Vince Gill Reveals The Timeless Artist He Was Most Intimidated To Collaborate With

Imagine getting the chance to work with one of the most influential figures in your chosen field. You’d probably be pretty thrilled and pretty scared at the same time, right? Well, that’s exactly what happened to country musician Vince Gill when he got to sing with the legendary Gladys Knight! In an interview with Vulture , the younger artist reflected on this unforgettable experience.

When Vince Gill was asked to name his “most intimidating collaborator,” one formidable name came to mind: Gladys Knight. Known to many as the “Empress of Soul,” this singer has won no less than 10 Grammys, according to American Songwriter ! Speaking with Vulture , Gill explained that, although the two were in different genres, he had the incredible opportunity to work with Knight. It was for an album titled Rhythm, Country and Blues , which showcased a number of duets between R&B and country artists .

Together, the pair produced a fantastic rendition of Ain’t Nothing Like the Real Thing , originally sung by Marving Gaye and Tammi Terrell. However, Gladys Knight didn’t seem thrilled to be working with Vince Gill at first.

Listen to Ain’t Nothing Like the Real Thing sung by Gladys Knight and Vince Gill

“I felt her apprehension — I could see it in her face,” the singer said in his interview. “She didn’t have a clue who I was.”

However, as the duet progressed, Knight was impressed with the other musician’s performance.

“We went in to rehearse the tune in the studio, and she sang and was the great Gladys Knight; then I started singing and she just lit up,” Gill recalled. “She started smiling and I go, ‘Okay, we’re good. I just passed the test.'”

He added, “We hit it off, and had the best time — and because of that collaboration, I wound up being the first white guy on the cover of Jet magazine. Pretty cool street cred minute for me. I learned as much from Black music as I did any kind of music. Creative people, people that do what I do, we don’t care where it comes from. It’s what Duke Ellington said: there are two kinds of music, good and bad.”

Some say you shouldn’t meet your heroes, but things seem to have worked out just fine for this singer . What a spectacular moment it must have been for Vince Gill to not only work with Gladys Knight, but earn her approval in the recording studio!

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