Carly Pearce‘s “What He Didn’t Do” is the final song from her deeply honest 29: Written in Stone album. The song, Pearce’s fourth No. 1 single , chronicles the end of her marriage to Michael Ray, with co-writers Emily Shackleton and Ashley Gorley helping Pearce uncover her pain, which ultimately led to her healing.
“This closes a chapter for me in my life,” Pearce said at an industry event celebrating the song’s success. “I thought I was going to die. And this day, I remember, we were packing up. We had already written a song. And Ashley looked at me — and I feel like enough time has passed that I can say this — and he just said, ‘What did he do?’ And I said, ‘What didn’t he do?’ And he said, ‘Sit down.’ And I remember calling my mom after, and reading the lyrics, because I was like, ‘Oh my God, oh my God.’ It’s been a powerful thing.”
Pearce never imagined, when they finished writing the autobiographical song, that it would become one of the biggest hits of her career so far.
“Emily and I, still during the pandemic, we played this song at the Listening Room … I remember being like, ‘Let’s play this song,'” Pearce recalled. “We played it, and literally the next day I had thousands and thousands of views of this little cell phone video on YouTube of this song. It became this storm that I don’t think any of us even knew. I’ve never had a song that caught fire from me playing it one time.”
The Grand Ole Opry member hasn’t shared a title or release date for her next set of tunes, but in a series of photos from her “What He Didn’t Do” celebration, she does share a blurred photo of an album cover.
Got to celebrate the end of the 29 chapter yesterday as we soaked in all that “what he didn’t do” has done for me and so…
Posted by Carly Pearce on Wednesday, May 31, 2023
Pearce does hint that, although she is now happily dating Riley King, the new set of tunes won’t be filled with love songs.
“I think a lot of people think that just because I’m happy [and in] a relationship that I’m just going to come out with a bunch of love songs and that’s just not my vibe… it’s not sunshine and rainbows,” Pearce tells Audacy‘s Katie Neal.
While there were still plenty of single-worthy songs on 29: Written in Stone, the 33-year-old is more than ready for a new musical chapter.
“I just don’t think I can be 29 and divorced forever,” Pearce tells Everything Nash. “I’m really excited about it. I write from where I am in my life. So I think that you’re gonna see this new season of life for me, and more confidence in the kind of country music that I make, and really just waving my flag in that.”
Find all of Pearce’s music and tour dates at CarlyPearce.com.