Ella Langley on 'You Look Like You Love Me' Surging Success: 'It's Been a Whirlwind'

Some spur-of-the-moment decisions – and some industry champions – led singer-songwriter Ella Langley to her breakthrough song and recently released debut album.

“It's not even my birthday, but it feels like the best birthday I've ever had,” Langley said Advertising sign on August 2nd, the release date for her 14-song debut album Hungoverreleased on SAWGOD/Columbia Records.

Langley's Alabama twang has been all over social media lately, thanks to “You Look Like You Love Me,” a steel-drenched, flirtatious song about a woman making the first move. The Hope Hull, Alabama native teamed up with fellow artist Riley Green for the highly touted, retro collaboration, which sits at No. 15 of Advertising signHot Country Songs Chart. The track previously peaked at No. 5 on Billboard's TikTok Top 50 chart and peaked at No. 36 on the Billboard Hot 100 all-genre.

“You Look Like You Love Me” was gaining steam even before the song became a duet. In May, Langley was posted a TikTok clip of him singing the song's lyric and hook solo. this clip gained 10.5 million views. Langley was opening shows on Green's Ain't My Last Rodeo tour earlier this year when the two performed the song together in a spontaneous moment during the tour's final show.

“We had no idea we'd be doing the song that night on stage, but we did,” says Langley. “He's also from Alabama, and I remember a long time ago playing for a line of people waiting to get into a Riley Green show. I didn't have a ticket, I just watched his show through the gate. So his tour was good. I actually just sent it to him so we can sing it together on the tour. We did another song together, but then we put the song on and it's been a whirlwind ever since,” says Langley.

A video was made in June was posted on the TikTok of Langley and Green performing the song together during a soundcheck at Red Rocks Amphitheater. Their voices wrapped around the song's love lyrics echoed. this 30-second TikTok clip now has over 12 million views.

“That's how it blew up,” says Langley.

With the song riding high, follow me Hungoveran album that seems poised to showcase Langley as a fearless artist with a fully developed perspective and fine-tuned sound, thanks to songs like “Cowboy Friends,” the tender “People Change” and the honky-tonk heater “Better Be Tough.”

In addition to powerful songs, Langley has been a road warrior. She will begin her 14-date North American tour later this month, alternating those dates between opening for Morgan Wallen's One Night a Time tour, as well as opening for Luke Bryan and Dierks Bentley. She just opened for Wallen at Arrowhead Stadium in Kansas City, Missouri, marking her first stadium shows.

“It was crazy,” he recalls of playing at the stadium. “I was talking to Laney [Wilson] The other day about when I used to go to concerts as a kid and how I just had the hardest time going to concerts. I wanted to be up there so bad – like, I could throw up. So getting up on that field yesterday felt like that little girl's dream came true and just let her enjoy the hard work that went into it.”

Below, Advertising signAugust's Country Rookie of the Month talks about her new album, the current public spirit of country music and the journey of “You Look Like You Love Me” from creation to a hit song.

How did “You Look Like You Love Me” come about?

“You Look Like You Love Me” was written two years ago, inspired by a conversation with one of the song's co-writers, Aaron Raitiere. His ideas are crazy and I love writing with him. We were in a write-up and he said, “So, how's your relationship life going?” and I said, “Honestly, I'm at the point where if they seem to love me, I just have to get out of there.” And he said, “That's a great song title.”

Six months later, we had another writing session. I wanted a funny song that I could play around a campfire. We literally just made a record and wrote probably 16 lyrics and then picked our favorites and put them together. Then Riley added a verse, and it's just this sweet love song.

You never intended this song to be released as a single. How did this happen;

Mya Hansen, who was my publisher at the time but is now on my label side, has always loved the song. I was like, “Mya, this song is just a joke.” He tried to get me to put it on the EP [2023’s Excuse the Mess] and I didn't leave her. So she put it herself on the Dropbox link for that album, and that's how the label heard it — it was the last of all the demos. Everyone loved it and I said, “If you all believe in this song, let's cut it.” It was right after the cut that Riley asked us on tour.

How did you get interested in music?

My whole family is musically inclined. I was three years old the first time I got up to sing in church. My mom tells me a story where my grandpa is sitting at the piano and we're going to do “Amazing Grace” and my mom is trying to help me with the microphone and I'm three years old, and I'm like, “I got it. I know how to do it “, and everyone in the church laughs. So that's what I always wanted to do. When I was a teenager, I picked up the guitar.

Did you play in a band in high school?

I performed many wedding ceremonies. Then I played bars and restaurants and everywhere he would let me play. I went to Auburn for two years and that led me to cover gigs, the bar scene and [Southeastern Conference] schools. That was a huge education, because you learn so much playing covers for four hours, multiple nights a week, trying to get people to give as–t. But I got to the point where I was like, “Nothing's going to happen if I stay here,” so I moved to Nashville and I'm glad I did.

There are some very personal songs Hungover, like “Closest to Heaven,” which is based on the story of your grandparents. What does this song mean to you?

My grandmother had a stroke when I was 10 or 11 years old. My grandfather lived with us and was in a nursing home. We would bring her home to stay the night. My grandfather passed away and a lot of times when someone is at the end of their life, they bring in a pastor in a kind of conversation and it's kind of a quiet moment. She came and my grandmother was there and they led her to my grandfather's room and closed the door. I'll never know what was said in that room, so this is my song about what I think was said.

You have this collaboration with Riley. Who else is on your partner list?

Eric Church, Chris Stapleton, Miranda Lambert. Miley Cyrus was also at the top of my list—I'd love to sit in a room and ask her questions. And Ashley McBryde's songwriting is so incredible and so real and honest. I think me and Megan Moroney could come up with something awesome.

There have been several artists, like Megan, who have brought your name up as an artist to watch. How do you react to that?

It's hard to understand because you spend so much time wishing something would happen and when it does, it's crazy. Just to hear people you respect say that. [Megan and I’ve] we've known each other since before we moved to nashville. I was in Auburn and she was in Georgia and my manager Bradley Jordan is part of a sunglasses company that Luke Combs works with, Blue Otter Polarized. Megan did a lot of influencer stuff on the day and Bradley hooked us up. We wrote together once right when he moved to Nashville. It's just awesome to see how many women are crushing it right now and we're all just friends. It's fun, it's supportive, and everyone's worked so hard to get here, so it's great to be excited for everyone.

What was the first concert you saw?

The only concerts I saw growing up were at the Montgomery County Fair. The first person I remember seeing was Justin Moore. I remember Luke Combs came through right when “When It Rains It Pours” was blasting and I got sick that night and couldn't leave. I had the worst FOMO ever, I didn't go to that concert.

What's the best advice you've heard along the way?

I heard Chris Stapleton on a podcast when I moved to town, and it's been stuck in my brain ever since I heard it. Joe Rogan asked him for advice for young artists and he said: “When you're putting out songs, you never know the song that's going to change your life — and then you might be stuck singing that song for the rest of your life, so watch out really the songs you're releasing.”