LoCash Nearly Recorded “The House That Built Me” Before Miranda Lambert, but the Group Was Deemed Too New
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The country duo had hoped to record the song before Miranda Lambert turned it into a hit in 2010.
Miranda Lambert’s signature ballad “The House That Built Me” became one of the defining country songs of 2010, but according to LoCash, the track almost ended up in their hands instead.
Speaking on Taste of Country Nights, duo members Chris Lucas and Preston Brust revealed they had hoped to record the emotional song before Lambert. However, they said their lack of industry recognition at the time prevented them from securing it.
The pair recalled that songwriter Tom Douglas introduced them to the song by performing it on piano shortly after writing it. They immediately connected with the lyrics and knew they wanted to record it. Douglas, a longtime supporter of the duo, believed they were capable of bringing the song to life.
Lucas and Brust explained that Douglas, who co-wrote the track with Allen Shamblin, played it for them the very day it was completed. The performance left everyone in the room emotional, including the duo and their attorney.
Remembering the moment, they said Douglas told them he believed the song matched the kind of music they needed to record. Without hesitation, they agreed to take it, despite not having a record label or a release strategy in place.
Ultimately, the song was recorded by Miranda Lambert instead. Looking back, LoCash joked that hearing it on the radio still stings because they believe they lost out simply because they hadn’t yet established themselves in the country music industry.
The decision proved monumental for Lambert. “The House That Built Me” became her first No. 1 single on the Billboard Hot Country Songs chart and earned her the Grammy Award for Best Female Country Vocal Performance.
LoCash later found commercial success with their 2015 hit “I Love This Life.” The duo continued building their career and released their latest album, Bet the Farm, in 2025.
Songwriter Allen Shamblin previously shared with Billboard that the concept for “The House That Built Me” originated in 2002 before he teamed up with Tom Douglas to write it. Although the song was completed quickly, it remained unrecorded for seven years.
According to Shamblin, the writers eventually pitched the song to Blake Shelton. Shelton later played it for his then-girlfriend, Miranda Lambert, whose emotional reaction was inspired by memories of her childhood home—a place she returned to with her family after experiencing a period of homelessness. That personal connection ultimately led Lambert to record what would become one of the biggest songs of her career.