Parmalee Get Personal on Heartbreaking New Song, ‘How Do I Let You Go’

Parmalee is opening a new emotional chapter with the release of “How Do I Let You Go,” their most vulnerable song to date.

Known for their upbeat, feel-good hits, the group takes a deeply personal turn, drawing from the real-life loss of the fathers of frontman Matt and drummer Scott Thomas, as well as guitarist/pianist Josh McSwain. The heartfelt tune captures the pain of grief and the longing for just one more moment with the ones who meant everything.

Lead singer Matt Thomas spoke openly with Country Now about writing the song and the story behind it earlier this week while backstage at the CMA Awards. He explained that the song came from a deeply personal writing session with Parker Welling and co-producers Casey Brown and David Fanning.

“We were talking in the room that day about…one of my co-writers had just, he knew we had went through a lot of death earlier in our life in a period of years. Me and Scott lost our dad, and Josh lost his dad. Scott and I lost our best friend in our early twenties and we all lost several friends together. Suicide. We’ve been through some heavy stuff,” he shared honestly. “And we didn’t bring that to Nashville. It just all happened before we got here. So when we got here, we were just writing happy songs and doing fun stuff for the most part.”

Wanting to dig deeper than ever before, Thomas and his co-writers thought about those they’ve lost along the way and what they would say to them now if they could speak to them.

“We really, especially having our dads in mind because we played in their bands growing up and they started us in music and they never got to see us have any success. It was always struggle. And so it’s kind of a note to them saying, ‘Hey, wish you were here. We miss you. We’re okay, but we know you’re looking from the best seat in the house and we love you but damn, I wish you were here,’” he explained.

This comes to life in the chorus, which goes, “You’re supposed to be here now/ More than a memory/ Was it all in my head/ Feels like a real bad dream/ I thought I had more time/ It hurts like hell that I don’t/ How do I say goodbye/ How do I let you go.”

This may very well become one of Parmalee’s most important songs, one that resonates with anyone who has ever loved and lost someone they wish they could share just one more day with.