The cowboy boots are on, and the Timberlands are officially in the closet.
If someone had told you a few years ago that hip-hop icon and trap music pioneer Waka Flocka Flame would be one of the most talked-about acts at CMA Fest 2026, you probably would have bet against the cards. But as the 40-year-old rap legend exclusively tells Celeb Secrets, this unexpected pivot wasn’t just a random gamble.
Yet, here he is, completely embracing Music City. From surprise performances on Lower Broadway to an overwhelming reception at Fan Fair X, Waka Flocka Flame officially made his monumental country music debut during the ultimate country music weekend — and he’s just getting started.
Waka hit Nashville earlier this month with full force, immersing himself in the community by participating in the Folds of Honor Celebrity Baseball Game, Craig Campbell’s Celebrity Corn Hole, and a deeply insightful Fan Fair X panel, Country & Rap: The Black Southern Roots of American Music, alongside Nappy Roots and Caldwell.
But it was his electric live energy that truly proved his cross-genre appeal. After Midland and Kaitlin Butts drew capacity crowds at the Chevy Riverfront Stage on June 6, Waka took the Dr Pepper Amp Stage to an entirely different level. True to his rockstar nature, the set was pure, unadulterated adrenaline — and almost entirely improvised.
“I just put it all together in the last 10 minutes before I got on,” Waka confesses to Celeb Secrets. “Mind you, I had no stage set. I didn’t know what my first song was gonna be. But I called Roscoe [Dash] the day before yesterday. I was like, ‘Bro, there’s no way I’m gonna go on a country stage for the first time and not have you.’ And Country Night was there… Caldwell was there. Yesterday was electric.”
Beyond the stage, Waka found himself starstruck by country’s elite, citing a surprise encounter with a Country Music Hall of Famer as his ultimate trip highlight.
“I got to be around Randy Travis. That was surprising,” Waka reveals. “I told him the first time hearing his song was 2016 at a festival… Next thing you know, my publicist calls me like, ‘Hey man, we got a Randy Travis gig.’ I said, ‘I’m definitely going, showing love and support.’ That was the highlight event for me.”
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If you’re wondering what the catalyst for Waka’s country era was, it’s all thanks to 28-year-old country breakout Chase Matthew. The “County Line” singer had been holding onto a song hook for two years, waiting for the perfect partner — and after crossing paths at Stagecoach 2026 back in April, he knew that Waka Flocka would be the one.
“I met Waka Flocka Flame at Stagecoach this year,” Matthew previously told iHeartRadio. “Who wouldn’t want to do a song with Waka Flocka Flame?”
That song is “Hard Liquor,” their highly-anticipated, genre-blending collaboration that was released this past Friday (June 26). But if you think a Waka Flocka track called “Hard Liquor” is just another wild party anthem, think again. The song forced the rapper to tap into a vulnerability he didn’t know he had.
Waka took to Instagram to express the emotional weight of the track:
“It’s not about drowning sorrows, it’s about honoring what you’ve endured and moving forward. @iamchasematthew I never knew I had to get all this off my chest and feeling a sense of release after the verse was done… love for life!!!”
Backstage, Waka elaborated on how Matthew completely flipped his expectations. “In my mind, I’m thinking like slamming double shots down. I’m like, we about to party. And then he plays it… I’m like, Damn. I gotta tell the truth. I can’t rap about partying.”
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Though Waka Flocka Flame is a seasoned veteran in the music industry, he has no shame admitting that he let the younger country star take the reins in the studio, officially calling Chase Matthew his mentor in this new space.
“Never thought a young dude could teach me anything in music,” Waka admits openly. “But that guy is incredible. 100% Chase. All the way. He’s the guy to critique that sound for you… Chase pushed the button on this. Little brother was not playing.”
Waka details a rigorous studio process where Matthew and his stellar engineer, Austin, pushed him to his limits— even making him re-record his vocals after filming the music video.
“We did the record. Chase was like, ‘Nah, we gotta fix this part, this part. Hyphen this, do this.’ I’m like, ‘What is this, school?'” Waka laughs. “He’s literally one of the top three people in music in my whole career that was that a**l and that good. He brought out my vocals.”
As Waka looks forward to a busy summer — while balancing his favorite new role as a father to his newborn son, “mini Waka”— he is completely unbothered by any traditionalists who might question his country pivot.
“Every time I make music, I’m scared,” he reveals as his ultimate secret. “Even when I did this country record, I was like, ‘Dang, this might be the end of my career.'”
“I’m a Gemini, so my best friend is me. I always talk to myself like, ‘Walka, you tripping, bro. You’re doing country music. You putting boots on, my boy. You took Timberlands off to put hard boots on?’ And I can just reply to myself like, ‘I’m just adding layers, man.’ After this weekend, I got a lot of confidence now. I love country fans,” he continues.
When asked what he wants skeptics to understand about his new artistic journey, Waka gives the most relatable, rockstar answer possible.
“I don’t give a damn what people think about me. Just know I’m entertaining,” he says point-blank. “Country and hip-hop ain’t no different. The approach is different. The clothes are different. But the food ain’t, the drinks ain’t, the music ain’t. It’s like a leopard and a cheetah. That’s hip-hop and country. It’s still a cat. It’s just different.”
For more on Waka Flocka’s new chapter and “Hard Liquor” make sure to watch our full interview from CMA Fest below — and don’t forget to let us know what you think of the song by either leaving a reaction at the bottom of the post or by sliding into our DMs on Instagram at @celebsecretscountry.
For more Country news, visit CelebSecretsCountry.com. For more coverage from CMA Fest 2026, click here.
