With the release of Jason Aldean’s hit “1994” earlier this year that name-checked many of Joe Diffie’s twelve Number One hits, the legendary singer found himself squarely back in the hearts and minds of country fans. The multi-platinum-selling artist who dominated the charts during a hot streak in the ‘90’s may have been absent from the radio charts for the past few years, but Joe-Joe-Joe Diffie has never slowed down – writing, touring and recording a myriad of projects including his critically acclaimed 2010 bluegrass album “Homecoming,” and his recent “Roots And Boots” acoustic tour and collaborative CD “All In The Same Boat,” with fellow hitmakers Sammy Kershaw and Aaron Tippin. And now he’s back at it again, riding shotgun with hick-hop sensations the Jawga Boyz on a brand new single, “Girl Ridin’ Shotgun,” which was recently released to country radio.

The single, co-written by Diffie, Phil O’Donnell and Derek Thrasher of The Jawga Boyz is a fun, up-tempo romp perfect for summertime cruising and returns Joe to the country charts where he undoubtedly belongs. The performance features D. Thrash (Derek Thrasher) on the verses as Diffie’s signature vocals soar on the choruses and verses. The tune was written in part as an answer to Jason Aldean’s tribute to Joe, (penned by Thomas Rhett, Luke Laird and Barry Dean) and name-checks Aldean in a nod to the monster hit that helped introduce Joe to a whole new generation of fans two decades later.

With chart-toppers like “Pickup Man,” “Third Rock From the Sun,” and “John Deere Green,” and 13 albums and over 20 Top 10 singles to his credit, Joe has little to prove at this point in his career, yet he still has a fire in his belly to make good country music. A renowned songwriter in his own right who recently turned his focus back to writing after years on the road, Joe has hits for artists like Tim McGraw, Conway Twitty, and Jo Dee Messina to his credit, and has cuts on upcoming projects for “X Factor” winner Tate Stevens, Dylan Scott, and Tyler Farr among others. He is also hard at work on an album of brand new material, due out later this year on Bigger Picture Records. The collaboration with the Jawga Boyz and the attention from the Aldean hit is opening all sorts of new doors for Joe at this point in his career, and he’s excited at the prospect of working with some of music’s hot new hitmakers.

“We had a good time writing and recording my new song “Girl Ridin’ Shotgun,’ and making a video for it,” says Joe. “ I’ve been writing with a lot of new artists and I never thought that collaboration with one of them would lead to this, but I’m really glad that it has. It’s a different sound for me and I’m having so much fun with it all. I can’t wait to see what the future brings!”