Riley Green is paying tribute to America’s veterans.
The 36-year-old country crooner debuted the music video for his song “Jesus Saves” last Monday (November 11) in honor of Veteran’s Day, and its bound to pull at your heartstrings.
Written solely by Green, “Jesus Saves” is a song that’s inspired by a man he’d routinely see on a street corner in Nashville with a cardboard sign. Taking a pen to paper, the country chart-topper imagined all of the things that could have happened in a person’s life that could have led to homelessness. Armed with the thought that “you never know what someone else has been through” and sung with a raw emotion, Riley tells Celeb Secrets that he wrote the song hoping that people will feel “a little more compassion” when seeing those in need on the street.
“That song was really inspired by that of a story of a veteran that was homeless and what he’d been through in his life,” he shares when speaking with us backstage at Audacy’s Stars & Strings concert in Fort Lauderdale, FL on Thursday (November 14). “I thought maybe it might make people feel a little more compassion.”
The empathetic ballad resonated with so many listeners upon its release, with compassion being the most common emotion felt. Quickly becoming a fan favorite around the world, Riley knew he had to make a special music video to continue telling the sentimental story.
One that he tells Celeb Secrets “choked me up a bit to watch,” the poignant visual features a stripped back performance of Riley alongside clips that portray the struggles and journey of the protagonist. Telling the life story of a homeless veteran, the “You Look Like You Love Me” singer enlisted in a real veteran to help people “feel a little something.”
“I wanted to do a music video for [‘Jesus Saves’], and we actually used a real veteran in the video. It choked me up a little bit to watch it,” Riley reveals. “I think there’s just a great message in that song and I hope that it gets to the right people and makes them feel a little something.”
“It was cool to be able to work with them, that was a lot of fun,” he continues. “I had the easy part, I just sat there and pretended to play the song ten times in a row and they did all the acting.”
Up next, Riley will make his way to the Bridgestone Arena in Nashville for the 2024 CMA Awards, where he is up for “Musical Event of the Year” for his song “You Like You Love Me” with Ella Langley. The singer/songwriter will hit the road next spring for his extensive headlining ‘Damn Country Music Tour’ which sold 100,000+ tickets within eight hours.
Of the upcoming tour, Riley tells Celeb Secrets, “We’re going to take Ella [Langley] out again, that seemed to work out pretty well last time. We got a couple of big songs together…”
“There’s a ton of up and coming guys and girls that I’m a fan of that we put on this tour, so I’m excited about traveling around and getting to play country music again. It’s been a great year and hopefully it carries over to next year.”
For more on Riley Green and his music, make sure to watch our full interview below. Don’t forget to let us know what you think of “Jesus Saves” by either leaving a reaction at the bottom of the post or by sliding into our DMs on Instagram at @celebsecretscountry.
