Brantley Gilbert went to Nashville as a songwriter, where he signed to Warner Chappell Publishing. He continued performing at local venues. In 2009, he released his debut album, A Modern Day Prodigal Son, under independent label Average Joes Entertainment. He followed with Halfway to Heaven in 2010.
In 2011, he signed with Valory Music Co., a division of Big Machine Records, who released a deluxe edition of Halfway to Heaven. The album was produced by Dann Huff. Its first two singles, "Country Must Be Country Wide" and "You Don't Know Her Like I Do", both went to #1 on the Hot Country Songs chart. After them, "Kick It in the Sticks" peaked at #34, and "More Than Miles" at #7 on Country Airplay. He won the ACM New Male Artist award in 2013.
Gilbert's second Valory album (third overall), Just as I Am, was released in May 2014. Its lead single, "Bottoms Up," also reached #1. The second single, "Small Town Throwdown," featured guest vocals from labelmates Thomas Rhett and Justin Moore. The third single, "One Hell of an Amen," became Brantley's fourth #1 hit in 2015. The album's fourth single was "Stone Cold Sober," released with the album's platinum edition.
Ahead of his fourth album, The Devil Don't Sleep, Gilbert released the single "The Weekend" as the album's leadoff single. Also included on the album is "The Ones That Like Me."
A deluxe edition of The Devil Don't Sleep includes ten bonus tracks: five demos, and five tracks cut from a live performance at the Red Rocks Amphitheatre.
In December 2018, Gilbert released a duet with Lindsay Ell, "What Happens in a Small Town", as the leadoff single to his upcoming fifth studio album, Fire & Brimstone. The album was released in October 2019. "Fire’t Up" was released as the second single off the album.
In June 2020, Gilbert released the single "Hard Days." The song was later included on a deluxe edition of Fire & Brimstone.
In June 2021, Gilbert released the single "The Worst Country Song of All Time", featuring Hardy and Toby Keith, and followed it up with the promotional single "Gone But Not Forgotten" in September 2021. In March 2022, Gilbert and Jason Aldean released another promotional single "Rolex® on a Redneck".
Gilbert released his sixth studio album So Help Me God on November 10, 2022 and announced "Heaven by Then", featuring Blake Shelton and Vince Gill, as the album's second official single.
What Happens In A Small Town
Brantley Gilbert Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
'Cause everything I pass puts you back in it
Yeah we're done, movin' on
But you can't be too far gone
'Cause what happens in a small town stays in a small town
Every back road, we've ever gone down
Friday night bleachers, Sunday pews
Every whisper, every room, I walk in
Every time the bartender fills it up again
Everybody knows why I'm here, and you ain't around
'Cause what happens in a small town, stays in a small town
Oh we said this goodbye was the last
I guess I could leave, I could run from the past
And from us and from you
But this is where I belong, this is my home too
What happens in a small town stays in a small town
Every back road, we've ever gone down
Friday night bleachers, Sunday pews
Ain't a county line mile without a memory of you
Every whisper, every room, I walk in
Every time the bartender fills it up again
Everybody knows why I'm here, and you ain't around
'Cause what happens in a small town, stays in a small town
Yeah, I'm still here, yeah
And every time I see that little white Jeep
Yeah, that hand-me-down Ford pullin' down your street
I wonder if somebody's in my seat
If you're movin' on or you're stuck like me
'Cause what happens in a small town, stays in a small town
Oh yeah
What happens in a small town stays in a small town
Every back road, we've ever gone down
Friday night bleachers, Sunday pews
Ain't a county line mile without a memory of you
Every whisper, every room, I walk in
Every time the bartender fills it up again
Everybody knows why I'm here and you ain't around
(You ain't around)
'Cause what happens in a small town, stays in a small town
It stays in a small town
It stays in a small town
And I'm still here
(Yeah, what happens in a small town)
I'm still here
(Stays in a small town)
I'm still here
Yeah I'm still here
I'm still here
The lyrics to Brantley Gilbert & Lindsay Ell's song "What Happens in a Small Town" is about the struggles of moving on from a past relationship in an environment where memories of that person are everywhere. The persona in the song is trying to move on, but every place they go to reminds them of their ex-lover. The persona realizes that even if they leave town, memories of their past relationship will still be with them. The song's driving force is the reality of living in a small town where everyone knows your business, and getting over a past relationship seems almost impossible.
The lyrics capture the essence of small-town living, where everyone knows everyone's business, and every place has a memory attached to it. The song's highlight is the chorus where the lyrics "What happens in a small town stays in a small town" repeats, emphasizing the difficulty of moving on in a place where the past keeps creeping up on you. Despite all the efforts to move on, the persona realizes that small-town memories are as much a part of their life as they are of their ex-lover.
