Sunday Sitdown with Willie Geist - Lady Antebellum

Episode Date: July 15, 2018

Lady Antebellum, the trio of Hillary Scott, Charles Kelley and Dave Haywood, is famous for its pitch-perfect harmony, which began when they met in a Nashville bar 12 years ago. In this week’s “Sunday Sitdown,” Willie Geist got together with the band to talk about that first meeting, the Grammy-winning song that changed their career, and how they manage to stick together after all these years. Plus the band took Willie on a tour of their rehearsal space as they get ready to head out on the “Summer Plays On” tour with Darius Rucker. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

Hey guys, Willie Geist back with you for another edition of the Sunday Sit Down podcast. Thanks so much for clicking and listening along with us. This week my guests are Hillary Scott, Charles Kelly, and David Haywood. Together they make up the country band Lady Antebellum, or Lady A, as their fans call them. I call them a country band and they are that, but they're bigger than that. They're a crossover band. Their hit Need You Now went all the way to number two in 2010 on the Billboard Hot 100. That made them pop stars, won them five Grammys off that album.

album, the album went platinum, and the rest is music history. They're now back out on tour going out this week with Darius Rucker and the Summer Plays on tour. They invited me down to Nashville. It was cool as they got ready in the final days of preparation for the tour. We sat down, you'll hear the first part of our interview, and then we moved into the rehearsal space, which was a giant airplane hanger-sized space where they set up the full rig for the show that's going to be on tour through arenas and theaters and amphitheaters. across the country. The big stage, the video monitor, all the lighting, everything you'd see at a concert was set up in this big room, a hot night in Nashville with no air conditioning. So they have these

giant industrial size, bigger than Beyonce fans. That's how big blowing in there as they ran through a set. And they gave us about three songs to listen to. So I think you'll like these guys. If you're not a fan of their music or you don't know much about them, they're totally likable. They've got young kids. They talk about how it's a little different now, being rock stars early on, and now they're going out on tour with pack and plays and diaper changing tables and all the rest of it. So I hope you enjoy the conversation with the big Grammy-winning band, Lady Antebellum right here on the Sunday Sit Down podcast. Thanks for doing this, guys. Appreciate it. So next week in about nine days by my math, you'll be on stage in Toronto launching a tour. What's the feeling in like

the week leading up to the tour? I mean, anticipation. I think, you know, we all are just so excited to get back out on the stage and to be on tour with Darius. It'll just be a really fun experience. I know I'm kind of wearing a lot of hats right now with newborns at home, so it's a lot of packing, like, lists, checklist, because we'll all be going together. But I'm excited. It's going to feel good to be up on stage together again. It's definitely going to be the most collaborative tour that we've ever had because it's kind of like, you know, a co-eastern.

headlining thing you know what so Derek will have first Russell Dickerson that'll go out there and he's you know really killing it right now newcomer on the scene and then Darius will play and then we'll play and there might be some little interaction there too but then at the end man we're just going to have an all-out you know just jam session you're not going to want to leave out yeah big long encore moment so it's it's really fun I mean I think we're finally did some radio interviews this morning and it was just talking a lot of the stations and I think we're finally at that's that spot you know, 10 years later, where we finally have an hour and a half to two hours worth of songs that the audience knows, you know.

And so, you know, you're not giving them too much time to, you know, go have a pee break or anything. It's like you better stay. Does it feel like going home again to be up on the stage on tour? Are there any nerves going into it? I mean, this whole setup back here, even being backstage, I mean, this is our recording rig and we're rehearsing, you know, over these last few weeks here. It just feels like stepping back into what we know and what we love.

I think we always get a little nervous. I think whenever we lose getting nervous, then maybe we should stop because it's fun to have a little, you know, healthy nerves and a little anxiety going in, making sure everything's going right, especially the first night. We'll be up in Toronto and making sure everything kind of goes as seamless as possible. But either way, I mean, this is what we live for, you know, I mean, being up there, you look good as a real fun song now on the show and heartbreak, some of the new stuff's fun. And, you know, it's, I don't know, like Charles said, it's fun to be in this,

position where you recognize that people are coming for your whole catalog. And a lot of our early stuff, I run to you, Nijun Now, Just a Kiss, American Honey. So it's fun to have a body of work to get to showcase now. Yeah. In Toronto, to kick it off is one of our favorite cities to play. We shot the video for Niji Now in Toronto. Canada's been really good to us. Ever since we, yeah, kind of after the first couple of years, I know we got to open up for

like Keith Urban up there and it just, I don't know, they've just been with us through the whole thing. And so it really is one of our best. market so we're excited. Hillary you're not going to have your drummer though. He'll be backstage. He will be yeah okay just not on stage we couldn't he oh we we just had to kind of make that executive decision and it was a hard one to make but it's been so people know her husband was our drummer yes he was for seven years Chris and he is now going to be just already is an incredible dad at home with my daughters and and so they're

going to meet us in Cleveland actually the second show of the tour and when he comes out we have a free trainer. That's right. Yeah. He's kind of channeling all that now into like and if our new drummer gets injured we have a backup. There you go. That's actually good. Out of all of the instruments it's probably the most dangerous so that's good to have a backup. And a good backup drummer by the way. Pretty good one. So you all now have young children. You just and your wife just had a child as well. You've got a young boy who's running out here somewhere. We may throw them on camera. We'll say you may run through here. Who knows? For sure.

