- 2021-02-22
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MUSIC
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Donate to support families affected by the crisis in Ukraine ➔ Carly Pearce Releases New EP “29”: Streaming
American country music singer-songwriter Carly Pearce released her new EP “29” on February 19, 2021, following her 2020 self-titled album.
The EP contains 7-track and was produced by co-produced by Shane McAnally, Josh Osborne and Jimmy Robbins.
The EP “29” came from a difficult time in her life marked by the sudden loss of her producer busbee, as well as her divorce from a country artist Michael Ray.
Carly Pearce said on a statement, “29 is such a pivotal year. You grow up. You figure stuff out. You're an adult, but you still have wonder...and when things hurt, you admit it. But you also know the hurt won't kill you. It's just part of getting stronger. That's what I want for everyone:to build the life you want and be strong enough to get there on your own terms.
For me, 29 was mourning the death of my producer busbee. He was my first champion. He believed in me, voice, the songs I was writing when nobody else heard them...and even when people were passing on me, saying they didn't get it, he kept on and he kept telling me, 'You've got it!' It hurt to think about making music again without him.”- RIjC6izVo9U
She continued, “29 was also the year I got married and divorced. I never got married thinking it would end it in divorce.
I did the only thing I knew how to do admit all of grief: I turned to music. I got out all of my old records, the kind of country music I was raised on: Patty Loveless, the Judds, Loretta Lynn, Dolly Parton. Through all of the listening, I harnessed the strength of all those women and it made me want to explore that part of my self...
This collection ultimately came together out of that truth: Be the best woman I can be, create songs that show my roots, but also reach for future...and give people the same glimmer of life that all the artists I love give me.
These songs are for anyone on a journey... especially women working hard and trying to make their place in the world. But it's also for men who feel like they're fighting the good fight and staying in one place. It's for young people who're facing a tough world but aren't giving up. It's for grown-ups who can't believe how life turns out but aren't giving in. And it's for everyone who loves the kind of country you can find at Dollywood or the Opry on a Saturday night.
29 kind of captures a whole lot of those things. It's—I hope—a good reminder to keep going, to remember your light and to keep reaching for your dreams.”-
She explained track-by-track for the EP via Apple Music.
“Next Girl”
“'Next Girl' was such a turning point for me, as far as just really stepping into the kind of country music that I always wanted to make. I grew up on Patty Loveless and Lee Ann Womack and Faith Hill and all of those ladies that I feel did that kind of rootsy, unapologetic female anthem so well. And it was so awesome to hear the way that we just really brought to life all of those influences that I loved. And it's just kind of what, to me, Patty Loveless' 'Blame It on Your Heart' would be in 2021.”
“Should've Known Better”
“That one I actually wrote with two of my dearest friends in the industry, and it came from just a really honest, vulnerable place of trying to not assign blame for things that maybe you overlooked. And I think that that song in particular was kind of my quest, to try to not do that to myself, but I hadn't quite allowed myself to forgive myself for that. I think we all have moments of that.”
“29”
“I've played '29' for some of my friends, and they're very similarly saying to me, 'We know this is your story, but I hear myself in this.' And I think that's just kind of the universal message of why I named the collection 29, which I feel like is a pivotal year for people. You are old enough to know better, but you still have wonder, and you're still excited about life, but maybe things in life didn't turn out exactly as you thought that they might. And you kind of feel like, 'Oh my goodness, am I running out of time? Because I feel old now.' And for me, 29 was a huge year. I lost a lot of things. I lost my producer, and I also clearly went through a super painful divorce and never thought that was going to be a part of my story.”
“Liability”
“I had that idea, the double meaning of liability, and it was kind of one of those moments where you go, 'This is either really awesome or really stupid.' My favorite line in that song is 'The truth about a lie is it ain't never made to last,' and I think that's true in all things in life, and not just in the relationship world, but also the lies that we tell ourselves. And I think there's a lot of things that I had to silence my inner voice on, in my process of writing this album, of just that thing—we're not always nice to ourselves.”
“Messy”
“Going through a divorce during quarantine was not pleasant. But, kind of like piggybacking on what I just said about not being good to ourselves, I think that song was me wanting people to know that when you're going through something difficult, you're going to have moments where you think you're fine. I think, especially in our society today—certainly in my position of being somebody in the public eye—you want to act like you're perfect. And I think this song was me telling myself, and also hopefully telling others, that it's okay to not be okay. And that you need to love yourself and love the process of grief.”
“Show Me Around”
“I flew out to busbee's funeral the week after I got married, and Barry Dean, who's a writer that just is so poetic, he started speaking of heaven like Disneyland and said that he felt like busbee was finding all of the special parts to show his daughters and his wife and all of us when we got there. And I wrote 'Show Me Around' in my phone. And faith is a really big part of my life and it was a big part of busbee's, and so I had no doubt that he was in heaven and I had no doubt that this was the right messaging for him. I took it to two of his very close friends, and we wrote it and it's kind of taken on its own little life for other people. And I hope that it just brings people hope that loss can be something that's kind of bittersweet and they live on and you'll see them again.”
“Day One”
“Shane [McAnally] and Josh [Osborne] actually had started that idea with Matt Ramsey from Old Dominion, and they were like, 'Man, we just could never figure out what it was missing, but it was never quite right.' You feel like there is no way you're ever going to get over this person, but if you can just make it through the first day, you're on the right track. And this song just kind of takes you through that time of trying to realize if you can just take that first step, all these other things are going to happen.” - source : Apple Music
