Carly Pearce‘s “What He Didn’t Do” video was symbolic for her, while also challenging her in new ways. The Grand Ole Opry member, who refused to use a stunt double, filmed much of the video underwater, while wearing a wedding gown, something she now admits she was ill-prepared for how hard it would be.
“It was me. The whole video is me,” Pearce tells BMLG. “I underestimated how difficult it would be to swim underwater with a large wedding dress on. It was really, really crazy to feel the weight of that, but I feel like it almost helped me to get it into the character some. It scared me because at times you think, ‘Oh, I know how to swim.’ But when you feel that kind of weight really pulling you down it’s quite scary.”
By the end of the taxing video shoot, both Pearce and her dress were bearing the weight of the brutal video shoot.
“Those scenes of me coming out of the water, if you look, my dress is broken on the sleeve,” Pearce shares. “That was actually what really happened, just because of the wear and tear of what I was doing. But that was one of the harder things I think I’ve done, physically, and honestly, the mental game of that was pretty hard.”
“What He Didn’t Do” is from Pearce’s 29: Written in Stone album, released in 2021.The Kentucky native wrote the song with Ashley Gorley and Emily Shackleton, inspired by the end of her marriage to Michael Ray.
“It was actually the second song that we wrote in the day, which sometimes that’s the one that really hits,” Pearce recalled in a video shared on YouTube. “I remember driving away and thinking, ‘Wow, I think this song is special.’”
Pearce’s 29: Written in Stone (Live From Music City) will be out on March 24. The album includes “Never Wanted To Be That Girl,” along with collaborations with Lee Brice and Matthew West,
Pearce is currently on the road with Blake Shelton, serving as the opening act on his Back To The Honky Tonk Tour. Find music and tour dates at CarlyPearce.com.