Lady Antebellum

Lady Antebellum

Lady Antebellum is an American country trio formed in Nashville, Tennessee, in 2006 by Charles Kelley, Dave Haywood and Hillary Scott. Kelley sings lead and background vocals, Haywood plays background vocals, guitar, piano and mandolin, and Scott sings lead and background vocals. The group later changes its name to Lady A in 2020.

Formation and background

Kelley moves to Nashville from Winston-Salem, North Carolina, after working construction with his brother John. He persuades his middle-school classmate Haywood to move to Nashville from Georgia so they can write songs together. Scott meets Kelley after recognising him from MySpace, and Kelley invites her to join the new group. Scott is the daughter of country singer Linda Davis, while Kelley is the brother of pop artist Josh Kelley. These family links and music-industry connections help bring the trio together.

Recording career

The trio performs in local Nashville venues before signing to Capitol Records Nashville in July 2007. Around the same time, they feature on Jim Brickman’s 2007 single Never Alone, which reaches number 14 on the Billboard adult contemporary chart. They also write a song for the MTV series The Hills.

Their debut single, Love Don’t Live Here, is released in 2007 and appears on their self-titled first album, produced by Paul Worley and Victoria Shaw. The single reaches number 3 on the Billboard Hot Country Songs chart. The album is released in 2008 and becomes the first album by a new duo or group to debut at number one on the Billboard Top Country Albums chart. A second single, Lookin’ for a Good Time, reaches number 11.

The group opens for Martina McBride on her Waking Up Laughing Tour in 2008. They also contribute I Was Here to the AT&T Team USA Soundtrack, and record a version of Baby, It’s Cold Outside, which reaches number 3 on the Bubbling Under Hot 100 chart.

Main hits and chart success

I Run to You, released in 2009, becomes their first number one single. Their second studio album, Need You Now, is led by the title track, which becomes their second number one country hit and also reaches number 2 on the Billboard Hot 100 and number one on the Hot Adult Contemporary chart, giving the group a crossover hit. Two more singles from the album, American Honey and Our Kind of Love, also reach number one on the country chart.

Need You Now debuts at number one on the Billboard 200 and Top Country Albums charts and sells 480,922 copies in its first week. The album is certified platinum four weeks after release, and the earlier debut album is also certified platinum by the RIAA in 2009.

Later activity

In 2011 the trio begins work on a third studio album and records material including Dancing Away With My Heart, which they co-write with Josh Kear. They release Just a Kiss as the first single from the album and perform it on American Idol.

The name Lady Antebellum is based on a photographic reference to antebellum houses in the American South. In 2020 the group announces that it is changing its name to Lady A because of the racist associations of the original term with Civil War history.