- Tim McGraw Stands In Exuberant Support For Daughter Audrey’s ‘Stand By Your Man’ Cover - January 28, 2024
- Keith Urban, Nicole Kidman Did All It Took To Rescue Each Other - January 23, 2024
- How Dolly Parton Decides To ‘Tuck It, Suck It, Or Pluck It’ With Plastic Surgery - January 13, 2024
Without question, any fan of Ashley McBryde with enough fervor to be part of “The Trybe” of support for the truth-telling artist attests that she rocks out harder than any woman in country music. At the same time, ask any grandmother about McBryde’s latest country ballad, Light On In The Kitchen, and every single one summons a special memory sparked by the cozy, homespun comforts of the tune.
Remarkably, Ashley McBryde feels just as comfortable celebrating Wynonna on a national stage as she is celebrating family at home. Still, no one ever accuses her of not being bold enough to try something different. Her latest project, a collaboration with Halestorm’s Izzy Hale, is so powerful, yet undeniably tender, it surprises hard rockers and pure country lovers alike. Terrible Things confronts the deepest sin of human disregard while simultaneously affirming the divine within every soul. No two finer voices or fearless talents echo its truth.
The song partnership springs from a perfect gift
Most likely, not even Izzy Hale herself realized how moving her special gift to Ashley McBryde became. When the heavy metal frontwoman first met the Arkansas native, whose famous tattoos fit right in with her affection for the heartfelt country, hippie, and sometimes, raging head-banging flavors of music, she offered a little something special—a jacket—in friendship.
Of course, heavy metal studs trimmed the wardrobe addition, as did country fringe, dangling in leather, as Rolling Stone per MSN notes. However, an inner personalization put the gift over the top. The monogram in the lining proclaimed: “Ashley f@@@@@@@ McBryde,” making it an instant treasure. Indeed, music speaks its own language, and true kinship transcends every barrier. Ashley McBryde and Izzy Hale make Terrible Things a whole new creation.
Mutual respect and awesome talents make ‘Terrible Things’ shine
Naturally, it’s not often that any band, much less one with the recognition of Halestorm, opts to remake a recent song. As Taste of Country conveys, Terrible Things originally released on the band’s 2022 album, Back From the Dead, still with Izzy Hale’s surging vocals. Somehow, Hale knew that Ashley McBryde possessed the sensitivity to make the ballad deeper and richer.
“She’s a rock-and-roller at heart,” Izzy Hale insists of Ashley McBryde,” but she also wears this beautiful soul on her sleeve through her voice.”
For her part, Ashley McBryde almost instantly dismissed the call from the premiere female singer of heavy metal. “Are you f******* with me?” she persistently questioned her team.
Favorite expletives aside, though, the One Night Standards artist assures that learning that the planned duet was Terrible Things meant that her response was “an even stronger yes.” “The subject matter resonates with me so strongly,” Ashley McBryde explains. She turned her public shaming by her teacher into her transformative anthem, Girl Goin’ Nowhere. In tandem, Izzy Hale reflects that McBryde amplified the song’s theme that “disparaging aspects” of our lives and times of darkness don’t have to be the depleting of the “hope and faith that things can get better.” In particular, the summation lyric “Look at me and you’ll see I’m not these terrible things,” truly “floored me,” Ashley McBryde credits.
Furthermore, Izzy Hale fervently declares that “Anybody that loves Ashley is really going to love the way that our voices meshed” for the retake. The power of these ladies delivers much more than “some rock dude” on the powerful track.
Lots of shared connections
Speaking of loving the result of these unique efforts from Hale and McBryde, reactions are swift and strong, as iHeart per MSN relates. Both well-known contemporaries, like Jellyroll and Tigerlily Gold, along with simply faithful fans dropped rave reviews. Many dubbed Terrible Things as the collaboration “we never knew we needed.” Several said that the new rendition was “a masterpiece” for both artists.
Beyond sharing the familiar backdrop of the Nashville parking garage level as their level ground for speaking and singing truth, Ashley McBryde and Halestorm share some deep common connections above their musical and artistic appreciation.
Halestorm calls Nashville home, like Ashley McBryde and both artists have Eric Church in their corner as a good friend. Church took the heavy metal company on the road with him in 2014. In a similar fashion, the Chief songwriter turbo-boosted McBryde’s career by bringing her out on stage during his 2017 Holdin’ My Own tour with the nightcap of A Bible and a .44.
“I’ve loved Halestorm for longer than I can remember,” Ashley McBryde relates. Now, she and Izzy Hale celebrate a rendition of Terrible Things that prompts both artists’ fans to feel just the same way.
Stay logged into Country Music Alley for the latest on Ashley McBryde and all your music favorites. Give us your thoughts on Terrible Things in the comments, too.