We take you behind the scenes and explore the making of one of our favorite tunes with The Song Remembers When…
Song: “Never Wanted To Be That Girl”
Songwriters: Carly Pearce, Ashley McBryde, and Shane McAnally
Album: 29: Written In Stone
When Carly Pearce performed a show with Ashley McBryde, she had the idea to collaborate on a song. The two teamed up with songwriter Shane McAnally to write “Never Wanted To Be That Girl” which landed on Carly’s latest album 29: Written In Stone.
Carly loved the twist in the song. She said that it was very realistic for those who have intentionally cheated or those who have been cheated on. Carly also loved the fact that the two women never meet in the song. She said it just felt so natural to not only write the song but sing it with Ashley.
“Never Wanted To Be That Girl” topped the chart in May 2022, giving Carly her third number one and Ashley her first. The song is the third duet from two solo female artists to hit number one during the chart’s history which dates back to January 1990 (Elle King and Miranda Lambert – “Drunk (And I Don’t Wanna Go Home)” and Reba McEntire and Linda Davis -“Does He Love You”). “Never Wanted To Be That Girl” swept both collaboration categories at the ACM Awards and the CMA Awards and delivered both Carly and Ashley their first Grammys.
Image: Nick Rau / Big Machine Records