Why Jo Dee Messina Disappeared? ‘Heads Carolina’ Singer Explains

How good is Jo Dee Messina feeling about life right now? At one point during her conversation with Taste of Country she took off her jacket and flexed, and you know what … she earned that flex.

The ’90s and early 2000s hitmaker kind of disappeared for a decade until Cole Swindell reminded everyone how great songs like “Heads Carolina, Tails California” were. Messina did a little press in support of “She Had Me at Heads Carolina,” but hardly took advantage of the moment.

That’s changing in 2026. Her new album Bridges will arrive this summer and Messina was bursting to talk about it while visiting with Evan Paul from Taste of Country Nights.

Related: What Life Was Like for Country Fans In the ’90s

Each song is deeply personal but still accessible to longtime fans of hers and country music. “Some Bridges” is an instant signature track built around the ultimate redemption lyric.

“Some bridges are meant to build but some bridges are meant to burn,” she sings with more than a little fire.

The “Lesson In Leavin'” singer’s energy is contagious throughout her conversation with TOC (find bonus clips at the audio-only version of the podcast on Apple, Spotify or wherever you listen). Without a doubt that’s in part because of a significant lifestyle change.

“The only problem I know about Carrie Underwood is she likes leg day. We couldn’t get along, not at a workout, that’s for sure.”

To start the year, Messina shared a time-lapse video of her workouts that spotlights weight loss and muscle tone. OG fans will likely remember this version of the singer and she’s back. It’s a lot of fun to be experience.

 

Taste of Country: What changed in your life that allowed you to make this album?

Jo Dee Messina: Well, I think my kids are a little older so I can work more at home. I was very into my kids’ lives. Not, you know, helicopter parent, but I volunteer at school and I help with their homework and I don’t leave my kids home alone and because I have two boys and that just leads to troubles.

So I have the time to do it. I have just the want, really. You know, as I was writing more, people are like, “Man, you should put this on a record.” And it’s like, “Oh, all right.”

Did self-doubt creep in at any time in making this new record? Like, do people still want hear me?

Oh yeah, every day. Every day. That’s why I’m kind of blown away when — I just got a text from someone at Universal and they asked me to do something and like, “we’re so excited for this season.” And I was like, really? I was like, “I didn’t know you knew I existed.” And there’s a couple other things that have been going on where I just was brought to tears because I was like, oh, well, I just feel invisible cuz I’m home and I’m doing laundry most every day.

Everyday.

Again, I have two boys and two dogs, so I’m constantly doing laundry. As a matter of fact, I remember my son about five years ago walked into the laundry room and he knows that I love natural lighting. And there’s one little window in the laundry room and he’s like, “Mom, I wish there were more windows in here.”

And I was like, “Why, babe?” And he’s like, “Well, you just spend so much time in here. It would be nice if you had all those windows.”

Does “Can Anybody” address that?

No, it does not. So I do a lot of work with young adults and teenagers, and I live in this city where, you know, it’s— we’re surrounded by the music industry. There are a lot of people that feel like they don’t matter and they feel like their life doesn’t count. And there’s been, you know, a few people that have taken their own lives in the past year or so where they just feel invisible. And so I called it, when I wrote it, I said it’s the teenager’s lament.

The song is, “Can anybody see me? Can anybody find me? Can anybody tell I’m not this strong? Does anybody need me? Do they even know I’m hiding? Can anybody feel me hanging on? Can anybody?”

Is your goal for this album the same as previous albums?

Well … I didn’t know anybody who wanted to hear new music. So I spent the last year writing, writing about things that I’ve learned over the last 10 years, some wisdom that I’ve gathered over the last 10 years. Situations, specific situations, broad situations, different outlooks on the world.

We have a song called “Don’t Let ‘Em Hide Your Beautiful,” which I believe is the second single. And that one is just about all the pressure around what people expect of you, people’s expectations. And so the song itself is like, don’t let ’em hide your beautiful. And I actually wrote it about an artist friend of mine who was really getting grilled about, don’t do this, don’t do that. You gotta look this way, you gotta dress that way, you gotta be at this place, you gotta do that. And she’s like, I just can’t do anything right. And I was like, whatever you do, don’t let ’em hide your beautiful.

Who?

You know, I’m not telling you who it is.

A new artist?

No, kind of established. Kind of new. Kind of established.

If I guessed it, would you tell me?

No.

All right, I won’t guess it. What’s the most personal song that’s going to be on the record?

Oh, there’s a bunch of them. A song called “Welcome to the Show.” It’s got all these metaphors, like back to back, like lining it up with a circus. It talks about meeting the new source of a narcissistic ex. And it’s like, I’ve been to that show. I’ve seen that show. You know, I know where you’re going. I know where all the secrets hide. Be careful and welcome to the show.

And finally, we have to know, is your give-a-damn still busted?

(laughs) It all depends on the situation. All depends on the situation.