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Carly Pearce knows that “the best revenge (on an ex) is that you’re better off without ‘em.”
The singing-songwriting country star spoke with CMT as she premiered her newest music video, telling the story behind her smash-hit single, “What He Didn’t Do.” The heartbreak ballad is one that Pearce debuted while performing at The Listening Room, a club in Nashville, and she could immediately see how it resonated with fans, Pearce said as she spoke about the song’s story and meaning. She retweeted the brief interview clip with a red heart emoji on Wednesday morning (October 12).
“I think the best revenge is that you’re better off without ‘em. And then they hear your song and they know that it’s about them and you’re doing great, and it’s like, ‘Hello, I’m your little nightmare,’” Pearce told CMT. “This song is all about setting your standards high and remembering that you deserve the best.”
Pearce, who is one of the 2022 CMT Artists of the Year, just released the heartfelt music video. “What He Didn’t Do” is one of 15 tracks on 29: Written In Stone. The album also included the smash-hit duet, “Never Wanted To Be That Girl,” with Ashley McBryde, along with “Next Girl” and “Diamondback,” among other fan-favorites, and the heartfelt “Dear Miss Loretta,” featuring Patty Loveless, which Pearce performed at the Grand Ole Opry to honor the late Loretta Lynn.
The music video felt “like the perfect way to end my chapter of 29,” Pearce said on Tuesday (October 11). “Sometimes we weather the storms that life gives us and come out on the other side better than ever.” Now, Pearce says she looks back at the heartache song with a new perspective.
“I think the whole album, 29: Written In Stone, was emotional,” Pearce told CMT. “But I think even this one, it’s taken on a little bit of a new meaning for me, so it’s even still emotional for me because now I almost kind of look at it as a love song of the blueprint of where I wanna go and I’m definitely being treated better now.”