Justin Moore Braces for Brad Paisley Payback

On the same night that Country star Brad Paisley famously fell during the final show of his American Saturday Night tour, opening act Justin Moore pulled a prank on Country Music’s undisputed king of practical jokes.

When Moore visited Country Countdown USA this past weekend, he was both boastful and apologetic that the practical joke he played on Paisley in Charleston, S.C., went off without a hitch, but he's afraid that the consequences could get ugly.

"I fell three or four times last year because I'm just an idiot, but he bit it hard!" said Moore of Paisley’s mishap. "It happened to be, ironically, the night that I pranked him. It was the last night of the tour. So I'm thinking, 'Gosh, he's going to hate me. Instead of appreciating this great prank we did! I even got blamed for that, too. Everybody's [saying], 'I can't believe you did that.' I said, 'I'm evil, but I'm not that bad.'"

Moore’s practical joke played off the themes of Paisley's current single, "Water," and the upcoming H2O tour, which will also feature the "evil" Country newcomer.

"I came out and talked for a minute and told [Brad] I was impressed obviously by his guitar playing and songwriting, but more so his physique. So we put a doctored picture of him in a Speedo up on the big screen. And then during 'Water,' I had all my band and crew come out in Speedos and scuba gear, throwing out beach balls. It was pretty funny.

"Everybody said, 'Where were you?' I was backstage in my blue jeans watching! Why do you think I pay these guys? [laughs] A couple of them [said], 'Man, I don't know about this.' I said, 'Do you want to get a paycheck or what?'"

"So," Moore concluded, "we've got it in for us when we go back out because we threw the last punch. I know it's going to be awful when we get back out there!"

Brad Paisley's H2O tour begins May 21 in Virginia Beach and will run through Sept. 25 in Englewood, Colo.