Earlier this week, Richie shared the stage with Luke Bryan during the CMT Artists of the Year ceremony, performing his hits "Oh No" and "All Night Long." In an interview with Country Weekly he confessed that Bryan may have convinced him to further deepen his roots in the country community and to consider a follow-up to his 2012 release.

"Luke put the final nail in the idea. I walked onstage with him and I realized the magic of performing. Country has it down pat," Richie said. "These guys to me are just great new country. I love the idea of [recording] one thing, maybe two or three, with Luke and a couple of the other crazy guys."

During the special, Richie admitted he was surprised that Bryan didn't want to perform one of his own songs. "I kept saying to Luke, 'Don't you want to do one of your songs?'" Richie said. "He said, 'Lionel, we can do my songs later. We're going to do your songs tonight.' Can you believe it? I'm really honored."