Overall, the lyrics to "What Happens in a Small Town" are poetic and vividly describe the struggles of trying to forget a past lover in a small community.
Line by Line Meaning
I can't go for a ride to clear my head
I'm unable to go for a peaceful ride because every single thing I pass reminds me of you.
'Cause everything I pass puts you back in it
I can't get over you because everything reminds me of you.
Yeah we're done, movin' on
Our relationship is over and we're both trying to move on.
But you can't be too far gone
Even though we broke up, you're still a constant presence in my life.
'Cause what happens in a small town stays in a small town
Small towns keep secrets, so everyone knows what happened between us but it won't go beyond this town.
Every back road, we've ever gone down
Every street we've ever been on together is a constant reminder of you.
Friday night bleachers, Sunday pews
Whether it was Friday night football games or Sunday church services, every place we ever went together still haunts me.
Ain't a county line mile without a memory of you
Even miles away from this town, I can't escape the memories of you.
Every whisper, every room, I walk in
Everywhere I go, every whispered conversation or empty room only reminds me of you.
Every time the bartender fills it up again
Even a simple drink at the bar is a painful reminder of you.
Everybody knows why I'm here, and you ain't around
Everyone in this small town knows about our past, and that you're not here anymore.
'Cause what happens in a small town, stays in a small town
No matter how much I want to forget about you, this town won't let me.
Oh we said this goodbye was the last
When we broke up, we both thought it would be the final goodbye.
I guess I could leave, I could run from the past
I could try to leave this town and escape our memories, but I don't think it would work.
And from us and from you
I need to run from the pain of our past relationship and you.
But this is where I belong, this is my home too
Despite the pain, this small town is my home and where I belong.
Yeah, I'm still here, yeah
I'm still in this town, trying to move on despite the constant reminders of you.
And every time I see that little white Jeep
Seeing your car, a little white Jeep, only reminds me of you and our past.
Yeah, that hand-me-down Ford pullin' down your street
Even the sight of your family's old Ford truck driving down the street brings back memories of us.
I wonder if somebody's in my seat
I can't even go to the places we used to visit together without thinking of you.
If you're movin' on or you're stuck like me
I wonder if you're able to move on from our past or if you're stuck in this small town with me.
It stays in a small town
No matter how much time passes, our past will always stay in this small town.
I'm still here
Despite everything, I'm still living in this town and trying to move on.
Lyrics © Kobalt Music Publishing Ltd., Warner Chappell Music, Inc.
Written by: Brantley Keith Gilbert, Brock Berryhill, Josh Dunne, Rhett Akins
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
@abbyj7270
It's amazing to be a glow stick but sometimes you have to break more and more to glow brighter and brighter.
Keep glowing, HE loves us all <3
@user-lk2gk1sp9w
Could not have been said any better ❤
@canaanatkinson5576
Jesus, i am getting aged. 46 this anthem has been played in the Mid-West for Centuries. Its truly American Pride going to Sunday Afternoon church services and taking in small basket of fries with friends and talking about noting at all really. Were used to talk about our first job and how it was. Today, i have to admit it i have worked in this kind of job since i was maybe 15 or so. Times change but learning life over again is a real lesson that is learned from fathers that love their sons. What happens in a small town stays in a small town.
@Adawg.2002
We need more country songs like this
@babeljeffu6535
No, we really don't.
@christinaclos1820
Yes, we really do!@@babeljeffu6535
@matthewsheffer2671
BG literally saved my life. My ex broke up with me and I contemplated ending everything. Every country song in my playlist we used to sing together, but she wasn’t a BG fan. I listened to only BG for weeks
@weswilder858
Man I'm Glade you got through it Bro. I'm really glade that you got some help from listening to BG songs. He has some real good ones. I know how that feels Bro for someone that you really like and care for let you go. I was so sick for a while Bro. I'm thankful we Both got Through it
@bigboobie41
I know it's hard to see when it's happening to you but if you look hard enough and pay attention you'll see there ain't no girl or guy worth taking your own life for I know because I almost did the same thing over a woman and I know now that she wasn't worth it and looking back on it she wasn't worth the time and effort I put into trying to make her happy but the point is that no one is worth killing yourself over even if you think you will never heal I promise you with time and the right people in your life you can heal I'm living proof and happy for the people who are able to pull through and find a way to heal because there are so many others who lose the battle
@drewwilcox852
It's amazing what music can do man. It really does save lives.