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Jessica Simpson has been open about her sobriety journey over the years, and now she's explaining how giving up alcohol helped her overcome her songwriting fears.
During an interview with The Cut alongside her sister Ashlee Simpson, the Dukes of Hazzard star, who has been sober since 2017, explained how drinking made her overthink when trying to write clever music. She recalled writing with "some of the biggest hitmakers" in 2016 and 2017 that ultimately led to songs she didn't share with the public, per People.
"I have songs from those times that I never released because they just didn't feel like me. Every time I would write, I was a little afraid of myself. It was almost too much, especially because I was drinking at the time," she said, adding that getting sober made it easier for her to "access [herself] artistically." "But once I gave up the alcohol, the fears just diminished. They went away."
Simpson is preparing to release a new EP next month titled Nashville Canyon Part 1, her first new music since 2008's Do You Know, with the first single "Use My Heart Against Me" out February 21. She previously shared how getting back into the studio helped her learn to heal from heartache as she navigates her split from estranged husband Eric Johnson after 10 years of marriage.
Nashville Canyon Part 1 drops March 21.