How different is the backstage experience on a tour right now that it was when you started out eight, ten years ago? On stage is still the same. You know, we love it and do it, but backstage is a completely different world. You know, kids running around, like Hillary said, a lot of packing, the number of devices and pack and plays and toys and portable pools and floats and just sprinklers to play in throughout the day. I mean, it's really just the bays of the bus are filled with like kids stuff now.

So it's funny though, but you know, we love it. I mean, for all of us, have gone through pretty much the majority of our lives and these life moments together. We all started single, and so we've watched each other get married, start families, and grow, and go through our ups and downs. And it's kind of a beautiful family to watch the Lady A circus continue to evolve. Like rock and roll and pack and play. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah.

Just the way love the crew is. Yeah. It really is weird, though. It's a head trip to, like, you know, give your kid a, you know, a bath and then like, all right, it's like, all right, buddy. put them to bed and get on your skinny jeans. Daddy's about to go, yeah, they are pretty skinny. You're like, dad's about to go, you know, perform them. And you like have to flip that switch, go and get you a little drink and hang out with the guys.

You're like, all right, now I'm back. I'm ready. I love walking off stage, like going, being able to do that, do the bedtime routine, let him go down for the night, go play the, you know, an incredible show with my best friends, have a blast, and then you get back on the bus and I get to look at that monitor at their little squishy face and I'm like, oh, I get to kiss them in the morning. It's amazing, you know. It's really...

At five in the morning. At five in the morning. Right. But it really is... I mean, we're so unbelievably grateful to be able to have the means to bring our families with us. We really try not to take that for granted because there's so many people who aren't in that position who, you know, they have to kiss them by and be gone for several days, weeks

at a time. And we're very, very grateful to be able to have them with us. Now, a skeptic might say for you two guys that you just booked a three-month golf tour with Darry's Rock. Is there anything to that? That just want to play golf with Darriott. That literally has been, Darius that I just played literally three days ago.

And I did take some money from him. Did you? Nice. He ended up beating me, but you know how sometimes I was strategic betting, I picked the right holes. But he didn't have a better score than me. He'll probably point that out if you ever call him out on it. But it is funny.

He has looked at the thing, and he's got every contact, because he's been torn in his, you know, for a long, long time. And he and, you know, who he then, Boe Fish played a lot of golf in the road. So he literally has a contact in every town. And like crazy good golf courses too. You know, you'd be somewhere he's like,

yeah, we got Oakmont set up, and then we'll go over somewhere else and we'll play, you know, Chinnecock, you're like, I'm so glad we're friends. So glad I'm friends with dairy truck. So it is, it is gonna be fun. But again, like the family, you know, now having the kids, though, you gotta balance that.

I used to be way more selfish with my time. And we still try to write a lot of songs in the road. You know, there's our writing rig right there. But again, though, I mean, you do have to balance it out a little bit more. And can't be quite as selfish out there as they used to be. The two of you grew up in Augusta, so you have to play golf, I think, by definition, right? Yeah.

Do you remember meeting each other for the first time? It was in middle school. It was in middle school. I remember the meeting, but I remember Charles, gosh, he was like the tall center on the basketball team in sixth or seventh grade. It was horrible. He was pretty bad. I love how he says tall center, and then everybody was like, oh, yeah. of course, six, six, but I wrote the band.

He had a, we all had like a garage band. He had a band, we had a band, and his would play the dance, and we'd play coffee shops, you know. So we always knew each other and had so many mutual friends and became really close in college at University of Georgia and started writing songs together at UGA. And then Charles moved to Nashville after we worked a little bit after college and said, man, you've got to get up here and try this.

Everybody here has that creative part. of their brain like he's like I feel like we share and we came here and wanted just to write songs and then insert Hillary and you know kind of the rest is history after that so the two of you are already working together yeah how do you track down Hillary over him down yeah kind of random yeah we so I found that was back when my space was like where you discovered new music rest in peace I know right people most people won't know what that is now I love it um but you know like Taylor Swift got discovered on MySpace, Colby Colay. There's a lot of people who had a lot of great success with it.

And I found Charles' music on MySpace through his brother Josh, who's also an artist and songwriter. And then fast forward, you know, a couple weeks. We're at this bar, downtown Nashville music venue called Twelfth and Porter. And I spot him kind of across the room. And I'm like, I think that's that guy that I listened to his music. Well, I was like, checking my email, you know. And she walks up.

out yeah you know and I was like wow this girl was this beautiful girl walking up to me and she's like I've heard your music I really like him wow I got a fan I mean I probably only had a hundred followers at this time and you know she was a fan of my brothers and so it just kind of like clicked and it was a classic Nashville pickup line it's like we should get together and write some songs a week later you know we did we actually the other night went over to a friend's new place and when we were heading to his house it was literally you had to drive by the neighborhood that that old house was that my brother had. So long story short, my brother moved to Nashville from L.A. and was, you know, kind of wanting to immerse himself

in the Nashville scene. This was back in 2005. And so I moved, I ended up quitting my job. I just graduated college and had a job for a while, and I moved to Nashville. And I didn't really know anybody. So he would leave for a long time and go tour. And I was like, kind of didn't know what to do. And so that was kind of when I called Dave up to start coming over and writing. Lonely. Come out here. I was like he was working in Atlanta. So eventually he quit his job and committed to doing this. And then we met Hillary.

