FGL on Following Timberlake, Stapleton at 2015 CMAs

Florida Georgia Line had the unenviable task of following Chris Stapleton and Justin Timberlake's performance at the 2015 CMA Awards on Wednesday (Nov. 4). The duo, made up of Tyler Hubbard and Brian Kelley, sang their new single, "Confession," and they admit that they were a bit daunted by the task.

"Justin and Chris Stapleton, they’re two of the best, vocally, as songwriters [and] as artists," Hubbard told The Boot and other reporters backstage during the 2015 CMA Awards. "We’ve both looked up to them a lot. We’ve been to Justin Timberlake’s shows, we’ve seen Chris perform many times, so [it was] probably the toughest act to follow tonight ... They did an amazing job. But we gave it all we had, and I think it was a cool follow-up."

The guys initially planned on releasing a song from their upcoming new album as their next single, before deciding to release "Confession" as a final single from Anything Goes instead.

"I think it’s crazy that we get to go five singles deep," Kelley notes. "And I think, more importantly, we need this single, and our fans at country radio need to hear this song. It has a great message, and it’s right where we’re at right now, and that’s the most important, to get that music out.

"I think "Confession" really opens the door for what we have coming down the pipeline," he adds. "I think we need it, country radio needs it; it completes the album for us, that we made it this far. It’s like, we’ve got to bookend it with "Confession.""

Thankfully, Florida Georgia Line are already accustomed to making last-minute changes in their career.

"We used to have a song called "Different Plans" -- just about, any time we tried to make a plan that we’re really stoked about, we’d always get stoked about a different plan after that," Hubbard reveals. "Honestly, until the album comes out, who knows? That’s kind of the beauty of it all and what makes it fun."

For now, Hubbard and Kelley's plans are to take some time off and contemplate the incredible year they've had.

"I think as artists, in order to continue to evolve and be creative, you got to sit back and soak it all up a little bit, soak it in, and be grateful for where you’re at and thankful for how you got there," Hubbard notes. "For us, we just got done with the Anything Goes Tour, so we’re at home and working on the album and taking this time to reflect as well. I think we do it on a daily basis, and look at our life, but look at ourselves, look at ourselves as men, as husbands, as businessmen -- just try to reflect and be honest and transparent with who we are with ourselves and try to become better every day. That’s important to us."

Florida Georgia Line also won a CMA Award for Vocal Duo of the Year during the 2015 CMA Awards ceremony.