Carly Pearce Reflects On Painful Season When Comparison Stole Her Joy
on Aug 04, 2026
Carly Pearce Says Comparison Is The “Thief Of Joy”
It’s hard to imagine a country star as successful as Carly Pearce struggling with comparison, but even she admits she’s not immune to it.
In a new social media post, Carly is opening up about a time when comparing herself to other women robbed her of her own joy.
At just 29 years old and on the verge of becoming one of country music’s biggest stars, Carly married fellow country singer Michael Ray. The couple first met in 2018 after performing together at several shows, and their relationship began after they connected on Instagram.
Carly and Michael got married the following year, however divorced in 2020.
Since then, Carly has continued to build a successful career in country music. She has earned a Grammy Award, won CMA Female Vocalist of the Year in both 2021 and 2022, and topped the charts with hits including “I Hope You’re Happy Now,” “Never Wanted to Be That Girl,” and “What He Didn’t Do.”
Carly also fulfilled a lifelong dream when she became a member of the Grand Ole Opry in 2021.
Our very own @DollyParton shared some special news with @CarlyPearce!
— Grand Ole Opry (@opry) June 23, 2021
We’ll give you a hint…YOU’RE LOOKING AT THE NEXT MEMBER OF THE GRAND OLE OPRY!
Official induction date set for August 3! Check out the moment it all happened. pic.twitter.com/fLiArEdUhT
Carly Explains The Backstory Behind Her New Song, “Happy For Myself”
Despite all that, Carly is just a regular woman who struggles with the timeline of her life on occasion. And she explains her new song, “Happy For Myself” shares the story of just that.
Carly told the story of the time she went with her friend to look at engagement rings, which stirred up some emotions inside of her that she didn’t quite expect.
“There I was, 34 years old, divorced, stuck in a relationship going absolutely no where,” Carly said. “I was genuinely happy for her, I really was, but underneath that happiness was something I didn’t want to admit out loud.”
The country star says she then asked the question, “when would I be happy for myself?”
Carly believes that as humans we’ve been “conditioned” to believe our lives should happen in a certain timeframe and by a specific age, but sometimes that’s just not how it plays out.
“We compare our lives to someone else’s highlight reel and somewhere along the way we stop seeing all that’s beautiful about our own,” the singer said.
She went on to explain that the song is an honest reflection of finding contentment with where you are in life, even when the people around you seem to be on different paths.
“Maybe your life isn’t late, maybe your story isn’t behind, maybe what’s meant for you was never supposed to look exactly like what’s meant for someone else,” Carly continued.
Carly will be headed back to the Opry on August 29 to perform “Happy For Myself” and other songs from her new album, Honest Woman.
