Carly Pearce is the reigning CMA Female Vocalist of the Year. Her win last year was such a shock and so overwhelming that she barely made it to the microphone to give her acceptance speech. Then, she had to collect herself before she could speak. Now that she’s won the award once, does she feel pressure to win it again, or does it at least make her believe that it’s possible to win it again this year?
“I mean, I think you have to live in a little bit of like, a real world with these kind of things. If I got into a world where me winning Female Vocalist of the Year was the only way that I could find my success, that would probably be a bad rabbit hole to get into. Would I be lying if I said I didn’t wanna win it again? Of course. I think that over the last few years I’ve had such huge jumps in my career, that I think that moment in particular did make me believe that anything is possible. And so, I think just as I go into this awards season, but also just as I continue to think about what goals in the next one to five years do I want to see happen, I do believe because of that, I think I can do anything. So, just to even see my name… I’ll be honest, every year you hold your breath. There’s so many great females, especially right now in our business, and just because I’m the Female Vocalist of the Year right now doesn’t mean that I was guaranteed a nomination. So, just to get the nomination was really special, and I have to remind myself of that.”
Besides being nominated for Female Vocalist of the Year, Carly has four additional CMA Awards nominations for “Never Wanted to Be That Girl,” the song she wrote and recorded with Ashley McBryde, for Single, Song, Musical Event and Music Video of the Year. When Carly thinks about asking Ashley if she wanted to write a song together, and everything that song has already achieved, the fact that it is nominated for four CMA Awards is more than she could have ever hoped for.
“In that room that day we went in there, and it just naturally went into us both coming together, writing something authentic, wanting to write a duet together. I think having a song where we wrote it truly for our two voices to have a conversation. Then, to see the way that it has connected, the records that it has broken just for a female collaboration, along with Miranda and Elle King. This is coming off of the most personal album I think I’ll ever make, so obviously this song was part of my story. To now see fans sharing stories with me of how this song has made them not feel alone, it just is the most full circle moment. And then to see all those nominations, and for Ashley and I to be two of the most nominated artists of the show is just… You know, all I do is try to write a perspective of how I see the world and what’s happening to me, and to see it continue to get recognized the way that it does is the greatest thing that you could have as an artist.”
In addition to being nominated for five CMA Awards, Carly will also be performing twice on the show. She’ll sing “Dear Miss Loretta,” her tribute song to Loretta Lynn off her 29: Written in Stone album, then she’ll join Kelsea Ballerini and Kelly Clarkson to sing “You’re Drunk, Go Home,” their collaboration on Kelsea’s new album. Watch the 56th Annual CMA Awards live from Nashville, Wednesday, November 9, at 8p ET/7p CT on ABC.
