She doesn’t miss. The “girl goin’ nowhere” herself, Ashley McBryde, has hardly lived up to her self-proclaimed nickname over the past few years. After breaking out with Eric Church back in 2017 with her performance of “Bible and A .44,” the Arkansas native has become one of the premier female artists in the genre, scoring a Grammy win for Best Country Duo/Group Performance (“Never Wanted to Be That Girl”) along with multiple ACM and CMA Award wins. Despite being a mainstay in the mainstream, awards and all, it’s always felt like McBryde has always flown under the radar compared to some of her contemporaries. Taking a look at her discography, you have one of the most consistently great ones over the past decade. From her brilliant debut in 2018 on Girl Going Nowhere to the severely underrated, cinematic concept album, Lindeville, in 2022, the Arkansas native has continued to push the boundary from release to release. From the get-go, it was clear that we were in for something special with today’s release of her fifth studio album, Mud. Upon its announcement, McBryde would note that it was not an easy project to record, explaining that it encapsulates the fear, chaos and hard truths that she had to face in its creation. “Sometimes going with your gut is the scariest thing you can do… and the most necessary. This record felt like building a tree fort from some pieces we’d been needing to put to good use and some building materials I had to go scout out and look for. And piece by piece, trusting it would all hold together in the end. I’m so ready for y’all to hear it. Wild is the name. That’s the spirit of the record. The fear, the chaos, the hard truths, and the little kid in me who always kept dreaming big.” She’d also note that Wild is a collection of songs that she “refused to let go quiet,” essentially saying that these tracks were released out of necessity to tell her true, unfiltered story. From her sobriety journey to childhood trauma, there’s no place she didn’t want to go here on the album. The reality of making this record is that it is so much work, so much doubt and so much drama. We are supposed to walk into PineBox, set that down and make magic? Yes. That’s the gig. And we do. And we DID. And we NAILED it. Wild is a collection of songs I’ve refused to let go quiet. Songs that were running breathlessly into the dark because they knew if they could just get to me, they’d be safe and they’d be heard. There’s no fictional trailer park on this record. Wild documents the things that made me… good and bad. Stopping drinking wasn’t the cure. It was merely what had to happen to live long enough to completely rebuild my entire self. And turns out, to make WILD. I am so grateful that my life purpose is to make sure the songs don’t go unheard.” What results is McBryde’s most personal album to date. There’s truly no stone unturned here on Wild. Whether it’s tracks like “Ten to Midnight” and the album’s standout, “Bottle Tells Me So,” which take a deep look into her former struggles with alcoholism and newfound sobriety, or “Rattlesnake Preacher” and “Hand Me Downs,” which take a deep, honest look at the shortcomings of her parents and the effects they had on her growing up, McBryde is not afraid to be vulnerable throughout the record. When you take a look at Wild as a whole, it’s an album full of intentional contradictions. You get flashes of McBryde reflecting on being a scared little girl grappling with the shortcomings of her parents, trying to find comfort by drowning herself in addiction and finally being reborn by accepting herself and all the struggles she’s faced on her journey. This is best shown on the title track, which was written by Jeremy Spillman, Makayla Lynn and Matraca Berg. Here, she reflects on the days when there was nothing keeping her from being “wild.” Despite what the title suggests, it’s actually an incredibly slow ballad that serves as a bit of a dichotomy between McBryde’s younger days and where she is today. “Does the wild call out to you from a distance? Do the razor-wire white-picket fences Keep you from running for miles? Wild, do you miss the fire and the freedom When there wasn’t anything keeping You from being wild?” Ultimately, Wild is a stellar effort from McBryde. In a time where mainstream and commercialized country music becomes less and less personal, it’s incredibly refreshing to see an artist lay it all on the line and not be afraid to go to uncomfortable places. She does that and then some here, touching on everything from addiction to trauma. What results is one of the best releases of the year and arguably the “Girl Going Nowhere” singer’s best album to date. “Arkansas Mud” “Hand Me Downs” “Bottle Tells Me So” Ashley McBryde Tour Dates June 11 – Jackson, MS – Thalia Mara Hall June 12 – Biloxi, MS – IP Casino Resort and Spa June 19 – Rockton, IL – Settler’s Park June 25 – Belfast, UK – Custom House Square Belfast June 27 – London, UK – Hyde Park July 3 – Calgary, AB – Calgary Stampede July 9 – Deerfield, MA – Tree House Brewing Company July 10 – Bar Harbor, ME – 1932 Criterion Theatre July 11 – Cavendish, PE – Cavendish Beach Music Festival July 17 – Colorado Springs, CO – Phil Long Music Hall July 18 – Gypsum, CO – Lundgren Amphitheater July 24 – Larchwood, IA – Grand Falls Casino Resort Event Center July 30 – West Fargo, ND – The Lights Amphitheater July 31 – Plymouth, MN – Hilde Performance CenterThe post Ashley McBryde Delivers Her Most Personal Album To Date On ‘Wild’ first appeared on Whiskey Riff.