Brian Kelley is shedding light on walking away from Florida Georgia Line, his country music duo with Tyler Hubbard, in favor of respective solo projects.
“I loved being in a duo and I loved playing on a team — like I said, I played baseball and sports growing up — and unfortunately [Florida Georgia Line] came to an end,” Kelley, 38, said during the Thursday, May 23, episode of “The Viall Files” podcast.
Kelley and Hubbard, 37, met during their senior year at Nashville’s Belmont University and quickly started writing songs together.
“We just kinda became a duo without even trying. It was just one of those things that took us on a 12-13 or so year journey. Kind of back to basics as solo artists now, both chasing solo dreams,” Kelley told podcast host Nick Viall. “It’s kind of starting over in a sense but [I] learned so much throughout the years of all parts of the music business, the world and how to work through publishing deals … and how to be a boss.”
Florida Georgia Line’s Tyler Hubbard and Brian Kelley’s Drama Explained
Kelley and Hubbard ultimately decided in 2022 to take a step back from FGL to feed their own passions. While the hiatus was Kelley’s initial idea, he never wanted to walk away from the group for good.
“For me, I really wanted to do both. I thought it was a really cool idea to continue to trailblaze our group [and] what the next 10 years of success or the next 10 years of FGL would look like,” Kelley said on Thursday. “It was important to me to continue trailblazing, and also to me, to honor my voice and my songwriting. The goal for me at the top of those conversations was really to keep going. To have an extra outlet for both but continue with FGL. So, it wasn’t really a me leaving scenario, just to clear that up.”
Keep scrolling for more of Kelley’s thoughts about the end of Florida Georgia Line and what he thinks about Hubbard’s solo career:
Why Brian Decided to ‘Initiate’ Breakup Talks
“There was a lot of talk that I had left and that I wanted to [go] solo, but there wasn’t a ton of context. I’m a pretty methodical guy and I’m very intentional about all the moves that I make. There’s a lot of talk of ‘BK this’ and ‘BK that’ but I really wanted to give some context and say, ‘Hey guys, I thought about a plan that looked like us continuing to go forward,’” Kelley said. “It wasn’t casual, like [it was more,] ‘Hey, here’s a great idea that allows us freedom to utilize songs that we’ve written that may not fit in FGL’s sound or an FGL record but let’s get use out of them because if you love ‘em or I love ‘em, what’s the point of them sitting in our little file app and only playing for our friends?’”
He continued: “In terms of trailblazing, I thought that was a really cool idea. Like, what if we have a three-hour set live … that was like I’m playing some of my stuff, mixed in with his stuff, mixed in with 19 of our No. 1s. I just wanted people to hear my heart and where I was coming from, it wasn’t just ‘I’m out’ or some rockstar BS. That’s not me and that’s not how I operate.”
Brian Claims Tyler ‘Wasn’t Interested’ in the Plan
“I wanted to keep it going. No, he wasn’t interested,” Kelley claimed. “We’re both so busy, man. You know he came out with a record right before mine honestly and so I know he’s been working that and out on the road, and same, I’ve been working really hard even trying to work on some new stuff. I wish him well and I hope he’s doing great. I expect him to have success and [I’m] really happy for him.”
Hubbard dropped his eponymous solo record in January 2023 after several single tracks hit the radio waves. Kelley’s Tennessee Truth followed in May 2024.
Shocking Band Exits Through the Years
On Tyler Putting Out Solo Records Right Away
“I wasn’t the first one to put solo music out. I did initiate conversations back [in] 2016 about having different outlets. I thought ‘the more the merrier for creativity,’” Kelley said. “When you’re working with someone that’s your brother, you’re like, ‘I want you to win, I want me to win, I want us to win. I want everybody to win.’ I wanted to go forward but I also wanted and needed an extra outlet because I moved to Nashville to chase a dream of songwriting. God has blessed us, the fans have blessed us, I just wanted to be able to share more songs whether they were huge or not.”
Kelley further noted that writing songs is what he “lives and breathes” to do.
Why Brian Told the Fans About Leaving the Band
“I thought it was really important to clarify a bunch of things that had been said and kinda offer a timeline, offer my experience and truth of how things went down,” he added on Thursday. “Really one of the main reasons I did that was out of respect for the fans and myself, and our parents and those who know the truth and how things went down. At the end of the day, maybe it took a little longer for me to do that but I was patient. It probably wasn’t the easiest but, at the same time, it actually ended up being the perfect timing to do that. I’m glad I waited. I think in those situations, you gotta follow your gut.”
Biggest Country Music Controversies Through the Years
How Brian’s Wife Brittney Kelley Helped Him Cope With Group Disbandment
“I mean, in the good and the bad and what comes at you in life in the marriage, from day 1 of just navigating through a lot of different changes in our lives over the past couple of years, [Brittney] has been like, ‘Babe, I got your back,’” Brian said of his wife, whom he married in 2013. “We just put our heads together and we prayed together. We did a lot of work together with a mental health coach. In those times where it seems a little unclear or a little different than what you’re used to, it’s like that’s when you need to double down on working on yourself and how to process, how to pivot into what the next open door’s gonna be. Just a lot of time over dinners, working, walking, talking through things like, ‘Hey we got this.’”
According to Brian, he and Brittney, 34, “worked really hard to do our best to navigate different waters in a healthy, adult headspace.”
“That’s something we can hang our hat on and the hard work and the moving through life in a healthy, adult way. No blowups, it doesn’t have to be nasty,” the singer told podcast host Viall, 43. “We can hang our hat on how we respond and that’s the important thing. That’s where both of us would just come together and, ‘Hey we’re gonna be cool in this and we’re just gonna keep our heads down. We know who we are and God’s got us, the fans got us.”
