Perfection. This week, Cody Johnson announced that he would (finally) be releasing his official studio cover of “Travelin’ Soldier,” which fans have been begging him to do for years at this point. And it’s finally here… You’ve probably seen the mega viral video of Cody’s acoustic performance of the song, which first went viral back in June of 2020 during the height of the pandemic when CoJo did a live stream with his backing band. He eventually release an acoustic cover on his YouTube channel in March of 2022, and it exploded from there. As of today, the video has over 58 million views and 247,000 likes on YouTube alone. That’s not even counting the countless number of TikToks and other reposts of the cover on various platforms. I’m surprised it’s taken nearly six years for us to finally get to this point, but I’m not complaining… Cody explained that he’s known he would cut it for a while, and it’s been an incredible journey getting to hear so many stories from his fans about what this song means to them: “It’s been three years since we released an acoustic cover of ‘Travelin’ Soldier.’ The fans responded so enthusiastically and began requesting it during our live shows, so it’s remained on the set list. I had no idea that it was going to give me the opportunity to hear, see, and bring words to y’all’s stories. I knew at some point, when the time felt right, we needed to record it in the studio.  He says people constantly come up to him and ask him to perform it at live shows, so he’s known how special it is for a long time now: “It’s finally yours. ‘Travelin’ Soldier’ is out now. Thank y’all for following along on this ride and for all the love and support you’ve shown for this song over the years.” View this post on Instagram “Travelin’ Soldier” was first written, recorded and released by Bruce Robison in 1996 on his self-titled debut album, and the song would then later be re-recorded by Ty England on his 1999 album, Highways & Dance Halls, before The Chicks, who were still going by Dixie Chicks at the time, released the song in 2002 and eventually scored a #1 hit on Billboard’s Hot Country Songs chart along with a platinum certification from the RIAA. Their version is certainly the most popular among country fans and commercially, but CoJo is putting up some stiff completion with his rendition. Of course, I think many of us have a nostalgic connection to The Dixie Chicks version, which I have very distinct memories of listening to it in the car back in the day while riding around with my mom as a kid, obviously not knowing exactly what it all meant, but it’s one of those songs that grows with you as an adult and I still love it to this day. The story is so tragic but so beautiful, and the studio cut Cody released today is quite a bit different than that initial acoustic performance, and that’s pretty common when you translate something into a studio version with a full band and producers, though I’ve already seen some comments about how different it sounds so just a fair warning. He actually stayed pretty true to The Dixie Chicks’ rendition with this studio cut, and I think most fans are going to be thrilled with it. I know I’m going to have it on repeat for the foreseeable future, and those CoJo vocals… they’re just next level. He is flawless. I know this is one many of us country music fans have been patiently waiting for for a LONG time, and the day has finally come… it was well worth the wait. Check it out: “Travlin’ Soldier” There’s something so incredibly special about this acoustic version that will forever hold a special place in my heart, though… there’s a reason it resonated so deeply with so many people. It’s absolute perfection: The post Cody Johnson Releases Highly-Anticipated Cover Of “Travelin’ Soldier,” & It Was Well Worth The Wait first appeared on Whiskey Riff.