And literally she came over to that house and we sat down at the piano. And there was a song that Dave and I had been kind of struggling with finishing for a long time. And within five minutes, she like literally we had the whole chorus. And she just like poured out the next line after the next line. And it was like, okay, I don't know what this is. I don't know. We don't know if we're writing for her career or our career or what. But this is something.

And I think maybe after what, two or three months later, we decided to do a group. Yeah, we had about 10 or 12 songs and kind of had an, I mean, again, we were like, maybe we should just do like a side project band trio thing. And it was really just on a whim. We decided to go play a show and hardly nobody showed up. But, you know, we played 10 or 12 songs. We had written. And that was our first show.

Our first song we played was Love Don't Live Here, which ended up being our first single. A couple weeks later, we went back to that same music venue and a few more people showed up. And before we knew it, we had, you know, label executives in A&R and head of labels coming to the show. And, you know, we started, the first show we ever played was August of 2006. And June of the following year, we were signing our name on the dotted line of a deal. So it really all fell into place so fast. And but it just, it was meant to be. It was truly fate that we all came together and just creatively clicked.

And honestly, are still clicking. having such a great time. I think we're more aware of that. When I look back, you know, I mean, I've really gotten in touch with, like, my fate a lot more recently. I think having a kid does that a lot. That's one reason I got this butterfly. But I started really looking back at that.

I'm like, all those pieces, I mean, that was like divine intervention, you know. And, you know, you've got to believe something was a part of putting that together because it's changed all of our lives. I mean, I literally could have. If one piece wasn't there. Shown up 10 minutes later to the bar. Right. And we would have never.

You know, it's just, it's truly that kind of serendipitous, just the plan. And we might not be splitting money three ways, definitely. We could have been splitting it two ways. I was interested to read that you said, Hillary, that you couldn't pay me to be a solo act. In other words, you couldn't imagine yourself without these two guys. Was it always that way, or did you feel like I'm going to be a solo artist? I, well, I initially, you know, was working on a career from the time I was 16 here in Nashville, because I'm born and raised here.

and sort of writing. I mean, a funny story is instead of going to the beach on my senior year spring break of high school, I stayed here in Nashville and wrote songs. I was pursuing that. You could have met me down there. That could have been another moment.

Then it would have never worked. But really, I thought that that was kind of the path that I was on as a solo artist. But I had a development deal here in town showcased for that label. They passed, and that was in March of O-Santis. and then literally two months later I meet Charles and Dave and I'm just such they can say this about me I'm such a relational person I love enjoying life with

others it's not it and now looking back after this journey that we've been on it would have been such a lonely trip I mean yes you have the people along the way but they're I mean they're truly my brothers my best friends like the music would have never been what this is what we have built as Lady Annabelle and what we've created together. And so, yeah, I just, I would have been a really lonely, sad person. Really, really. It seems to me it happens so fast for you guys too,

because a lot of bands or artists struggle for a few years through Nashville. And my gosh, your first album eventually went platinum. You're nominated for a Grammy. What was happening in your life at that time? Because you're fresh off kind of just meeting each other, and now you're getting nominated for a Grammy. Yeah, I mean, we were holding on for dear life.

I feel like those first few years, Like Charles said, I mean, talk about divine intervention. I mean, we came together, and a year later, you know, we were so lucky to get a record deal with Capitol Records. And, you know, we talk about that all the time. There are so many talented people in this town and around the world, and it's like, why us? You know, that's how we feel sometimes.

And so we just feel lucky and honored and blessed that we get to do it. It was about a year, year and a half. We had our first record out and started to receive some accolades and some of the awards and things, which, again, we just moved here to try music. You know, Charles and I especially, and Hillary, you know, writing songs up and down Music Road. We just wanted to be creators in the industry in whatever form or fashion because that's what we love and that's what we lose sleepover is song ideas and how you can perform and what we can say. So, I don't know, I feel like I'm going off the rails here, but it's just been such a beautiful ride and we do feel very lucky that we've made it to this point now.

Was it scary at all, Hillary? Yeah, for sure, because, you know, I felt like, and we've talked about this a lot lately, it's like so many things. things happened so quickly that you can't you can't truly process them fully in the moment. And even, you know, as things continued, it's like you're just on this, on this journey that we're just always looking to the next thing. And these incredible opportunities came, you know, just kept coming. And but not a ton of time to like stop and look around and go, oh my gosh. Like, this is amazing. You're always like, okay, we did that. Now, Now we got to stress about the next single, you know, and the next tour and getting back in, you know, it was that constant thing.

