#322 - Charles Kelley on the Untold Origin Story of Lady A + The Name Change and The Song He’s Proudest of On Their New Album

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Speaker 1: Mm HM. Welcome to Episode three two. Charles Kelly from Lady A on the untold origin story of the band, their name change, the song He's Proud of Stuff on their new album were really good interview. But before we get into it, let's check out my top five favorite releases out this week. Number five, Maddie and Tay have a new song called Madness, Come On in those Stars, my Phone crash and Dad Things, every mad goes and sing I'll reach say does baby loves Man Name? At number four, Morgan Evans has a new EP called The Country and the Coast Side a. Here's a new song called American Dream Truck found Little went from Little Tense Preez here first feet in the paint was been in my ticking to any to the bat every time if you had him is ten you do come to but it keep going. When I broke down, didn't catch it was American Dream True. At number three, Shy Carter has a new EP called The Rest of Us, with a really good episode with Shi Carter from a couple months ago. Huh, And here was a new song called Wild and He's trying to take My second Get got well. John Mayer has put out a ballad version of a song last Train Home, and here's that Maybe You'll last stream, Maybe You're the Last Trip and at number one. Tierra has a new song out called Gentleman. Come All They out so father and you like come to say it out of like if you don't want to be a town me. You can see some quick albums that are out ed. Shearon has a new album, Let's See LV Shane has a new album. He has a song hit Ain't My Boy, but that's my boy. I don't see it exactly right. But so Mitchell Tinpenny has a new album It's a Christmas album, and Hayes Carl has a new album out as well. All right, onto a really great interview with Charles Kelly from Lady A. With Charles Kelly of Lady A, how's it going, ma, I'm good. You know what. I was talking to the guys here before you came in, and they were like, is it all three of them? Is it just Charles? I was like, it's just Charles, And I like it when it's only one person because it's difficult to interview a group whenever there are multiple voices in the group. If it's Zack Brown Band. It's easy because zachs the only one that's going to talk, and even then it's hard to get into talk. I'll be honest. One of the harder interviews that I like, Oh yeah, I like Zack off the air, but kill your guy like him, but he's really a hard interview. And there there are the people that I just don't like interviewing because we're tough interview. You're not one of them. I sometimes have a word vomit, which is which I've had several times on your show. But I would much rather have word vomit you and Luke Yeah, I don't have to worry about No, definitely not Luke. Yeah. I can go there it's seventy two degrees outside today and then just sit back for thirty minutes. You know. I still I still get literally like breakout in hives thinking about that one interview where I meant Mariah Carey and I kept saying carry Underwood, and I meant that Mariah Carey just you know, because singing so hard for so long, his like and and and you'all are all looking at me, and like Hillary looked at me, and I was like, oh, I'm sorry, I didn't know you are best friends with Mariah Carey, and it was like, dude, carry Underwood. I'm like, dude, Carry Underwood has like probably the strongest female voice in our genre, which you all haven't been, like you were just insane. So but yeah, you get a lot of that with me. I figured, I was like, I know why he wants me on this show and not with David Hillary, because they can interject and rain in the crazy. It's not even just raining in, it's hearing a story as told by a single person. And singular stories are so important to me. And and I've got a chance to get to know Dave of a little bit even away from the industry. Um, but when it comes to you guys, story to talk to one of you, I feel like hearing it from all three of you separately is better than you're get all three of you together. It would be really interesting too, because we've we've even learned, especially over the last like four or five years, a lot of how you know, help differently. Each of us interpreted different like parts of our career, you know, and kind of internalized it. And I didn't realize, you know, the way like Hillary had viewed those first five years or the way they have had viewed those first five years. And you know what I mean, and we're because we're all like, you know, we talked about that Indiangram a lot. All three of us are days who got me in the Instagram years, which I think you gotta take it with a little bit of a grain of salt. Same. I mean, it's not like it's just like proven religion, but it's uh. Do think it helps you at least just communicate a little bit better and understand people's personalities, you know, with you guys in a couple of places I want to go to start this. It's