Ashley McBryde isn’t just a chart-topping country singer, she also knows how to write the songs that leave an impression on both listeners and the charts alike. While she was gigging in biker bars and county fairs on her way to country stardom, McBryde was also working around Nashville as a songwriter, a title she still holds to this day. Below, we look at four songs you didn’t know McBryde wrote for other artists.
Videos by American Songwriter
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1. “Talking to God” (Chrissy Metz)
Written by Ashley McBryde, Nicolette Hayford, Aaron Raitiere, Connie Rae Harrington, and Jake Mitchell
When This is Us star Chrissy Metz was preparing to make her country music debut, she used a song with Ashley McBryde’s name on it as her musical introduction. Co-written with Nicolette Hayford, Aaron Raitiere, Connie Rae Harrington and Jake Mitchell, “Talking to God” is the title track of Metz’s 2020 debut album that features such contemplative lyrics as I was talkin’ to God last night/About why things happen the way they do/Yeah, and He shed a little light/On why I’m goin’ through, what I’m goin’ through.
“‘Talking To God’ is a song about those moments when we ask the questions we desperately want the answers to,” Metz said at the time of the song’s release. “Whether it’s a lost love or why our own lives look much different than the way we had hoped they would. It’s about those personal prayers and conversations we have while listening and learning to surrender and trust in the bigger picture.”
2. “Best Bad Habit” (Danny Worsnop)
Written by Ashley McBryde and Rob Crosby
Ashley McBryde’s songwriting efforts crossed borders when English singer Danny Worsnop recorded “Best Bad Habit” for his 2019 album, Shades of Blue. Known as the lead singer for rock bands Asking Alexandria and We Are Harlot, Worsnop released “Best Bad Habit” as a solo single in 2019. The jazzy, doo-wop style song shows off Worsnop’s strong voice as he sings I can say that I’m quitting you/Then I start missing you/Jonesing wanting you back/’Cause you’re the best bad habit I ever had. Shades of Blue peaked at No. 33 on the Billboard Independent Albums chart in the U.S. following its release.
3. “Gold Rush” (Hannah Aldridge)
Written by Ashley McBryde, Jeremy Drinkwine and Hannah Aldridge
And
4. “Lace” (Hannah Aldridge)
Written by Ashley McBryde and Hannah Aldridge
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Describing herself as an “independent dark country singer-songwriter,” Hannah Aldridge wrote two songs with Ashley McBryde for her 2017 album, Gold Rush—the title track and “Lace.”
“Gold Rush” features soft acoustic instrumentation that allows Aldridge’s voice to shine over dark lyrics like we hold onto our heartache/like a noose around our necks.
At more than six minutes long, “Lace” also calls on an acoustic guitar melody as Aldridge’s voice slithers on the lyrics, so call me your sugar / Settle me down / I’ll wrap you in poison and lace. Both songs are also featured on Aldridge’s 2020 album, Live in Black and White.
Photo by Katie Kauss / Essential Broadcast Media
