Chris Young is releasing a new album, his first on Black River Entertainment. I Didn’t Come Here To Leave will be out on October 17, coinciding with the eighth anniversary of Young’s induction into the Grand Ole Opry. The title track is available now.
Young previously hinted that he had found a new freedom in making his next album, which is evident on I Didn’t Come Here To Leave.
“On a record, a lot gets made of how many tempos and how many ballads, as opposed to just making a record from top to bottom that you’ve fallen in love with – but that’s all I’ve ever tried to do,” Young explains. “I look at this album and there are songs that make you want to buy a beer, and there’s songs that if you broke up with somebody, you’re going to want to cry. For different reasons, I feel like this is a complete album – and it would be a disservice to Black River if I didn’t turn in something I believed in this way.”
I Didn’t Come Here To Leave follows Young Love & Saturday Nights, out in 2024. With his new record, his tenth in his career, the 40-year-old is rightfully proud of the project, and the journey it took for him to release it.
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“At this point in my career, I hope someone listens to this album and says ‘Wow, he dug deep,’” Young explains. “The funny thing is, I’m here saying ‘Yeah, it’s one of the best things I’ve ever made,’ and I believe it wholeheartedly. It’s wild to step back and see a really long list of things I’ve gotten to do already … But I didn’t come here to leave.”
I Didn’t Come Here To Leave includes Young’s current single, “‘Til the Last One Dies.” The song was written by Ben Hayslip, Seth Mosley, and Jordan Walker.
“I just thought the message on this one was so perfect,” Young tells Audacy . “I went to every single one of my friends, male, female, whatever, that were married or in a relationship, and they were all just blown away by this song, so I was like, ‘Okay, we gotta go with this one first. It’s just too perfect.’”
When discussing “‘Til the Last One Dies,” Young revealed he was writing some, but not all, of the songs on his next record.
“It’s not the only one that’s going to be on the project that I wasn’t a writer on,” Young tells Country 102.5, speaking of “‘Til the Last One Dies.” “I’ve had songs before that have been singles that I wasn’t a writer on. I obviously sang and produced this one. But I found it. Someone played it for me right after these guys wrote it, and I was just like, ‘Oh God. That’s really, really good. I gotta cut that.”
Pre-save I Didn’t Come Here To Leave here. Find the title track and all of Young’s music and upcoming shows at ChrisYoungCountry.com.