Singer-songwriters Carly Pearce and Ashley McBryde have joined forces on a new song, “Never Wanted to Be That Girl,” from Pearce’s upcoming album 29: Written in Stone (out Sept. 17). The new collab arrived Wednesday (Sept. 15).
Pearce and McBryde penned the track with co-producer Shane McAnally. “Never Wanted to Be That Girl” finds McBryde and Pearce sharing the hard truth of a two-timing lover, as told from two perspectives. McBryde offers the viewpoint of a single girl who gets help changing her tire, and then winds up in a six-month relationship with the guy (“He never had a ring on/ So I didn’t think to ask,” she sings). Meanwhile, Pearce sings from the perspective of the man’s wife waiting at home and wondering where he’s been. As the two women ultimately realize what’s going on, the song details the shock and pain that follow as the truth comes out.
“Nobody ever thinks it will happen to them,” Pearce said in a statement. “You never see it coming, but there’s always an explanation. You know, who’d ever want to think that way about someone they love? Why would you? And so, that’s where this song started: the things you don’t see, because you’d never look.
“Ashley is such a great drop-into-the-moment writer, she was able to bring that reality bomb truth to what we were doing,” continued Pearce. “She’s fearless, and she understands human nature in a way that let us both really write to the hurt of realizing we’ve been lied to by someone we’re intimate with.”
“Carly isn’t afraid to face the less potable subjects,” McBryde added. “As a writer she’s willing to get in there and get very honest. Writing this song together with Shane strengthened our friendship and taught us more about one another and ourselves. Seriously, nobody wants to be the other woman. And when you find you are … d–n. It’s such a gut punch.”
Both Pearce and McBryde are nominated for multiple awards at the upcoming Country Music Association Awards, held on Nov. 10. Pearce is nominated for female vocalist of the year and album of the year (for her 2020 project 29). McBryde is also nominated for female vocalist of the year, as well as single of the year and song of the year (both nods for “One Night Standards”).
Pearce is currently on the road opening for Lady A’s What a Song Can Do Tour, while McBryde is opening shows for Luke Combs.
Check out “Never Wanted to Be That Girl” below:
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