×

George Birge recalls the moment Jason Aldean returned “Mind on You” to him: “The coolest thing”

By Jeremy Chua + Stephen Hubbard Jan 3, 2024 | 5:00 AM
Disney/Scott Kirkland

Hot on the heels of his first #1 single “Mind on You,” George Birge is recounting the journey the song has taken — which includes almost being recorded by Jason Aldean.

“I wrote [‘Mind on You’] in 2020 with a couple of my best buddies, one of which was Colt Ford, who’s also a country artist. And I was between record deals. I didn’t have a lot going on, and I originally pitched it to Jason Aldean and got an email back the next day being like, ‘Don’t play this song for anybody else. Jason wants it for his new record,'” George recalls to ABC Audio.

“At the time that was like the biggest thing to ever happen to me. A because he’s one of my biggest influences, but B, he’s fresh off [receiving his ACM Artist of the Decade award in 2019],” George says. “Having him record one of your songs is a [life-changer].”

However, the real serendipitous life-changer happened after Jason decided to not record “Mind on You” and return it to George just as he launched his artist career. 

“Fast forward like six months, I had some of my own stuff start taking off, and I had dropped a little preview of [Beer Beer, Truck Truck] on my social media and it just took off and I was able to get a record deal and get the song on the radio,” the Texas native shares.

“Jason was able to give me the song back, which was the coolest thing anybody’s ever done for me. He was super kind and gave me a chance to put it out myself. And here we are,” adds George. “It’s completely turned my world upside down.”

You can find “Mind on You” on George’s debut album, George Birge: Mind On You.

Copyright © 2024, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.