Cody Johnson Sets NRG Stadium Record After Surgery Forced Year-End Cancellations

Cody Johnson says his current top-10 single, "The Fall," from Leather Deluxe Edition, carries a message he needed to share, one that life soon put to the test.

Johnson recorded the track with a clear sense of purpose. "I was in the mode of cutting an album and saying, 'This is what I want people to hear,'" he recalls. "I want people to know that the ride is worth the fall."

"The hardships, yeah, it feels like hell when you're going through the hardships, but when you look back at them, without those hardships, you wouldn't have the successes that you have, and you wouldn't appreciate 'em as much," he adds.

That message took on new meaning when Johnson suffered a burst eardrum in October 2025, requiring immediate surgery and forcing him to cancel the remaining shows on his year's schedule. After weeks of recovery, he returned to the stage in mid-February 2026 to a string of sold-out performances.

The comeback culminated on March 22 at RODEOHOUSTON, where Johnson drew 80,203 fans to NRG Stadium, setting the all-time concert-only attendance record at the venue and surpassing the previous mark of 80,020 set by George Strait in 2013.

"The Fall," written by Bobby Pinson, Jeremy Stover, and Ray Fulcher, is the second single from Leather Deluxe Edition and follows Johnson's four-week No. 1 duet with Carrie Underwood, "I'm Gonna Love You."