Hear Korn + Yelawolf’s Cover of ‘The Devil Went Down to Georgia,’ a Tribute to Charlie Daniels Premiered as a Charity Single Benefiting Awakening Youth

As far as unexpected covers are concerned, this one’s up there. On Tuesday, Korn and Yelawolf premiered a new collaboration, a tribute to country legend/Hall of Famer Charlie Daniels, who passed away in early July at age 83.

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The long-running hard rock/metal band teamed up with rapper/actor Yelawolf for a high-energy transformation of Daniels’ classic hit “The Devil Went Down to Georgia,” and … it works. Korn vocalist Jonathan Davis’ unmistakable howl is on full display as usual. Stream the cover below (and purchase the track here via Bandcamp):

The song is a fundraising single for Awakening Youth, which (per a press release) is a nonprofit organization devoted to young people faced with the loss of a parent due to divorce, addiction, death, being surrendered for adoption, or other reasons.

Given the scope of Korn’s music and Jonathan Davis’ personal background and struggles — themes that were covered to intense emotional extent in September 2019 with Korn’s latest album, The Nothing — Awakening Youth is a perfect charity for the band to support.

Said Davis in a statement about this cover from Korn and Yelawolf:

“I’ve always said it, but country music is some of the darkest ever,” said Davis. “Merle Haggard, Buck Owens, and, of course, Charlie Daniels all turned pain into some really powerful music that sounded alive. ‘The Devil Went Down To Georgia’ is a classic story, and we wanted to release it now to help others in need.”