Charlie Rogers takes a moment to strip down his song “When He Was Me.” The song, written by Benjy Davis and Dan + Shay’s Shay Mooney, finds new vitality underneath an acoustic light. A pitter-patter of light percussion is the heartbeat – with piano, gentle guitar, and echoing background vocals accompanying him. “Guess when I lost her, I lost myself,” he aches.

Drummer Lester Estelle Jr., known for working with Kelly Clarkson, lends his talents, dousing the song in an undeniable yearning. Credit also goes to producer Joshua Gleave (Chris Young, The Swon Brothers) for boosting the song’s emotional weight, allowing it to heave and sigh alongside Rogers’ sterling vocal performance. He plants his feet amidst a flurry of heartache and lets every ounce of pain seep from his pores.

“When he was me, he’d be buying flowers, not another drink,” he sings, the rawness of his voice on full display. “Leaving this place early just so he could sleep with her in that t-shirt / Not just in his dreams / He’d be a fool to leave…”

When Rogers first heard the song, it was immediate. He just knew he had to cut it. “I remember vividly the moment that I first heard it and the feeling of being enraptured by this song that so eloquently drew up so many poignant pictures of love lost from my own past,” Rogers shares. “I think that Davis and Mooney really captured the spirit and the remorse of living with a broken heart that still hasn’t fully mended and being forced to live with the would’ve, could’ve, should’ve’s of losing your person and feeling like you’ve let your one chance at real love slip through your hands.”

Listen to the acoustic version of “When He Was Me” below.

“When He Was Me” (acoustic) follows last year’s viral hit “Just Another Late Night,” which has scooped up over 100,000 Spotify streams. Oregon-born and Kansas-raise, Rogers has opened for the likes of Brothers Osborne and Russell Dickerson and played CMA honors ceremonies for Charley Pride and Ricky Skaggs.

If “When He Was Me” is any indication, Charlie Rogers is poised for superstar things.