Ashley McBryde On Giving Up Alcohol: “I Needed To Stop Killing Myself”

Ashley McBryde / Facebook

Rising country star, Ashley McBryde, credits much of her recent success to the decision to make some major life changes. 

Ashley McBryde is proving herself a force to be reckoned with. In recent months, she won her first Grammy, was inducted as a member of the Grand Ole Opry, and is nominated for three CMA Awards. 

While McBryde’s fierce talent and unwavering drive have largely contributed to her success, the singer also credits the important steps she took towards self-care. In a new interview with People, McBryde revealed that she made the private decision to give up alcohol in June of 2022. She also explained why she has waited over a year to speak publicly about her choice: 

“All people are gonna do is just wait for you to screw up, and that’s really annoying. I did it for me. I didn’t do it for social media.”

Cutting out alcohol has resulted in positive, physical changes for Ashley McBryde.  

Although McBryde initially wished to keep her sobriety journey private, fans and critics have begun to notice and comment about physical changes in her appearance. Observers have noticed that she is leaner, looks younger, and has increased energy on stage. 

“It’s the best I’ve felt, the best I’ve looked, and the difference in my voice … If you had told me even 10 years ago, you think you love your voice? You should hear it without drinking, because along with drinking comes smoking for me,” reflects McBryde. 

Ashley McBryde named her drunk alter-ego “Blackout Betty.” 

During the time when heavy drinking was a theme in Ashley McBryde’s life, she created the nickname “Blackout Betty” to disassociate from her alcohol influenced actions. 

“I would be like, ‘I am ready to go home. I just have to figure out where Betty put my keys.’”

The “Light On In The Kitchen” singer continues: 

“I’m not gonna be like, ‘Well, the devil is alcohol.’ That’s not true. But the version of me — the Blackout Betty version of me and all those other versions that were in control — are still right in the backseat, and boy, do they want to drive. Right now, I’m the one in the driver’s seat, and it’s OK. We’re all welcome here. We all belong, and I know when to employ each of us. But I’m driving.” 

McBryde even wrote “Blackout Betty” her own song which appears on her most recent album, The Devil I Know.

 

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Ashley McBryde is evolving from her reputation as a “whiskey drinking badass.”

In 2017, country superstar Eric Church invited Ashley McBryde to perform with him on stage during his show, and introduced her as a “whiskey drinking badass.” For years, McBryde says she lived up to that description before coming to the realization that she needed to make a change. 

“Maybe part of being the ‘whiskey-drinking badass’ is knowing when to set it down, knowing when it’s costing you too much. This had become too costly, and I’m not willing to trade this — what I do, what I love — for anything.”

McBryde is eager and excited for the trajectory of her career and reemphasizes that the decision to give up alcohol was one made entirely for herself, regardless of what others might say. 

“I don’t need a day on the calendar, I don’t need a parade. I just needed to stop killing myself.”

Listen to “Blackout Betty” below.