Colbie Caillat lives right down the street from Sheryl Crow.
“I always ask her for advice,” Caillat, 38, tells PEOPLE in a recent interview about the fellow Grammy-winning singer/songwriter. “We talk about life, and she lets me know where she is and her life wisdom, and in doing so, makes me feel better about the places I’m at.”
Caillat pauses for a moment to let the circumstances running through her head remain unspoken.
“Sometimes you feel like you’re going to be in a different place in life at a certain time, and that’s not always the case,” continues Caillat, who moved to Nashville seven years ago. “Sheryl is always just giving me tips and tools to keep it going.”
Colbie Caillat.
Patrick Tracy
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And while the two singer/songwriters have certainly struck up a personal bond, they’ve now also continued their already successful professional relationship, with Crow appearing on Caillat’s brand new album Through.
“I’ve been a fan of Sheryl my whole life and toured with her about 10 years ago, which was the ultimate honor,” explains Caillat, whose acoustic music video for her reimagined platinum hit “Try” is premiering exclusively on PEOPLE. “And now to call her a friend and sing a song with her?”
What makes Caillat’s current situation even more surreal is the fact that she recorded the rousing “I’ll Be Here” with Crow in her own home studio, located just 10 minutes outside of Nashville.
“It was a moment for me,” Caillat recalls of recording the song, which she co-wrote with Brett James, Jason Reeves and Kenny Edmonds. “Sheryl’s vocals are so soothing and so nostalgic. It was so perfect for this song and it’s just so raw and down to earth and real. No decorations. That’s who she is in the most beautiful way.”
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Colbie Caillat.
Patrick Tracy
To be sure, Caillat herself has also radiated her share of sunshine both personally and professionally via hit songs like “Bubbly,” “Realize,” and “Lucky,” her Grammy-winning duet with Jason Mraz.
“I like to write [songs] in an optimistic way,” explains Caillat. “I think anything that can help you through hard times is a good thing.”
Indeed, Caillat’s debut country album Through is the one that comes after a broken heart. “This is an album with more love and gratitude for the breakup,” laughs Caillat. “Some of the songs [on this album] I felt sad in a way, but I also felt like I learned so much from those relationships that I really wanted to share.”
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And sharing those songs seemed easier from a new angle.
“I didn’t purposely say, ‘I have to write in a different format,'” Caillat says of her turn to country music. “I just felt that I was writing from this new mindset of these life experiences. I also wanted to touch on the fact that it’s okay to be lost. it’s normal. I think we are used to thinking that everything is a fairy tale and that everything is permanent.”
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Colbie Caillat.
Patrick Tracy
Indeed, Caillat found herself wondering what’s next after a recent relationship failed, leaving her to write songs like “Meant for Me.”
“The people in your life can be meant for you for a while, and that’s okay,” Caillat says of the emotional backbone of the song she co-wrote with AJ Pruis and Liz Rose. “I’m in that state of mind where I realize things come and go and I’m going to deal with it.”
Admittedly, there is a tinge of anger in certain parts Throughespecially in the opening line of the song “Still Gonna Miss You.”
“That’s me being a little prick,” Caillat smiles of the song she co-wrote with fellow songwriter Jason Reeves.
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But for Caillat, time has healed the wounds. Where she is today is perhaps best heard on the album’s opening track, “Wide Open.”
“You can feel the heartbreak and the loss, and I think you can be content where you’re alone,” Caillat says of the song, which she co-wrote with Alyssa Vanderhey and Jordyn Shellhart. “I also think you can hope for what’s to come.”
She pauses. “I see a lot of people say, ‘I’m going to do this’ or ‘I’m going to have kids at this age,’ and you just realize that’s not always the case. Life might have a different plan for you.”
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Source: HIS Education