Ashley McBryde Admits Releasing Her Most Personal Album Yet Was ‘Really Scary’

After spending the past few years writing songs inspired by colorful characters she has encountered throughout her life, Ashley McBryde decided it was time to turn the focus onto herself when it came to writing her fifth studio album, Wild, which officially dropped on May 8. The songstress recently sat down with Kelly Clarkson on The Kelly Clarkson Show, where she admitted there were definitely some nerves that came with releasing her latest project.

McBryde referenced past songs like “Brenda Put Your Bra On” from her concept album, Ashley McBryde Presents: Lindeville, and “Livin’ Next to Leroy” from her debut album, Girl Goin’ Nowhere. Both songs tell stories centered around other people’s lives. For Wild, however, she said there were no characters to draw from because every song captured her own experiences.

“The more songs we chose, the more they revealed themselves. It was stuff from my life…We all have the need to be seen, but it’s also really scary to tell the story. Theres nothing to hide behind,” she admitted to Clarkson.

She says the process to narrowing down the track list began with iPhone work tapes in her garage and slowly but surely, the winning songs made themselves known.

“We listen to a work tape, we chart it ourselves, we work it through. And then the next day we come in and say, ‘What from yesterday do you want to play again?’ Now that gets to stay in the pile. So it’s celebrity death match. The songs have to duke it out.”

As Clarkson pointed out, this entire collection of 11 songs signifies a big change in Ashley McBryde’s life, her sobriety journey that has been ongoing since June 2022.

“This is kind of the moment all of this leads up to, ‘and then she went to rehab.’ And it’s not a sobriety record,” the Arkansas native clarified. “It’s not full of sober songs and it’s not like a big soapbox thing, but it is part of the story.”

She went on to explain that her mission is not to preach about sobriety to the world, but instead it’s to simply tell her story to anyone who wants to listen.

“It’s not a big shiny badge I carry. It’s more like kind of a wet wool blanket that’s on me all the time. And if you’d like to know why I’m carrying it, I will tell you, but I don’t have to tell you. It’s just part of the story.”

The record isn’t the only creative project that was inspired by this personal chapter. At the end of August, McBryde will celebrate the one-year anniversary of the grand opening of her Redemption Bar. Located on the fifth floor of Eric Church’s Chief’s at 200 Broadway in downtown Nashville, Tennessee, the space features a zero-proof cocktail menu with the option to make the drinks alcoholic.

“Now especially, you can go to a bar and get non-alcoholic options. And it hasn’t always been that way. When I stopped drinking before it was cool…I would go to places and be like, ‘Hi, can I have something with no alcohol with it?’ And that’s like 90% of my personality up to that point is drinking. And to ask for a non-alcoholic drink and you always get the, ‘you mean like juice?’ And you’re like, ‘Yeah, don’t judge me’…You know who you shouldn’t give attitude to? It’s a woman who can’t drink anymore,” McBryde stated confidently.

This unique concept was developed as a way to have a place where everyone feels welcome, whether they choose to drink alcohol or not.

“No one’s going to think you’re weird if you do drink. No one’s going to think you’re weird ff you don’t drink. The menu automatically, if you order a Martini McBryde…it comes without alcohol already. If you’d like for it to have alcohol in it, the bartenders are happy to do that for you too, but nobody’s going to give you crap about it either way.”

On June 14, Ashley McBryde celebrated four years of being sober. She commemorated the milestone with a powerful post on social media, featuring a statement that celebrated 1,461 days of fighting for herself, alongside a video of her boxing.

“For me, staying sober includes boxing, lifting and other ways of celebrating this body that carries me across the stage I live for. It includes being picky and intentional about who I spend energy on and with. And so much more. For you it may be totally different. Maybe you work a program, maybe you paint , maybe you do something totally ‘out-there’ to some people. Your path is yours,” she shared. “No one else needs to understand it. Whatever keeps you, YOU. You need you. Struggle forward. Do it scared.”

McBryde is bringing her new album on the road with tour dates planned throughout the summer and fall.