In addition, the evening celebrated a connection the duo has outside of the music business. Last year, Moroney’s father retired from a Birmingham company called O’Neal Steel, where Johnson worked before finding success in country music. “I worked for O’Neal Steel back in the nineties when I needed a second-shift job. I’ve kept up with the owner, Craft O’Neal, since then. It was a way for Megan and me to give back to Craft and O’Neal Steel as well.” (O’Neal also owns The Fennec, which hosted the event.)
They learned of the connection outside of the Grand Ole Opry, when Moroney’s father told Johnson about their common employer. “When we realized that connection, we thought it would be so fun to go down to Birmingham and do a show together,” Moroney adds. “Here we are!”
Johnson and Moroney have become good friends, sharing the stage at various venues, including the Grand Old Opry. Johnson and Deana Carter issued the official invitation for Moroney to make her Grand Ole Opry debut in 2023. Johnson was an early and enthusiastic supporter of Moroney, inviting her to join his tour in 2022. “She blew us off the stage every night,” he told the crowd.
“Jamey really took a chance on me when he took me out on the road,” said Moroney before sharing, “…it was my band’s and my first tour. We were driving around in a church van and U-Haul. I told Jamey that I really felt like I had made it when the U-Haul tire blew, and instead of waiting on AAA, I said, ‘Put it on the card.’
“This song came out while we were on tour with Jamey,” she said before performing her breakout hit, “Tennessee Orange.” (When the audience cheered, Johnson joked, “Cut that out! This is Roll Tide territory!”)
The show was a wonderful blend of humor and humility, with both songwriters sharing the stories behind their compositions. Johnson opened the show with the Trace Adkins’ hit “Honky Tonk Badonkadonk,” which Johnson co-wrote with Dallas Davidson and Randy Houser. “This is arguably one of the two worst songs in country music history,” he joked.
Moroney jokingly warned against the mistreatment of songwriters because the creators get the last word as she did in her songs “Sleep on My Side” and “Lucky.” “If you know anything about me, knowing I have questionable taste in men is one of the Top 5 things you know,” said the singer/songwriter, who was accompanied by her band mate, Alex Shernit, on guitar.
“I wrote this song because I have this ex I knew that I should not be answering, so I wrote a song called ‘Lucky.’” (She also performed “Beautiful Things,” “Am I Okay?” and her new song, “Wish I Didn’t,” which was released nationally about four hours later giving the charitable crowd the first live performance of the highly-anticipated release).
Two of the night’s most powerful moments occurred when the two united their voices on Don Williams’ hit “Till the Rivers All Run Dry,” which was co-written by Williams and Wayland Holyfield, and John Prine’s iconic song, “Angel from Montgomery,” which mentions Johnson’s hometown.
Johnson, who also performed “High Cost of Living,” “Women,” and “The Dollar” closed the show with “In Color,” his hit he wrote with Lee Thomas Miller and James Otto that was named Song of the Year by both the Country Music Association and the Academy of Country Music. “This song is heartfelt, to say the least. I miss my grandparents all the time, so here is one for the Greatest Generation.”
“We are overwhelmed by the outpouring of love and support we received,” Brittney Johnson shared. “We were proud to team up with Megan for our first fundraising event and help support her mission of mental health awareness. It was a great night of music and fellowship in support of great causes.”
