Zac Brown‘s music reached new heights — literally — when the Artemis II space mission played his song “Free” for the astronauts on board, hundreds of thousands of feet above Earth.
On Friday (April 10), it was revealed that the 2010 Zac Brown Band hit — which reached No. 34 on the Billboard Hot 100 — had sounded over the speakers to wake up the crew for another day of work. The feel-good track was then followed by a message personally recorded by Brown for the astronauts.
“Good morning Reed, Victor, Christina and Jeremy,” he told them. “Zac from Zac Brown Band here, checking in from the USA. We hope that piece of our song, ‘Free,’ helps start your day with the right kind of lift. We just want to say how proud we are of you. It takes courage, grit, and freedom to chase the unknown. It’s the purest kind of American spirit.
“Millions back home are looking up and feeling more inspired because of you,” Brown continued in his wake-up call. “Keep flying strong. Keep flying safe. We can’t wait to welcome you home.”
The singer and his wife, jewelry designer Kendra Scott, shared a video of the historic moment on Instagram, as well as a clip of the couple reacting to the news. “Baby, wake up! They’re playing your song in space!” the businesswoman tells her husband.
“Found out that we got to wake up the crew with our song ‘Free,’” Brown adds in the video, shouting out the “brave people on this mission.” “What an incredible honor.”
The “Chicken Fried” artist is now one of a select few musicians who can say their songs have been played in space. The Artemis II astronauts — who are now the first humans to have ever seen the far side of the moon in daylight and have traveled farther from Earth than anyone else in history — also woke up on different days of their journey to “Pink Pony Club” by Chappell Roan, “Under Pressure” by Queen and David Bowie, “Working Class Heroes” by CeeLo Green and more. NASA recently shared a playlist of all the tracks they’ve played.
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