And I think it's only now that, you know, just having these families has almost forced us to slow down. It's been good. Where you kind of go, okay, balance is key. And I think that's maybe what probably does run a lot of bands in the ground is that constant thing. And, you know, we've had our moments where we have hit moments where it was like, this isn't fun. You know, we're having a tough time getting along. and then all of a sudden something will happen, and you kind of get back, and you're like, okay, you know,

I was listening to an interview that's like David Grohl, and he said that too. They're like, if you all ever had, he goes, of course, we're a band. It's a marriage, and you have these moments, but you realize that what it is together is such a special thing, and we do really just, I don't know, we still have such high expectations for ourselves as a band, but we also, I think, aren't going to live and die by it.

Quite is the same, I think, as I was going to do, you know, the first five years, it was like, it's all about success, success, success, and now it's kind of about art and longevity and just enjoying it. It's just redefining what success means, I think. Whenever you've been doing what we've been able to do for so long, it's every few years it just evolves that term, with the definition of it. And I think success to me right now is one that we are just still able to get up on a stage and head out on a tour the size of this one.

We love creating together. We, you know, are excited to get back into the studio again. It's just, and we're all healthy and body, mind, and spirit, and enjoying our life. And I think that is really... And dad, body mind. Dad body mind. Yeah. I'm all for the dad mind.

All for it. I'd like to know what man created this whole, you know, you know, strategic, plan that like dad vods are back whoever this brilliant man is thank you thank you it's like yeah women are so into dad it's like no they're no it's giving us license to kind of let it go right just let it go on the putting on the the bud heavy but heavy tall boy yeah so i think it's fair to say that your debut album was a monster but need you now changed everything in that you you're You were already a big country band, and now I didn't have to follow country music to know you all. What did that song mean to your life and to your career and everything else?

Changed everything. Yeah. It's still the song in the show. I mean, obviously whatever new singly you got always has an element of, you know, incredible excitement in the show. But Niji Now is that one where all the phones go up and everybody's got to record it and sing along. And it's the moment of the show every night, you know. So it's wild. I mean, it can be a crutch, too.

sometimes you're you constantly especially shortly after that you you know you start kind of comparing every single that followed it to that one and that one's what do you I mean that was just this little shooting star that we captured lightning in a bottle and and you know when we've had great success obviously with with the other ones but I think that that was just one of those songs that it set up so much for us and took our music I mean to the corners of the world we never dreamed it could go and and and And we were able to and have continued to be able to tour around the world in the UK through Europe, Australia. It's really, it really kind of broadened our entire scope of what was possible.

How do you explain the success of that song? It's a great song, but it went to such incredible heights. It was kind of a perfect storm, you know, like Charles was saying. You know, I think there was this newness with our band. And I think for us, we get to tell male and female perspectives on both sides, too, which was always our thing. And some people thought it wouldn't work, but that was just kind of what we do. It was a lot of three-part harmony and male and female.

So you're able to tell the perspective from each sex. And so I think people relate to both sides of it. I feel like everybody has a story and needs you now. Everybody has something they can relate to and go, oh, gosh, I've been there. And, man, missing somebody at angst, late night. like, you know, yearning for somebody. Simply said, too, is, I mean, if you look at it, there's not many lyrics to it,

and a lot of it repeats itself a lot, but it's really simply said, but in a, I don't know, it's just, it's like every line has its purpose. And, you know, especially the bridge, you know, it would rather hurt than feel nothing at all. I remember, like, when it was just said that really quick, and it was like, oh, we could have labored over that

for four hours, but for some reason that song, I think we wrote it in like an hour and a half or two, it just poured itself out really fast. and those always are the best ones. And it's like something else kind of came through. And then, but then you kind of go into the studio and you get these great musicians and amazing producer, you know, Paul Worley,

that just, you know, it was like the perfect storm. If we'd done it with any other musicians or any other producer, it might not have had that sound that, you know, felt pretty timeless, you know, when I listen back to it. And that hook, you know, the piano hook. I mean, that was, you know, these players. And it was like you just let them.

It was originally the outro. Yeah. And it just pulled it to the, you know, to the intro, and it just became the signature lick. It just, every little thing had its, had its purpose. And, you know, when I think back of other songs like that, you know, like missing you or something, you know. Since you've been gone from, I'm missing you. I'm like, God, so simply said. But it's like we all can relate.

And those are all, you know, those songs that I really do hope this one kind of, you know, can, is something that people will be listening to for 30, 40 years. you know, later, like some of those timeless songs, you know, and hopefully it will be. Even that one was only a couple years into your time together. I mean, that's still early in your career. How did you all, just between the three of you, how did you keep yourselves grounded and say, the world's exploding around us, let's try to stick this together? Still had a lot of anonymity in a weird way by being in a group. I mean, it really is, I mean, like, Killer laughs to me. Still to this day, I mean, we'll, you know, we'll be at an airport,

like, man, I love your van, little big town. I love your band, Van Perry. and you're like, thanks. Close enough. Thank you. You know, and you're just like, you know, and it's still, people are still confused. Lady antebellum, what's she like. How was this?

