To Heal and Rise Again with Brandi Carlile’s “That Wasn’t Me”

Brandi Carlile’s “That Wasn’t Me” is the lead track of her fourth studio album, Bear Creek. The singer composed the single herself, and like most of her songs, it has a very special meaning and quite personal to her. It shows off gospel vocal elements, heartfelt piano, and expressive verses about forgiveness, redemption, and expectations. 

The song is about addiction from the perspective of a user; addiction rehabilitation and the response people are assumed to have after one overcomes addiction after periods of confusion. 

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“That Wasn’t Me” by Brandi Carlile addresses anyone who’s ever been at the pits, no matter how or why they got there, and what they have always held amidst the difficult moments – that wasn’t me! Nobody is born evil or despicable. Now and then, life simply leads you to unfamiliar situations, come rain or shine. Addiction causes you to do stuff you aren’t happy with, stuff that is not in your real nature. You desired to “be me” again. At times, you are never forgiven for what you have committed; however, repenting for everything that went bad and reconstructing yourself straightens things. And, your loved ones knew “that will be me” when you eventually became a part of their lives again by recuperating your life. The real you will emerge in abstinence.

Probably the most inspiring song among Brandi Carlile’s songs. The style was inspired by Elton John since Carlile is a fan of blues and soul-rock. It happened when she accidentally hit a kind of bluesier-sounding E chord. She wrote this track around that chord. 

The song debuted at number 50 on the US Rock Songs (Billboard) 2012 and peaked at #7 on the US Triple A chart in September 2012. 

If you’re in the middle of a dilemma and don’t have the right words to express what you’re going through, perhaps you can get some inspiration by listening to Brandi Carlile’s “That Wasn’t Me” on the video below.