‘I Was Gonna Be’: A Voice for the Voiceless

Country musician Rachel Holt’s pro-life ballad gives a voice to pre-born children.
‘I Was Gonna Be’: A Voice for the Voiceless
The rising country singer Rachel Holt signed with Baste Record in Dec. 2023. Courtesy of Baste Records
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After signing with Nashville label Baste Records in December 2023, country music newcomer Rachel Holt was tasked with picking her debut single. Management never guessed she would pick an anthem about the sanctity of life for her initial release. Many see this as an impactful artistic statement that deserves the limelight.

As Holt experiences her first taste of fame with “I Was Gonna Be,” the song’s writer, Chris Wallin, is happy that a song with such an important message is getting the attention it deserves.

Writing From the Heart

After Wallin sat down to write a song about babies whose lives are tragically cut short by abortion, he never thought it would see the light of day. When Breitbart News asked about his reasoning for penning the tune, he said, “I wrote it because I thought something had to be said.”

As the head of Baste Records’ Artists and Repertoire (A&R) department, Wallin knows which songs are ripe for the picking and which aren’t. During his tenure as an in-demand country music songwriter, he’s written for musicians like Garth Brooks, Toby Keith, Kenny Chesney, and Trace Adkins. Because of the traditional stance of his pro-life song, “he had no major commercial expectations” when he began penning it. Freedom from commercial implications allowed him to write completely from the heart.

But Holt had other plans. When it came time to record songs for her debut album, “Missin’ Home” (released in January 2024), not only did she choose “I Was Gonna Be” as one of the record’s featured songs, but she also chose it as the debut single.

Told from the perspective of an aborted baby, the lyrics create an emotional experience for the listener:

Some don’t believe I’m a living soul Just a bad mistake that needs to go If my mama coulda just seen my face Maybe she woulda had me anyway. 

The closing lines of the song’s chorus—“I was gonna change the world/ I was gonna be a girl”—are especially moving. According to The Heritage Foundation, studies show that pregnancies involving girls are terminated at a higher rate than boys. These procedures are known as “sex-selective abortions.”
The gravity of the song, which Wallin wrote in order for “people to hear the voice of the voiceless,” stays with you even after the gentle ballad is over.

A Belief in the Sanctity of Life

Rachel Holt fearlessly chose "I Was Gonna Be" as her debut single knowing she would face adversity for the pro-life song. (Courtesy of Baste Records)
Rachel Holt fearlessly chose "I Was Gonna Be" as her debut single knowing she would face adversity for the pro-life song. Courtesy of Baste Records

Baste Records, which sees itself as the premier counterculture music company, began looking for a sponsor after Holt chose “I Was Gonna Be” as her debut single. Sponsorship opportunities act as a two-way street. Companies can finance music they believe in, which echoes their own beliefs and ideals, and the artist and label that receive the sponsorship get advanced funding for recording and distributing the music.

For Patriot Mobile, America’s only Christian wireless provider, Holt’s forthcoming single spoke to their executives. The company commented on Holt’s bravery in a statement, saying that the teenage artist “fearlessly took on the project even after being warned how she would be attacked for it.”

Patriot Mobile’s CEO Glenn Story spoke about why his company was so passionate about getting involved with the single:

“We got a call about this pro-life song needing a promotional sponsor and it aligned perfectly with our beliefs about the sanctity of life. It’s really a beautiful song.” The company believes the arts need to promote more traditional beliefs.

When asked about the opportunity that Patriot Mobile gave Holt by sponsoring the track, she graciously replied, “They stepped up in a big way and made this release possible.”

National Celebrate Life Weekend

Baste Records debuted “I Was Gonna Be” on June 21, 2024—the first day of National Celebrate Life Weekend. The event is a multiday, pro-life conference that meets yearly to commemorate the Supreme Court’s overturning of Roe v. Wade in 2022. According to the conference website, the event also meets “to celebrate the heroes of the pro-life movement.”

After the single’s release, it immediately began climbing the charts. Within days, it reached the No. 5 spot overall on the iTunes country songs chart. It also soared all the way to No. 1 on the iTunes Top 40 chart for country music videos.

At just 18 years old, Holt already has her first hit.

With her debut hit single, she hasn’t just given a voice to the voiceless. As “I Was Gonna Be” continues to resonate with country music fans, and fans of other genres, she has taken this far-too-often ignored voice and bravely amplified it.

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Rebecca Day
Rebecca Day
Author
Rebecca Day is an independent musician, freelance writer, and frontwoman of country group, The Crazy Daysies.