It's like, no, we're a group. And I was the idiot that came up with putting lady in front. I don't know, it just felt nostalgic. And I don't know, it was just something weird about it. And so it is. It's funny how it all kind of is coming out. Yeah, we do ground each other. And I think even just what you said,

just saying that together, there's a lot of power in that. You know, if we were, individually solo artists, you kind of don't have anybody to walk through it with. And so, nobody to tell, you know, a lot of times, too, you know, I think a lot of, when you're solo artists, it's hard for, you're paying people to, like, work for you. It's probably hard for them to give you the truth. Right. They'll give me the truth. I'm like, hey man, you're, you're being a little bit of a, you know, so you're like, all right. We do. And again, I mean,

like, all these big moments, too. I mean, that night after the Grammys is when we won, all those Grammys for the song, Need You Now, I mean, we were able to go, like, isn't this crazy? This is absolutely nuts. I can't believe it and we were able to walk through it together so there's kind of a grounding effect being in a community of people in a trio like this and you know again we're grateful for that you know there is not too much paparazzi any of that stuff around us because we're just kind of like the people from that band I don't know which one but some band and that's just what we've kind of enjoyed is

that kind of perfect middle ground of doing what we love but I think Levin in Nashville to I'm born and raised like I said but there's this is one of the most, and it's changed a lot, it's growing, you know, every day, but it's a very grounded place to live. There's a lot of artists who live here that we come in and out, airports, you know, it's just, you don't have the same glitter and lights of a Los Angeles or, you know, it's just a very different place. And I love that about it. I love being able to go to the store, you know, and pick up my groceries with no makeup on in my yoga pants. I mean, it's just one. one of my favorite things about being, you know, being here.

And I think... Dave, he's just like us. He wears Lulus, they're just like us. Lulus. He's just like us except $200 pair of shorts. But I also think we have to say a huge thank you to our parents too, because they raised us right. You guys have talked too about group therapy.

And I didn't know bands went into group therapy. Yeah. They should. And it helped, right? Yeah, yeah. I mean, we've, you know, even done a lot recently. I mean, just getting back into this and the balance. I mean, obviously, she's been going through an incredible change with having twins.

You know, she already has, I was a four or five around. Almost five, yeah. And, you know, so all that's an adjustment and how you balance it. Expectations, you know, we're not going to be able to go at the same pace as we, as we have for the past, you know, eight, nine years. But we kind of also want to find that balance as a bad. So, but we still have an incredible drive and force to us. But it is nice because I do think when bands don't talk and let out some of that stuff, and it's nice to have kind of a little unbiased, you know,

professional. Yeah, it's professional. Like, right there, man, your tone, you see why that probably hurt their, and you're like, oh, man, okay. It's marriage. It's like marriage counseling. And it will help you in your marriage as well. Whose idea was that therapy?

Probably Hillary's. I don't know. I mean, it may have been somebody in our team. I can't, yeah. Because we started, like, in 08 was the first time we went and sat with someone. And then just with all of the transitions of kids and just like Charles was saying, expectations of just life and what it brings. We've been going recently as well.

And I just, you know, I think, I forget who said it, but it's like we go through all of these things in our lives, whether you do this for a living. whatever your job is, life experiences. And unless you take time to kind of reprogram yourself, because every few years you're like, man, a lot of my life has changed, but you're still kind of acting and living out of the place maybe that you did the years prior that isn't necessarily the healthiest place to be. It's like a computer.

It's like that's why you get updated. Like a computer gets updated, your phone gets updated. We need that too as people to update with tools and a way to live happy and healthy lives. you know. And so I think that's something I know we've all kind of been on a journey to find lately because you wake up one day and you're like, man, things feel like they're just kind of spinning out. I don't want to feel that way anymore. I like to think the smartphones for that. You can't ever shut out? Not off. Speaking of updates. Who would have thought, you know, when you sit there, if you had told yourself,

you know, 15 years that every time you go to the bathroom, you're going to go with your phone. And that's really disgusting, but we all do it. It's true. And it's like, I mean, you can't, no one can just sit on the toilet and enjoy it. It's 10, however long it must take you, of just silence or no activity. You got to be sitting there. Ten minutes. Some kind of activity.

Sometimes long. Sometimes short. Speaking of the phone, you all have this group text, which is sort of a famous thing where you, like, dump creative ideas into it, and that's how we come up with some of your songs. Has that been a running thing for a long time? I mean, we kind of share everything. Yeah, I mean, even some of the early songs we would kind of text back and forth.

I mean, our first song we ever wrote. Hillary went out of town, and we were texting lyrics back and forth. But, yeah, I mean, it's just a, we're kind of like, there's probably not an hour or two within every day that we're not in communication about something. He just goes, yeah. I'm bad.

And I know when he's, I know when he's on the toilet, Yeah, yeah, I'm trying to learn to slow it all down, man. I do. I mean, my mind, music is just always going to be on the forefront of my mind. And it's just, I just love it so much. And it's so fun. To me, it doesn't feel like a normal, like a real job, you know.

Not. The travel's real. And the travel is, that's probably the hardest part about it. But take that out of it. I mean, it's like I enjoyed as much as I like going out with my buddies in the golf course. It's just, it's fun. You know, and there's a new challenge, there's that challenge, that chase, you know, chasing that great song, chasing that perfect show. And I just love that.

