Orville Peck confirms that Elton John is “a really funny person to be around”.
The musician, 36, recently told PEOPLE in an exclusive on-set chat Little Big Town Christmas at the Oprypremiering Dec. 16 on NBC, about collaborating with John, 77, on the country reimagining of “Saturday Night’s Alright (for Fighting) for Peck’s third studio album, Stampede.
After working on the song together, Peck says the legendary artist is “super stupid, so he’s always telling funny, dirty jokes and things like that.”
Orville Peck ‘refused’ to quit despite people ‘laughing in my face’ for being an openly gay artist (Exclusive)
Peck’s Stampedereleased in August, it features 18 duets with other hitmakers such as Willie Nelson, Kylie Minogue and more.
“I haven’t done many duets or songs in the past, so it was something new for me to do an album with 18 artists,” admits Peck. “But I mean, it was with people I’ve adored all my life. I just couldn’t believe that they wanted to work with me too.”
Working with Nelson on “Cowboys Are Often Secretly Fond of Each Other” was “beyond a dream,” he adds.
Orville Peck and Willie Nelson Team Up for New Version of ‘Cowboys Often Secretly Love Each Other’
When asked about inclusivity and diversity in country music, he says it’s “definitely moving in the right direction.”
Peck adds, “The country has historically always been a bit slow to burn things that are new and a little different. I think we just need to keep championing more new stories within the country.”
He emphasizes the importance of new people “telling their stories” in the country.
“I will always support it and I hope more and more people will join me,” he says.
Orville Peck in August 2024.
Tibrina Hobson/Getty
The singer of the song “Dead of Night” has been advocating for this cause for years.
In 2023, he talked to PEOPLE about his show My kind of countryon which he and country singers Jimmie Allen and Mickey Guyton mentored diverse, up-and-coming country talent who brought a new perspective to the genre.
“(The other mentors and I) could see a little bit of ourselves in each of them and we wanted it to be easier for them than it was for us,” he said at the time, adding that he wanted people to feel “welcome in country music” and encourage other members of the industry to be open to “everyone”.
Peck also spoke about his 2020 collaboration “Legends Never Die” with Shania Twain, another inspiration he described as “down to earth.”
“She’s a very strong person, but she’s very, very sweet and outgoing, and also a very defiant pioneer in her own way,” he said. “My first experience spending time with her was at her ranch in Las Vegas, and she was literally running her horses through the mud and wearing nothing but jeans and a T-shirt, and we were eating burritos on the patio and talking about horses and life and music.”
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Source: HIS Education