Ashley McBryde Discusses Drinking and Writing With ‘Brilliant’ Miranda Lambert,

Ashley McBryde is already getting plenty of attention for her songwriting, both from her fans and from fellow artists. After initially meeting Miranda Lambert‘s mother, Bev Lambert, when McBryde adopted a dog from Lambert’s MuttNation Foundation, McBryde met the “Tin Man” singer, which led Lambert inviting McBryde out on the road to write together.

“She’s just brilliant,” McBryde tells Taste of Country, adding that they were drinking “a little, but not enough to hurt anything.”

“Cigarettes were sometimes involved,” she continued. “That’s a really bad idea … don’t ever do it, kids.”

McBryde also opened a few shows for Lambert, where her fondness for the reigning ACM Awards Female Vocalist of the Year only grew.

“I did three dates with Miranda,” McBryde says. “Talk about a class act … I knew that I would really enjoy the show, of course, and that she and crew would be really awesome. She’s so kind and so generous. We had gifts in our green room, waiting on us. She bought me a dinosaur onesie. Who does that? It’s amazing.”

Lambert, who also bought fellow opener Jon Pardi a teddy bear onesie, continued to shower gifts on the “A Little Dive Bar in Dahlonega” singer.

“She got me flowers one night, and a 12-pack of beer,” boasts McBryde. “She’s just a class act in every way. Besides the fact that she’s an amazing songwriter and an amazing entertainer, she’s really, really good to her openers.”

McBryde, whose debut Girl Goin’ Nowhere album was just released, is currently opening for Luke Combs on his Don’t Tempt Me With a Good Time Tour, and will then headline her own shows, where she looks forward to interacting with her openers as well.

“We will have the opportunity to work with some opening acts and be as kind to them as Miranda [Lambert] and Luke [Bryan] and Jon Pardi have been to us,” McBryde tells Billboard. “The first person over the wall gets to reach over and grab the next person, so I can’t wait to do some headlining stuff and be really kind to openers the way they have been to us.”

The Arkansas native feels fortunate to be part of the movement to bring women back to radio, much like they were two decades ago.

“I was lucky to grow up in the ’90s, when we had just as many strong female artists as male artists,” McBryde adds. “That’s a world I would like to live in again. There’s this whole new class of chicks on their way that are just powerhouses. We’re pulling up extra seats at the table, and if you don’t want to sit by me — move down.”

Girl Goin’ Nowhere is available for purchase on Amazon and iTunes. A list of all of McBryde’s upcoming shows can be found on her website.

Photo Credit: EB Media/John Peets