It's fun. So the hiatus you took in 2015 was about family, obviously. But also you guys have said, like, maybe we just need to step away from this. Maybe our fans even need to step away from it for a minute and just like catch our breath after almost a decade of playing music. What all went into that decision? Well, funny enough, it wasn't really much of an off year for any of. of us. We all kind of got involved in other things that we were passionate about and played shows as Lady A as well. But I think we really just had been going nonstop for almost 10 years. It was nine

years. We wanted to miss each other a little bit. Yeah. Yeah. And just kind of hunker down with our families and just take a break. I mean, it was just one of those things where I think we all just needed to breathe. And when we got back together and started creating heartbreak, it was honestly, close to the way it felt when we first started as it could possibly have been. I mean, we went to Florida and did a writer's trip down there, wrote together, we went out to LA, lived there for a couple weeks, this house together in the Hollywood Hills, and it was like, it was amazing, and it was just really reconnecting on a level that we hadn't been able to in a long time, just with all of the other things in life that we had going on.

And so it became... We left the kids at home for a while. This is funny. Oh, no kids. Yeah. It came some, you know, we allowed them to come, you know, come out of the basement for a little bit. But it is. You kind of have to have that though, be because, you know, creativity hits you at, you know,

random times. And, you know, and it had been a while since we had been able to really, like, be in a studio till 1 a.m. if we wanted to, 2 a.m. And, you know, it was nice to have that back where it was like, man, we're on to something. We ain't got to put the kids down. Let's keep going. Yeah. Right?

So what did you want to do with heartbreak? Did you want to do something entirely new, turn the page a little bit? Or do you want to give the fans what they all about you? You know, it's always a, musically, we always try to have a balance. I mean, for us, the fun stuff, if you see our live show, it's the fun stuff, the dramatic stuff, the serious and then the upbeat stuff. So musically, it's always kind of running the gamut. But I think the biggest achievement, like you said, was reconnecting just again, living in a house,

making meals, laughing, sharing drinks, late. sharing drinks late at night and gosh, we just sat and listened to 90s country for five hours one night. You know, just have those kind of moments together to reconnect, and it hopefully comes out in the music. You know, the excitement of you look good when we put that out and had a horn section with us on a lot of big award shows and things last year. And Heartbreak has a bit of a double meaning for us about giving your heart a break, you know, after a relationship and giving yourself a chance to take a breath. And that one has a little bit of a double meaning for us. But yeah, I mean, it's, we're always trying to do something fresh and fun, but I don't know, when the fans always talk about like, oh, where's the next I run to you, where's the next need you now? You don't want to stray too far from that, I feel like, because that's kind of the bread and butter of what we do is some of that impactful lyric.

But musically, it's fun to continue to push it. So where do you all see yourself? You've been together 10 years, a little more, the next 10 years. Do you even think about that or do you live sort of tour-to-tour album down? Yeah, it's hard. I mean, you want to be relevant. But we've also, I mean, we know we're not always gonna be able to fill up, you know,

in amphitheater arena. We know that, I mean, maybe we will, but we're okay with that, I mean, because we'll put on the hell of a theater tour if we gotta do that too, because we love that. And I think, I just, I don't know, the goal is just to really make music that we feel, you know, that we could still make great music,

you know, and I think when we feel like we're a little dried up with that, with ideas or whatever it might be, or, you know, it's just sounding, complacent or you know or dated then I think that's when maybe I don't know who knows but I see us doing this for a long long time I mean I look at careers like Tim McGrawl and you know he's had so many times where you know he's never really gone and he's he's always been so successful but he's had those certain years where like you know it's like just when you think that

he doesn't have it in him he comes out with like humbling kind and then you're like gosh Tim I'm like, girl, it's so good. And I want to be that band that, you know, it's like, you know, maybe you think that we don't have another song in a year in us, and it's like, I want to, you know, I feel like I still got that in me and that we have that in us, that we really want to make another need you now, another runny, whatever that might be, whatever that song is that just when people might write you off

and be looking at the next new thing, they're like, oh, yeah, I remember I love that band, you know, so hopefully that can happen and still can happen. Is there a band or an artist, Hillary, that you look to and say, I wouldn't mind having that career path, that trajectory. I mean, I think one of the best examples, and granted she's gone into other spheres of entertainment, but if we can have a career like Reba McIntyre, I mean, the length of time, the albums, the songs, like, the respect.

I mean, she just has done everything so right. And we want a fried chicken indoor. that's what it's about for you that brain with that chicken bud tall boys and chicken tall boys and chicken what about you do you have an actor an artist you look at

yeah I mean I of course I'm obsessed with a lot of classic rock and I was going to say the Eagles and they were both not great examples they're great artists but yeah they broke up way too soon right yeah I mean I do I do love how their music stands the test of time

you know I my first concert was the Eagles and you know they've gone through just I mean hell and back literally but you know that they've gone through a lot but their music you can put on Hotel California right now and it'll just sound incredible like one of the top five songs of all time to me so for that music to last that long I'd look at a band like the Eagles or Fleetwood Mac we've worked with Stevie Nicks on a few things and it's just neat to kind of pick her brain to pick her brain about the

stories of touring with you know Lindsay and Fleetwood Mac and she's brutally honest of all of it I love oh really really some more Dirt. You do the full thing. Yeah. Well, I think that whole bit, they've all been transparent with it. You know, it's, it was rock stars, man. It was decadent. We're like, the most decadent we get, it's like, you know, sometimes Dave will have two coffees a day. Yeah, yeah, he'll have two coffees or overdose on, you know, emergency, you know, like, Dave.

