Advertisement

Colbie Caillat Announces She's Leaving Her Band Gone West: 'This Was Not an Easy Decision'

John Shearer/WireImage

Colbie Caillat is saying goodbye to Gone West.

On Wednesday, the singer, 35, announced on social media that she's decided to leave the country quartet, which was formed in 2018, alongside ex-fiancé Justin Young. The other two members are married pair Jason Reeves and Nelly Joy.

"After a lot of thought during this time, Justin and I have decided to leave Gone West. Creative partnerships, especially with friends, are both rewarding and challenging at times, and though this was not an easy decision, we know ending the band was the right one," Caillat writes. "Justin and I are best friends, and will continue to make music together forever."

Adds the singer, "We're so proud of the music the four of us created together over the past three years. Canyons is an album we truly love and cherish, every song holds so much truth in the experiences we all go through in life. I want to thank all of my fans and all of Gone West's fans for supporting our music, coming to our shows and everything in between."

Caillat concludes the post with, "I also want to thank country radio, JR & Sirius XM, Triple Tigers and our entire team's hard work and creativity, and for believing in us and helping our music get out into the world. Thank you all. Here's to whatever comes next ..."

The announcement comes four months after Caillat and Young — who had been engaged for nearly five years and dated for over a decade — revealed that they had split.

Colbie Caillat/instagram Colbie Caillat and Justin Young

"This is difficult for us to share, but we want to be honest with you all. After 10 wonderful years, Justin and I have ended our relationship. We started out as best friends and we will continue to be best friends. And we will continue to work and make music together, as we always have," Caillat wrote on Instagram April 2.

"It will be hard, but oftentimes the hard choice is the right choice and the path that will allow each of us to move forward and to grow," she continued. "We continue to be overwhelmed with gratitude for our love and time together."

Young, 41, shared the same statement, which he wrote to be addressed from him and with Caillat’s name substituted.

Shortly after announcing their breakup, Caillat told PEOPLE that although she and Young were "going through the sadness of ending what we had," they "still get to work together every day, and we're still best friends."

"I know we're going to have challenging times," she said. "But I think people around us feel like it's going to be harder for us than we actually feel like it currently is."

"Because we have that established, you know we've been friends honestly for 14 years — that's what we knew, that’s what we knew is working together," she continued. "So we’re both so grateful that we have this kind of love for each other that we do."

RELATED: Gone West's Colbie Caillat and Justin Young Split, End Engagement After 10 Years Together

Patrick Tracy Justin Young, Nelly Joy, Colbie Caillat and Jason Reeves

Back in April, Caillat also said she and Young were social distancing together in Nashville amid the coronavirus pandemic.

"We're in a really pretty neighborhood, so we feel lucky that we get to take these walks outside every day for health and sanity and not be worrying that we're going to be bumping into people," she said. "We're just trying to find that balance of resting and resetting but also being productive for when this is all over, we're prepared."

Gone West released their debut album, Canyons, in June after two years as a band and more than a decade of friendship.

"We've been friends for so many years, and we've worked together for so many years," Caillat told PEOPLE in 2019. "The progression of this band came out naturally and when it comes to writing the songs and producing these songs, we all have a certain vision in mind for how we want it to turn out."

“So we all keep each other on track, and we all have the same goals with it," she added. "If one of us wasn't in the band, the songs would not sound the way they are. We feel grateful that we have those years of experience and bonding together and now we all get to equally create these songs together."

Gone West's summer and fall tour dates have been canceled due to the pandemic.