While 2020 was a tough year for Carly Pearce, having gone through a divorce, she recognizes the valuable lessons she's learned through her pain along the way.
"I think 2020 for me was the biggest learning lesson of my life," she recently told her record label. "And I think that you have to remember the stillness and remember what you learned, implement what you discovered about yourself, and don’t forget that. I think it’s so easy for us to kind of just be robots and do day in and day out and not check in with ourselves, and not just kinda make sure we’re okay."
Pearce filed for divorce from Michael Ray in June after only eight months of marriage. In November, the country singer opened up for the first time about the split in an interview with People.
"There were moments I seriously did not know if I could breathe," Pearce recalled. "It was awful. It is awful. But I think that what's been awesome has been trusting myself and trusting what I have always known, which is God won't take me through something that he won't bring me out of or bring good from."
Pearce's choice to end the marriage "was not a flippant decision," she declared.
"This was something that I really took time to make sure I was doing the right thing. It was very clear that this was not the marriage that I wanted," she said, noting that she and Ray "very quickly realized we were not meant to be."
She explained, "I did everything that I knew how to do. It takes two people to work on something." Pearce didn't go into specifics but did say, "When you love somebody, you trust them."
Despite the quick split, Pearce won't call the marriage a mistake. "I believe we don't go through things that we're not supposed to go through," she said. "My love was real. I will stand by that forever."
"I'm sure that anybody who's ever gone through this goes through different emotions," she continued. "I've been sad. I've been angry. I've been relieved. I try to not be mad at myself. I try to not be mad at him. I think that holding grudges or staying mad only hurts you, and it's just not healthy. So, I try to remind myself of that. And sure, I have days where I'm so mad at myself for just not knowing this was how it was all going to end up for me. My gosh, if I could go back, sure. But it's a part of my story, and that's okay."
While it's been a difficult year in her personal life, Pearce has seen success in her career. In February she released her self-titled sophomore album which featured her chart-topping duet with Lee Brice, "I Hope You're Happy Now." The song won the award for Musical Event of the Year at the CMA Awards and was nominated for Song of the Year and Video of the Year.
In September, Pearce released the sassy breakup song, "Next Girl," which serves as a warning to the next victim of a man's careless love. Most recently, she released an emotional track titled "Show Me Around," which finds Pearce imagining the day of reunion with a loved one in Heaven. She dedicated the heartfelt tune to the beloved late songwriter and producer, Busbee.
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