halle Heim
introduced by my grandparents about 4 years ago and i have never stopped listening. they’re truly amazing.
Bobby Gzzz
100 percent all their songs n words have real meaning n a story
Tonetwisters
@Roadkill Avenger The devil thinks he has won. However ... Lo I am with you always, even unto the end of the world. Even unto the end of Joey's world. The victory is in Jesus and always will be. He knew a 100 million years ago that Joey would pass from this world, due to cancer. That's why He went to the cross ...
Roadkill Avenger
+Ken Yount Enjoy it, because she isn't going to be here much longer. Her cancer has won.
Judy Brown
Have watched them from the beginning, their music touches us all. This song especially touches our souls because it is about us. Thanks and God bless.
Nicholas Walter
Hello how are you doing today 💖