Carrie Underwood has found another rocker to partner with. This Friday (Aug. 2), the country singer and Papa Roach will trade lyrics on their song “Leave a Light On (Talk Away the Dark).”
The pairing promises to be more than just an unexpected partnership between one of country music’s top vocalists and the “Last Resort” hitmakers.
- “Leave the Light On” is part of Papa Roach’s “Talk Away the Dark” campaign.
- They’ve partnered with the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention for an awareness campaign.
- Earlier this year, “Scars” (with Chris Daughtry) was the latest symbol of this partnership.
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Papa Roach originally released “Leave the Light On” in 2022, and it became a No. 1 hit on the Billboard Mainstream Rock Airplay chart a year later. Response to live performances of the song compelled them to add “Talk Away the Dark” to the song title.
Additionally, they pledged that royalties from the song will be donated to AFSP in perpetuity.
“It’s not like me to worry / But when I see you fading in the dark / I’ll leave a light on for you / Through the long nights, I will be right / There for you if you drift too far / I’ll leave a light on for you,” singer Jacoby Shaddix sings.
Both Papa Roach and Underwood announced the new collaboration on Wednesday morning (July 31). When he sings it live, he often dedicates it to Chester Bennington of the band Linkin Park, who died by suicide in 2017.
“We’re continuing the mission to raise awareness for suicide prevention and the @afspnational’s Talk Away The Dark campaign, now with the incredible Carrie Underwood by our side,” a post on socials reads.
The song drops on Friday.
Underwood’s appreciation for rock music is well known, and this is hardly her first collaboration with a rocker. In 2022, she was joined by Guns ‘N Roses‘ Axl Rose on stage at Stagecoach and spent the next year performing with the group at various times.
Aerosmith‘s Steven Tyler is another rocker she’s teamed with, and her live shows often include songs by Led Zeppelin, the Rolling Stones, INXS, Joan Jett, Fleetwood Mac, etc …
Billy Dukes is a Senior Editor and Executive Producer of Video Content at Taste of Country. He specializes in country music interviews, trend analysis and the Secret History of Country Music. Additionally, Billy covers Yellowstone, 1923 and related television shows through the Dutton Rules podcast. To date, he’s written more than 13,000 articles for Taste of Country and produced over 3,000 videos for the Taste of Country YouTube channel.
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