Country singer Carly Pearce opened up to ET about her recent pericarditis diagnosis and how it's impacting her tour plans.
Carly Pearce is sharing a health update with her fans after recently revealing that she'd been diagnosed with a heart condition.
Pearce sat down with ET's Nischelle Turner and Rachel Smith on the balcony of the Historic Ryman Auditorium in Nashville, Tennessee, on Monday, and she opened up about her recent announcement.
"I'm OK, yeah," Pearce shared. "It was pericarditis and a pericardial effusion, which is an inflammation and fluid inside the sac of your heart. And so I'm just kinda figuring it out as I go."
According to Pearce, she felt she needed to share her own diagnosis so that it might encourage others to get checked out when they don't feel well.
"It is important to be transparent," Pearce said. "Because you never know who maybe needs to listen to their body, or maybe is going through something."
According to the Mayo Clinic, "pericarditis is swelling and irritation of the thin, saclike tissue surrounding the heart." The condition is somewhat rare, but is treatable. However, Pearce explained that caution is being taken and some changes are being made to how she performs live in the future.
Pearce is currently supporting Tim McGraw on his 2024 Standing Room Only Tour, and she's set to start headline her own tour next February. However, due to her condition, Pearce said, "I kind of have to make adjustments just because my heart rate quite literally cannot get above a certain point."
"Fans have been really nice," Pearce added. "I had my first three shows this past weekend with Tim McGraw, and they were very kind and showed me a lot of grace. So it looks a little different right now, but we're making it [happen]."
While she tours with McGraw, Pearce is also gearing up for the release of her new album, hummingbird. It's her first album since 2021's 29: Written in Stone, and Pearce said her new music really was informed by the new chapter she's in and her emotional healing.
"It's been a long time since I put a record out, you know? 29 was so successful for me, but a lot of pain went into the making of that album," said Pearce, who had gone through her divorce from ex-husband Michael Ray a year before 29 came out.
"So much life has been lived [since then] and I think I really want fans to see that you can go through really hard things and come out on the other side happy," Pearce explained. "And you don't have to have it all figured out to be happy."
As for the title, hummingbird, Pearce explained the significance and symbolism behind that particular choice.
"Hummingbirds are known to be a sign that the healing process can begin and that good luck is on the way," Pearce shared, "and I just feel like I'm in this really beautiful place where so much good luck has happened to me and I have done a lot of healing, a lot of work on myself."
Pearce's new album, hummingbird, drops June 7. Pearce is also set to perform at CMA Fest on June 9. Meanwhile, the Ryman Auditorium is hosting the 15th Annual Darius & Friends Concert benefiting St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital on Monday.
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