On the heels ofreleasing her debut albumShot in the Dark,Ashley Cookehas a whole host of new,meaningfulsongs — but maybe none more so than “Mean Girl,” which features Grammy-winning vocalist (and Cooke’s childhood idol)Colbie Callait.
The song, however, isn’t what one might expect based on the title — Cooke, 26, is actually coming from a place of compassion while trying to help a fellow girl out.
“This ain’t me being mean, girl,” Cooke sings in the chorus, before delivering a warning to an ex’s new flame.
Cooke finishes the verse with another creative play on words: “When he says you’re the only one, take it from me / Yeah, it’s just another thing that he doesn’t mean, girl.”
The inspiration, says Cooke, comes from a past relationship.
“My ex-boyfriend, he was never very great to me, for better for worse,” she says. “And when my producer told me that my ex had a new girlfriend, I was like, ‘I wish I could just tell her whatI wishI would’ve listened to when other ex-girlfriends reached out to me. I wish that I could just tell her — to help save somebody else from the hurt.’”
Just like that, “Mean Girl” was born as a sort of pseudo letter to an ex-boyfriend’s new girlfriend.
“I think it was the perfect explanation of a Nashville story. It turned into a real song that was about a real event. It was cool,” says Cooke, reflecting now.
What was even cooler for Cooke was getting to sing the tune with Caillat — who plays the part of the “new girl” in the song’s second verse.
“Colbie was everything when I was a kid. I was in love with her voice. Her music was amazing, but it was more her voice and vibe that I fell in love with,” says Cooke.
Colbie Caillat in June 2023.John Lamparski/Getty
John Lamparski/Getty
“Growing up, a lot of people told me that I sounded similar, that I reminded them in some ways of Colbie, which was always a huge compliment. So [when] we were talking about features and collaborations on the album, I was like, ‘Colbie, that’d be huge,’” Cooke adds of asking the “Bubbly” singer to be featured on a song in the first place.
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These days, though, Cooke has happily moved on with someone new, too — but she’s really focused on continuing to grow as both an artist and a person.
“I put up with so much stuff in past relationships that I would nowadays be like, ‘What?’” Cooke says. “But I think you go through it to understand your worth and your value… Right now, I’m in a place in my career where I’m really trying to build musically.”
source: people.com