Too much zinc. Too much zinc. Too much zinc. OD on Zyrtec and pack and plays. There you go. Rock and roll life. There it is. 2018, rock and roll.

That's awesome. So you accept credit for the band name. Oh, yes. Lady Antebellum. I know. How did it come up? You know, you're searching for a band name. I think at one point we were going to call ourselves Springdale or something.

I don't know why. It just, you're searching and everything's been taken. Crooked Creek. And I was driving by, I can't remember Dave and I, we were driving by Crooked Creek. We were driving by an old Annabellum house, you know, one of those old kind of colonial, beautiful homes you see. And I was like, man, that's a beautiful home. I'd love to have one of those one day, Antebellum home. and he goes,

Antebellum. I was like, yeah, it's that style, you know, about antebellum. And Charles is a history, buff. I don't know why I threw lady in front. I had this vision of like, maybe it was like haunted or something

there was just like, you know, lady, this spooky little lady that may live there up in the attic or something. And I was like, Hillary. They called me. I'll never forget. You could talk Hillary in anything with excitement back in the day.

Like, if you acted excitement, I was a salesman. I mean, literally. I mean, it was. was like, I was like, we've got it. Y'all were riding back from, it was one of the last solo shows that they had done together. That we probably made $100.

We literally would do a show and spend like two or three hundred dollars in gas money to literally get free beer. To go play a coffee shop where the espresso machine was louder than the P.A. Yeah, but we were riding back. That was the thing, I mean, but I remember even on the drive back, it was like, we were like, okay, we got Lady Annabelle and let's see if we can beat it.

And then like, you know, you're riding by street signs. It's like, Crooked Creek. you know, drive and you're like, that's kind of cool. That's, you know. So I don't know, it was, you know, and then we go to Cracker Barrel and Dave wanted to call ourselves Sunrise Sampler. That's kind of good, Sunrise Sampler, right?

So anyway, you're coming up with these crazy, you know. It's a hard thing though, because you think of it the moment and it's with you for 40, 50 years, in your case. It's just forever, yeah. Lady A is shorter, easier. We could probably. Now, why did you go down to Lady A?

Just quicker? Yeah, they just kind of called us. They just started. Yeah. A brevin it. A breaving it. That was really cool. You're impressed Annabella.

I wouldn't, at that age, I wouldn't have looked at that. That's an anabella. He paid attention in school. I just, I missed that. I missed that day. Yeah. I mean, it's just, I don't know, just a name. And now, you know, two dudes and a girl,

lady Annabella makes those sense. Was the lady part about Hillary a little bit? I guess I was like, we got a lady in the group. And I don't know, I mean, you know, I too kind of always envisioned her voice to really lead the pack of our group. It was kind of ironic that it ended up, you know, her first thing will end up being kind of my lead, but I don't know, I just, her voice has always been to me

what really is the drawl of the group. I mean, trust me, I'm very confident. I think I've got a great voice. I love it, I'm glad people, you know, but like it felt like it was Lady Annabelle, okay, this is the thing and we're gonna, you know. And it's just, I don't know, it's been fun, funny to see how to, it's been pretty much, you know,

a co-lead thing as it's moved forward, which has been great, but I don't know. It's just, I don't know. Do you guys think about the lead series thing? I interviewed Little Big Town, I asked my question, and they all just look to each other, like, I don't know. It kind of shows us, I don't know. Lyrically, it shows itself always,

also too, where the key of the song is. You know, if it's really how, you're like, man, if you take it down to fit me, it doesn't really have the same energy, but usually lyrically is what shows itself. I even wrote a song with some guys the other day, and I was like, as we're writing it, I was like, man, I really, if the guys end up liking this song,

I was like, I really want to see what it sounds like with Hillary saying it, because lyrically it's a little more vulnerable. And, of course, I'm some macho and tough. It's like, no one will believe this. No one's going to. Of course. But so, I don't know, that happens too. It just shows itself.

And then, you know, picking songs, too, we definitely do make a conscious effort on each record to have a balance because we do think that is what makes the group unique. You know, that it is more of a, you know, a balance kind of thing. But I don't think it's an old. overly conscious effort. Why can't we get to go here some? Thank you.

Let's do it. Let's go do it. Thank you guys. It's awesome. So as I mentioned, after we had our sit down conversation, we went over into the next room into that big giant airplane hangar-sized space where they're rehearsing for the concert. The summer plays on tour with Darius Rucker.

We chatted a little on the set before they played a few songs. So what's the vibe we're going for on the tour here? I mean, honestly, we wanted it to just feel super streamlined and clean. And it being a couple of. co-headline with Darius too. We do have some, like these. They twist around. They twist around. Just to make the transition really easy and quick. So like, you know, their set of, there are other set of drums. Back there. Actually, back behind here. Yep. And then they're keys.

