Wild (Ashley McBryde album)
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| Wild | ||||
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| Studio album by | ||||
| Released | May 8, 2026 | |||
| Recorded | 2025–2026 | |||
| Studio | Pine Box Studio | |||
| Genre | ||||
| Label | Warner Nashville | |||
| Producer | John Osborne | |||
| Ashley McBryde chronology | ||||
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| Singles from Wild | ||||
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Wild is the upcoming fifth studio album by American country music singer-songwriter Ashley McBryde. It is set for release on May 8, 2026, by Warner Music Nashville. It was preceded by the lead single "What If We Don't", and promotional singles "Rattlesnake Preacher", "Arkansas Mud", and "Bottle Tells Me So". The album sees McBryde re-team with producer John Osborne, whom she worked with on her third project Lindeville (2022), and was recorded live with her touring band Deadhorse. Thematically, the album traces a narrative that builds toward the moment just before McBryde gave up drinking, exploring themes of identity, upbringing and personal reckoning. Drawing on her roots in the Ozark Mountains of Arkansas and the lasting impact of her fundamentalist background, the record also confronts the realities of addiction, generational trauma and the journey toward sobriety.[1]
On June 26, 2025, McBryde released "Rattlesnake Preacher", a long-time fan-favorite track that had appeared in her live sets for several years prior. McBryde stated that, "we’ve constantly been asked by fans when it’ll make it onto a record. As we were gearing up for my second year of co-hosting CMA Fest, it felt like the perfect time to finally get this one out there. It’s my way of saying thank you to the fans who have shown up, listened and gave this song life long before it was ever recorded."[2] A music video for the song was subsequently released on August 28, 2025.[3]
"Arkansas Mud" was released as a promotional single on February 20, 2026. Of the song, McBryde explained, "we’ve all filed an edge down here or there at someone else’s request. ‘Arkansas Mud’ is about rediscovering and re-honing those edges."[4]
McBryde released "What If We Don't", the lead single from her then-untitled upcoming fifth studio album, on February 23, 2026.[5][6]
Teasing the upcoming album on Instagram, McBryde posted, "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."[7]
The album was announced on March 19, 2026. Of the project, McBryde stated, "when people hear this record, I hope it wakes up the part of them that I’m singing about in Wild—the part that still believes in those unrealized dreams and untaken risks. I believe that wild little kid is still alive inside of all of us, and that’s the version of everyone that I want to sing to." Osborne added, "Ashley McBryde is a rare gem. There are people out there with natural ability and there are people that dedicate every waking hour to honing their craft. Ashley is both. Never settling. Always reaching. The perfect combination of vulnerable and fearless."[8] The album's third promotional single, "Bottle Told Me To", dropped the following day.[9]