interesting that some artists are seen as newer, younger artists, even though you're younger than they are. I think at times you guys have been penalized, are breaking so early. And I'll explain to you what I mean that we'll have these meetings and I don't do a lot of radio meetings anymore. I don't program music. I really don't do. I just kind of do the show and do my other projects. But at times they'll bring in and they'll go, hey, we're thinking about these artists for this or even a television project. And they'll say, you know, lady A, they're very established, they've been around for a long time. But then we can go with a newer, younger artist. And before it's been like Brett young and I'm like, hold on a minute. You know, Brett's older than these guys. I think that at times because of your success so early, people go, you know what, they're kind of an older group. Yeah, well, well I kind of feel that way. I mean, it's funny you said that too, because before we we actually switched over to uh, it's a big machine. I mean, we had obviously an incredible success in incredible relationship with with Capital and Dennovential became universal, and we just felt like we were kind of sensing that from them. It was like, Okay, we're ready for some new blow it or whatever. There there are established one of our established acts. But I remember Hillary being in this meeting with with Scott Bors said and she was like I'm thirty, like I'm forty now, and she's like, I'm thirty three years old, thirty two years old. I've got so much more I'm ready to say and do, and and she was like, you know, we're you know, we planned on doing this for a long time. And still have so much, so much more music in US, and so it is kind of funny, but but you know what, it's it's a blessing too. I mean being out on the road this past like summer. I mean, dude, it was fifteen years of songs and I was like, I mean after not doing it for two years too, I was like, dude, that was an hour and a half or two hours straight of radio singles thanks thanks to you guys, you know, thanks to fans, thanks to you guys at radio playing this stuff. And it was like, I remember when we opened up for Tim mcgrawl and being like, he didn't play half of my favorite songs because he just couldn't fit it in the show. And that's just insane, you know. And we're not quite there, but it's like we could be with all three of you and you've been together and you've been through extreme highs. Is there a paramore type where you guys have because they would go to therapy as a group because they got so big and as you get bigger, everyone's parts of people's lives amplify. Yeah, Um, did you guys have to deal with that? That success? We're with you were growing success was happening, and you guys had to manage your relationships with each other for sure. I mean we've been pretty open about that. I mean, you know, the paramore situation. From an outsider looking in, she got so much attention. I'm sure that it was. I feel like Hillary has been, you know, to her credit, has been so great about it always being the group. You know, because being the one female in the group, she could have probably especially during the needs you now there are like really taken on so much more things. And but that's just not her personality. We are such a group and the sound is so defined by the three of us together that I don't think it ever got there. But but oh yeah, I mean again to get back to the personalities, I mean the way I communicate. I grew up with a bunch of siblings and we would yell and fight, and that's how you and you know, with Dave and Hillary, they grew up in very calm you know, Dave, they would kind of I don't know, you know, just very calmly talk about things. And same thing with Hillary. She she didn't like like when I would get upset about stuff, that's just me getting intense. That means I'm excited or I'm I'm I'm very passionate about this thing, and it would come off like angry sometimes, and so we had to kind of work through that, you know. And I'm definitely a pretty strong type a personality, you know. And and and I wouldn't say that two of them really are um but you know, I'm not saying it's a good thing. There's a lot about me. I mean, I tell my wife all the time, like, I don't know if I would if I like guys like me that much. I say the same thing about me, like, I don't know that i'd be friends with me. I think at my core, I would like the qualities that I have as far as empathy and but but I don't know that. I don't want to hang out with an extreme type a like I am. I just think i'd wear myself out. Yeah, I feel the same way whenever people talk about you guys origin story, how much of that story And I can relate a little bit to us. And I've been with Amy and lunch Box and those guys for fifteen years, you know, we've been together since the beginning. But it's kind of become a character of itself. And how we got together where it's all true. I did meet Amy at a restaurant, but there's a little more that