The first listen of Ashley McBryde’s next era. Today, she released her anthemic new single “What If We Don’t,” a ballad that encourages listeners to take the risk when it comes to love and life, pushing away fear and embracing desire and . It’s the first song from her forthcoming (unofficially announced) fifth studio album, and the song was written by Ashley along with Terri Jo Box, and Randall Clay, though it will probably sound familiar to longtime fans of McBryde, as it was first released on her independently-released debut EP, Jalopies & Expensive Guitars, back in 2016, before Ashley had a record or publishing deal. The song is described as an “anthemic, larger-than-life plea” which dares listeners to live without regret, and Ashley says it’s about learning to live with the consequences of life regardless of the outcome: “‘What If We Don’t’ came to me, Terri Jo Box, and Randall Clay sitting around a fire pit on a back porch, reminiscing on all the moments that we could’ve made a different choice and wondering if we should’ve. It’s about the leaps of faith that you do or don’t take, and having to learn to live with those consequences either way.” It will also serve as her next official country radio single, and impacts on February 23rd. While the lyrics focus on her not living with regret in terms of a love interest, I think the deeper concept can apply to all aspects of life: “There’s always the fear of going there now Things gettin’ weird if it don’t work out This kind of thing can’t stop once it starts We might end up breaking each other’s hearts But what if we don’t, what if we don’t? What if we stop fightin’ what we know we both want? We might regret how far we let it go But what if we don’t?” Ashley says she hopes people relate to the message of overcoming fear and not letting that feeling dictate choices: “We can’t avoid feeling afraid. But we can make sure fear doesn’t get to make choices for us.” View this post on Instagram Of course, her vocals are perfect, and I can’t wait to hear the rest of what she has coming soon, and I’d be willing to bet that an official album announcement is likely coming soon… check out “What If We Don’t” here: “What If We Don’t” Just a few weeks ago, Ashley shared a tearful video about all of the new music she has coming, and it’s clear just how much this next batch of tunes means to her. While driving around in her car, McBryde was crying as she recorded a video she initially sent to her team about her immediate reaction to hearing some of the rough mixes of the songs she has recorded for her next project. She explained that even though she’s written and been through every stage of the process with these songs, it still felt brand new and had her in tears, and she said that it was like she had never heard the music, or the artist: “I just listened to ‘—‘ for the first time. It’s a rough mix, it’s not even mixed. And I had just listened to ‘Hand Me Downs,’ and I wrote the damn thing, me and Jessie Jo and Laura, I knew what was in that song. And then I listened to it, and I kept staring at the dash, like, why would you do that to me? I’ve been here for every note, every syllable, every breathe of this record. And I’m listening to the mixes and it’s like I’ve never heard this record. It’s like I’ve never heard this artist.” Ashley has shared some about her sobriety journey, even opened her own non-alcoholic bar called Redemption inside of Eric Church’s Chief’s Bar on Broadway in Nashville. I have to imagine that could be a theme in at least some of the songs, and if you’re a fan of her music, then you already know how authentic and honest it is so I’m sure you can expect that too. She also launched her Light On Fund last month, which will focus on mental health of veterans, rehabilitation resources for the creative community, helping children in the foster care system, championing ASL interpretation at live music events, and much more, and it will announce a new charitable focus each quarter starting 2026. In terms of live shows, McBryde will return to Eric Church’s Chief’s on Broadway for several shows in 2026, and hopefully, she’ll have some new tour dates for the new year coming soon too.The post Ashley McBryde Encourages Listeners To Fight Fear & Embrace The Unknown With Anthemic New Single, “What If We Don’t” first appeared on Whiskey Riff.