Charlie Puth teams with ‘American Idol’ finalist Gabby Barrett for new version of her country hit

Charlie Puth/Atlantic Records; Gabby Barrett/Robby Klein

Charlie Puth/Atlantic Records; Gabby Barrett/Robby KleinCharlie Puth has teamed up with Gabby Barrett, who came in third on American Idol in 2018, for a new version of her song “I Hope,” which is already a huge country music hit.

The partnership came about after Charlie posted on his Instagram Story about how much he likes the song, which is about a scorned woman hoping her ex’s new girl cheats on him, just like he did on her.

While Charlie has collaborated with a huge variety of artists, this is his first venture into the country realm. In a statement, Gabby says, “When I wrote it I was writing from a woman’s perspective, and so with him being on it, it kind of shows the men’s perspective too. That both sides get cheated on and it’s not just a one-sided thing.”

Charlie adds, “I fell in love with the song when I first heard it, and to be able to reimagine it with Gabby and the writers and producers and take it to a new place, is really exciting.”

The pair will appear together on Amazon Live today at 1PM ET to discuss their cross-genre collaboration with fans.

“I Hope” is currently sitting in the number-two spot on the Billboard Hot Country Songs chart. When it broke into the Top 10 in February, it became the first debut single from a solo female artist to do so since 2017.