“The Painter (Katie’s Version)” is available now
Platinum-selling COJO Music/Warner Music Nashville recording artist Cody Johnson has released a very special music video for his ACM Song of the Year nominated No. 1 single, “The Painter.” The visual features a painting by a young woman with special needs named Katie McCormick, whose mother connected with their local radio station after being especially moved by the song’s lyrics. Fans can visit Cody’s official website to share photos and stories about the people and art that color their own lives.
“On Friday, August 11, 2023, I had just dropped Katie off at school and headed to work listening to our favorite radio duo Nate and Traci from US 96.3,” Teresa McCormick shared. “I was very much in my head that morning with a thousand swirling thoughts, half listening to the conversation because Katie was turning 18 the next day.” Because of Katie’s intractable epilepsy, this milestone brought an avalanche of changes and challenges.
“‘The Painter’ started playing while my thoughts were still somewhere else,” Teresa continued. But then a particular lyric – “I don’t remember my life before she came into the picture” – struck her like a bolt of lightning. “With every new verse, I had visions of Katie.”
As a result of the many surgeries in her life, Katie has right-sided weakness and a learning delay disability. However, she discovered a love of painting as a therapeutic outlet through a connection with her incredible and dedicated art teacher, Debby Francis.
“This mom, having a moment in her car listening to the radio, lost it, tears streaming at this point. Ugly crying,” shared Teresa. “Katie has overcome so many obstacles. Every new verse, I could picture a different phase of life, story or image of her. Through a blur of tears, I reached for my phone and sent a text message to the radio station thanking them for playing that song right at that moment. She is the color to MY life.”
Katie’s story made its way to Cody’s label, Warner Music Nashville, which developed the video in collaboration with an AI artist. The result is a beautiful burst of color and movement, serving as an answer to the question – “how can we take Katie inside one of her own paintings?”
“While this song is written about a man’s love for his wife and how she colors his world, it allows everyone who hears it to drift away in thought to that person who adds beauty and color to their own life. Be that a child, a parent, spouse, or friend,” Teresa added.
“This is what country music is all about.”
Written by Benjy Davis, Kat Higgins, and Ryan Larkins and produced by Trent Willmon, the gold-certified song is the biggest streaming single of his career with more than 200 million global streams to date. “The Painter” was the first single off Johnson’s new 12-track studio album Leather released last fall, and details his relationship with his wife Brandi and her belief and support of his dreams and career.
Since the release of Leather, fans and radio stations have felt instantaneous reactions to many of the songs on the album, including “Dirt Cheap.” With over 80 million global streams with an average of over four million streams per week, “Dirt Cheap” has become Cody’s new single and is impacting country radio now.
Johnson is currently nominated for five ACM Awards, including Entertainer of the Year, as he continues his headline The Leather Tour this weekend.
