Ashley Cooke is proud to have a career rooted in country music, but she also isn’t afraid to blend influences from other styles of music. Her just-released collaboration with pop sensation Joe Jonas, “All I Forgot,” proves just that as it offers fans a glimpse into this exciting new chapter and her evolving sound.
In a desperate attempt to numb the sadness from heartbreak, Cooke finds herself searching for freedom at the bottom of the bottle, only to find there’s no escape. The lyrics vividly capture the agony that overwhelms her heart, while highlighting the emotional toll that can take on someone trying to outrun the memories of a past relationship.
She opens the soul-stirring anthem with a set of buttery vocals which beautifully intertwine with the global superstar’s voice as they reach the chorus. As the song unfolds with a set of two perspectives, both artists come to the bittersweet realization that some memories can’t be forgotten that easily.
“‘Cause I just killed a bottle/ And all that I forgot was I was moving on/ I was staying strong/ I’ll feel it tomorrow/ ‘Cause all that I forgot was everyone except for you/ That ain’t what this drink’s supposed to do/ All I forgot was everything except for you,” they sing on the chorus.
The process of bringing this fresh tune to life looked a bit different than Cooke’s past duets. She told Country Now that she knew this was something special when she instantly recognized one of her favorite songwriters, JKash, among the all-star lineup of writers including Cooke, Jacob Kasher Hindlin (JKash), Griff Clawson, David Alexander, Naliya, Charlie Puth and Joe Jonas.
Listen To “All I Forgot”
“He’s like an icon in the pop world. He’s written so many things. He wrote ‘Last Night’ with Morgan [Wallen], an amazing writer, amazing pop writer,” she gushed.
JKash forwarded the song to Cooke’s manager who then shared it with the songstress. From the first listen, Cooke was in love. When she found out she could put her own spin on it by writing the bridge, the song instantly felt whole.
“I just kind of got on my own and wrote a bridge for it and really felt like I resonated with the song and loved the way that it sounded. It sounded kind of fresher,” she admitted.
Why Joe Jonas?
The next step was to decide which artist would be the best fit to join Cooke in the duet. She could have taken the safe route by choosing a fellow country artist, but Cooke, staying true to her artistry, felt the song’s pop influence called for a collaborator from that genre.
“I’m still very much a country artist, but it had kind of a pop twist to it, which made me think it’d be so cool to do this with a pop artist, somebody that’s in a different space,” Cooke explained. “And so we were kind of brainstorming different people to collaborate with and Joe, his name was put in a hat and I was like, that would be so cool. And so we chose Joe and he just has been the best partner, the best, just everything. He’s been awesome.”
Joe, a member of the Jonas Brothers trio, accepted the invitation and got into the studio to record his half of the vocals. Cooke’s belief that she made the right choice was confirmed when she finally got to meet the “Work It Out” singer for the first time.
“He’s really great. I think the one takeaway that I had from just getting to hang out with him, I’m sure we’ll hang out much more with the song and just now becoming friends, but they’re just really normal guys, which is rare when you’ve had that much success that young. But yeah, walking in just, I was on a movie set with them, they’re filming a movie that’s coming out soon and we were just in between takes hanging out and they’re just so normal. It feels like they’re normal dudes from high school, not the Jonas Brothers. So it was really good and I can’t wait to get to know them more.”
Fans Were Quick To Predict Her Duet Partner
The Big Loud rising country star began dropping some teasers via social media around one week before the song’s official release. She hinted that a duet was on the way and upon hearing just a snippet of the song, many fans were able to guess that the male voice belonged to Joe Jonas. Cooke admitted she was “shocked” by the number of listeners who were able to guess correctly.
“They did, which shocked me because I feel like people wouldn’t typically say that I would collaborate with Joe Jonas or the Jonas Brothers, so it kind of shocked me that they got it so fast,” she shared. “But I’ll say I kind of subtly planted hints, so maybe it was one of those things that I was foreshadowing, and they just kind of got it.”
Fans hoping to catch Cooke performing “All I Forgot” live at one of her upcoming shows may have to wait a bit longer as she plans to wait to play it for the first time with Joe.
“I want the first time that I play it to be with Joe…But again, as it’s already responding so well online, if there’s more response to it, people request it constantly in the show, then I might just throw it in there because they want to hear it.”
She remained tight-lipped about when this first performance will take place, but she did hint that they have a few live appearances scheduled that they will share more about in the near future.
This release comes amid a big week for Ashley Cooke. On Feb. 19, she headlined Nashville’s Brooklyn Bowl as part of her nationwide your place Tour. Then on Feb. 21, she will celebrate the song’s release with another Nashville performance as part of CRS New Faces of Country Music Show.
Cooke has some major opportunities in store for the remainder of the year. In addition to her own headline run, she’s been tapped to tour with Cody Johnson in Australia in March, followed by dates with Kane Brown.
The post Ashley Cooke Reveals How ‘All I Forgot,’ Her Collab with Joe Jonas, Came to Life [Exclusive] appeared first on Country Now.
