I’ve been “thinking about cheating” isn’t your typical conversation in a marriage. It certainly isn’t an everyday hook for a song either. But for country singer/songwriter, Mae Estes, the topic came up naturally with her husband of two years, Chad Runyan.
Although, it’s not what you think.
“We were in the heat of talking about how we wanted our marriage to be, our commitment to each other and I said, ‘well you don’t have to worry about me cheating on you,” she told Celeb Secrets Country reporter Blakely McHugh backstage at the 2022 CMA Music Festival last month.
She added, “‘If I ever feel the need to cheat, I’m going to have to have that conversation with you and say clearly something is missing.’”
If there’s one thing to know about Estes, she tells it like it is. There’s no holding back with her.
So when it came to this topic, which is usually an uncomfortable one, she dove in head first turning it into a song.
“It was easy to write,” she revealed. “I pitched the idea [saying] ‘I was having this conversation… in the moment and [the team was] willing to jump on and we just rolled with it.”
From there, “Thinkin Bout Cheatin‘” was created.
In the music video, Mae Estes and her husband sit down to have a conversation. She shares with her partner that she’s missing something from her marriage and she’s, you guessed it, thinking about cheating.
Fun fact – the man in the music video is her actual husband in real life.
“It was cool to get to do it together. We’re both not good on camera… so that definitely added a comfortable aspect for both of us.”
The Arkansas native knows she’s found a “rare breed.” From day one, he’s supported her music no matter the topic.
“I’m sure it’s rare for women to sing about cheating on their husband and their husband being willing to sit in a video and let you sing it to him,” she laughs.
She definitely struck gold there.
You know where she also struck gold? Writing a song that would make people talk.
Estes knew that the song had a controversial element to it, and it could be received in one of two ways – negatively or positively.
Either is fine by her though as long as people are listening to the music.
“If someone is annoyed by it and sends it to a stranger who’s never heard it, that’s fine. Whatever gets it to the most country music listeners, that’s totally the goal.”
For her latest single, she stepped away from the “two step traditional” country of “Thinkin’ Bout Cheatin’” and went with a more “upbeat summer vibe” for “I Quit Smoking.”
Unlike the title suggests, Estes isn’t talking about tobacco, or weed, or anything else you can smoke, she’s talking about the “B.S.”
“Once you get to a certain age in maturity, you just don’t put up with B.S. anymore,” she said. “You realize how precious life is, how valuable your time and energy is, and you just don’t put it into people who aren’t giving back what you’re putting into them.”
Let us know what you think of “I Quit Smokin'” by either leaving a reaction at the bottom of the post or by sending us a tweet at @CS_Country.
For more CMA Fest coverage, click here.
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