What He Didn't Do

Album: 29: Written in Stone (2021)
Charted: 37
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Songfacts®:

  • Many in the Nashville community were shocked when Carly Pearce filed for divorce from fellow singer Michael Ray in June 2020 after just eight months of marriage. Neither singer shared exactly what went wrong, but this gentle piano ballad intimates there was plenty Ray didn't do to keep Pearce.
  • Pearce stays discreet about the details of their marriage breakdown, but lays out some ways her husband didn't support her.

    And I ain't gonna go and tell you what he did
    But I'll tell you what he didn't do
    Treat me right, put me first, be a man of his word
    Stay home 'cause he wanted to
    And always fight for my love, hold on tight like it's something
    That he couldn't stand to lose
  • Pearce co-wrote "What He Didn't Do" with Emily Shackleton and Ashley Gorley. She recorded the track for 29: Written in Stone, where the singer worked with female collaborators on 11 out of the 15 songs. Emily Shackleton contributed to five of them.

    "I think just having a female perspective - a lot of these women were my friends, and it was important for me to feel safe by women, and almost affirming my feelings through women," Pearce told Grammy.com. "These women were the first to message me as soon as my divorce came out, and really care about me as a person. I was able to be brutally honest in those rooms because I felt safe with them."
  • "Should've Known Better" is another 29: Written in Stone track co-penned with Shackleton. On that song, Pearce finds fault on both sides. The country star slates Ray for selling her a fantasy, while admitting she should have learned from her parents' marriage.
  • Pearce debuted "Didn't Do" on January 2, 2021 at the Listening Room Cafe in Nashville.

Comments: 1

  • Rick Lilly from Lansing. MichiganSaw the video on the CMT network and was enthralled with the music of the chorus. First time I was exposed to Carly and her music and without knowing her success already. in my book she was clearly a superstar.
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