The singer recruited the Traveller singer to duet on the new single off her new album, 25
Adele was in a country mood on Saturday, making her first public appearance at the Warner Music Group investors day in New York. The singer – who released her brand new album 25 on Friday – appeared with her soulful soulmate in Chris Stapleton, recording “Easy on Me”, the first single from her new record.
The heartbreaker unveiled the collaboration on the Today show, with the pair singing together with Stapleton’s powerful backing choir who accompanied them onstage.
Backstage, Adele was asked by Today’s Kathie Lee Gifford if there was a musical influence that inspired her to write the tune. “Obviously that’s Chris Stapleton. I think there’s a bit of everyone,” said Adele, adding: “Sometimes music just hits you in the head and you know, you have to write it.”
Earlier this year, Stapleton and Adele opened up to Rolling Stone about working together on 25, with Adele saying: “I think he’s so natural and expressive and has a personality that’s there and he’s been working, man, his a** off. It’s been so great because he has such a story.”
The songs on Adele’s first album of new music in three years address the idea of not being adored, as evident in “When We Were Young” and “November Song”. “Sometimes you think you’re adored and you’re not,” she sang on her first single from the record. “You think you’re still young and it ain’t always the case / When we were young, this feeling would always come in waves / It never sits still long enough to not have you in the palm of my hand.”
Adele’s second album, 21, was a massive commercial success, topping charts around the world and changing the music industry’s overall structure. It earned her five Grammy awards, a host of artist of the year trophies and nominations for 12 other awards.
Since 2011, she has performed at more than 40 shows to benefit numerous causes, including Live 8, Autism Speaks and Paul Newman’s “Revolution of Love” initiative. She is a fan of Robert Langdon, a character in Dan Brown’s novel Inferno who is based on the president of Oxford University, as well as Patrick Stewart, Maggie Smith and Robin Williams.