So it makes it for a quick, you're not having to move things on and off the stage, which is nice. Video wall and stuff. I mean, the center's always big video content. You know, the cameras catching footage of us. And then thrusts that we can head out on and We're not pants with the fan. We never done pi-o. We don't feel like a pyro group. I don't think you are. It's like, we do now.

We did have confetti cannons though one year. That was really cool. And it was really fun. I've been kind of begging to bring them back, but. I don't think people appreciate even your fans that come to a show that there are six or seven tractor trailers. Yeah. It's in the back that make this all happen. I think seven tour buses, you know, seven eight, you know, bus, tractor trailers.

Yeah. When you see them, like we've done a couple of times. Like, we've done a couple of videos where you set up a time-lapse camera, and it's the whole setup and tear down of a day. I mean, our crew and then the local crew in each town, I mean, they are working from probably 6 a.m. whenever the wheels stop on those buses until one, two in the morning. I mean, tearing things down.

It's expensive to put. I mean, again, I mean, you know, that's why the tickets have, you know, prices have gone up too is because, I mean, the shows have just, It has to be a spectacle now. It's almost like, you know, once someone raises the bar, the fans expect it, you know. And Garth Brooks, once he, you know, the guys like Garth and Chenaya raise that bar, it was like you can't just sit out there and, you know, and not put on an amazing show. Yeah. And so it really has changed it a lot.

And it's exciting, you know, so, you know, we want to, you know, try to sit there and feel like we're making a mark each night. Without giving too much away, can you talk a little bit about what you and Darius might do out here? Yeah, well, it's the, I mean, the encore moment. You'll fly in on the fun angel wings. You know, the cool thing is, is, you know, Darius' big single wagon wheel, we sing harmonies on. So, you know, that's a song that we've kind of thrown around ideas. And then Charles has written a handful of songs for Darius, Homegrown Honey, being one of them, another, his new single, straight to hell.

I didn't write it, but you're on it. So I think I'll probably jump out there on his set, you know, song. But I don't know, it's interesting. We just want to kind of see, you know, and it's like, you know, it's been a long time. You know, we grew up playing in clubs and stuff, in cover bands, and so I really do want the encore moment to have some spontaneity to, it's hard for me to say that, spontaneity, to it a little bit as well, you know, I think as the tour goes on, there'll be other songs that we start introducing, but it's just going to be fun. I mean, I think, you know, it's not a, I think it's, there's, there's, there's, there's, there's, there's,

Everyone that's in country music probably has known that Darius and Lady Annabelle have been such close friends from the beginning. I mean, we work together, we're staying together a lot, and it really is going to be a fun, collaborative moment, you know. Yeah, we're hoping to do at least three, four, five songs, some kind of big, not just like one song together, but really do maybe do a hooty song. We're, you know, we're hoping we can do a hooty and the Boatfish song with him and twist his arm to do that and then do a few fun covers, maybe one of ours, and maybe maybe one of ours. and make the encore kind of a big party. And like you said, keep it spontaneous and off the cuff and people singing on different mics and keep it loose and fun,

just so we can, you know, have that spontaneity. We want to connect, too, with the audience. I think that's one thing that when we went into this, like, whether it be the big screen with content, having cameras where we can connect with everybody in the front, in the pit, all the way to the very back. That's something that I think is so important.

And Charles kind of leads the charge in that, just being so. dynamic and energetic on stage and creating moments with the fans and sometimes hopping out into the crowd, which I always get so frustrated because I wear heels. I'm like, I can't get out there and back fast enough. So you've got to be the guy. That's just me trying to get a little cardio in. Get stuck out there sometimes. Your workout for the day. I'm always interested watching a band like you sort of interact with each other on stage. Do you have little like signals, head nods, things that you, that unspoken?

A lot of unspoken. Communication. Yeah. Like Hillary, you know, Dave's a little more tied down to, you know, his mic's saying, because he's constantly changing instruments too. I mean, every song has a new guitar,

mandolin or something, you know, banjo. And Hillary and I have, you know, we can be pretty mobile, which is great. And it's kind of an unspoken role. Like if I'm, if we're starting in the middle and I kind of start going right, you can just see her, she knows. I'm gonna go left because I want to make sure

to capture this. And then as I kind of come back over, it's like you may staying together, And then you just kind of know, and she's like, well, I've been over here for a while. I'm going to kind of go over here. So we're not a super, you know, choreographed band. We just never have been. It wouldn't have, and we can't dance.

I don't think we all for any good. Us moving around, like, is a dance, but we don't dance. Yeah. Yeah. So it's, you know, we try to be as natural as we can. But there is, over time, it is funny. We kind of know what each other's about to do, and you kind of fill in the space. Cool.

I think you're going to sing a couple songs. We are. Can't wait to hear it. Thank you all. My thanks to Hillary, Charles and Dave for a great conversation and for giving us a little peek inside their tour that kicks off the summer plays on tour with Darius Rucker, July 19th in Toronto, and continues for about three months afterward from there.

And my thanks again to all of you for tuning in this week to hear more of the full, uncut, unentited interviews with my guests every week. Click subscribe and also be sure to tune in to Sunday today every Sunday. on NBC. I'm Willie Geist. Thanks for listening to the Sunday Sit Down podcast.