went into it, and that I did meet Lunchbox at a bar, but there were a few things that happened before we're a show with you guys. That's you met on my Space. You got discovered a third in Lensley and then there they are their lady A. Yeah, I mean the truth, here's the truth. Uh, it starts, it starts, I guess around two thousand five, I moved to Nashville. Uh, I'm working in Winston Sale of North Carolina. I graduated University of Georgia. So I moved to North Carolina to work from my oldest brother and he's like flipping houses and stuff. After about six months, I'm just like, I'm miserable. I'm like, this is I knew, like this is not. This can't be it, you know. And and um my, my other brother, Josh was having a little success singer songwriter Josh Kelly. Anybody out there that hasn't hurt his music, He had a really big hit called a may Z on like Hot Day ce and um So, anyways, he starts writing a lot in Nashville, and he's like, you know, he was out in l A at the time. He starts kind of fall in love with Nashville. He's like, man, I think I'm gonna move to Nashville. So he moved to Nashville in two thousand and five, and right around this time, I'm just like I just hit this little point where I'm like, I've got to get out of here. Uh. And so he said, dude, just come on down to Nashville and move and and and I did. I just kind of said, screw it, move to Nashville. And I was there for you know, with him for a couple of months, and he met his wife and she's an actress, Katherine Heigel. Well, so they're just falling in love with each other. So now he's spending all his time in l A. So I'm there in Nashville all by myself, and I don't know anybody. I don't really know how to play an instrument. I always grew up playing drums. I was like, what do I do? Like, how do I get out there? And so I randomly called up Dave. I don't know what made me do this. We had like written a couple of really crappy songs, just piddling around. Uh in college at George and I always knew he was super talented. We would always go to the youth the like the what did you call it? I can't remember what it was called, but it was kind of a youth group thing, and he would always play in the band. I was like, Dad, God, that guys really talented. But we weren't really super close, but we were friends. And anyways, I said, man, I know you're in Atlanta, and I was like, I just need to like write. Can I come up there and just write some with you? So this is a long story. I'm giving a long story. We have time for it, you want it, okay. So I would go up there on the weekends when he was off work, and he had this little apartment and we would write and like he would let me crash on the couch, and then I like come back to Nashville and then I come back up there and write again. I was it was just a very bizarre is Atlanta up there? Time? I picked Atlanta being down there? Is that what you're talking about? Down there? I sat up there, down there, I set up there. Anything I'll go, I'm going I'm going up to I'm going up to the beach and I'm talking out Florida. Yeah, that's another it's a it's yeah, that's one of my wife's pet piece of me, um going down there. Um. And so anyways, I would go down there. We we wrote a few a few times like this, and then all of a sudden, I was like we started getting a collection of good songs and days kind of going through the same thing he was doing, like this like accounting job where he was, you know, going to different businesses and like doing computer stuff and they're accounting. I don't I don't even ask me. I don't know what it was. And he's like, man, this is this is this? What it is? Is this what life is all about? Two? And I was like, man, we've got something. I don't know what it is, but I said we've got something. And I said, let's we can live at my brother's house for free. He's not there anyways. And when we had full rain of my brother's house because he was always up in l A. If he wasn't on the road, he was with his girlfriend. I mean they were smitten. And so we had the studio and Dave kind of knew how to work in the studio. So we started doing some demos, and we started going out and doing some solo shows just under my name, and it was like Dave, Dave and I were writing new songs. Sometime around there, you know, we created this MySpace page and Hillary lo and me whole was a fan of my brother Josh. Well, anybody that remembers my space, they have like your top friends. Well, all of a sudden, here's Charles Kelly sitting there. So she said she just randomly checked it out. I was like, he's got a pretty good voice. Low and me hold David and I go or. I went to this bar called Twelfth and Porter, and she was like up singing with the band s And when she came off, she like saw me and goes, hey, I'm a fan of your music. I was like, really, no kidding. I was like, well, we should write together. And honestly, I say it all the time. I mean I really was like, I'm just gonna get a date out of this. This girl's hot. We'll see how this goes. And she comes over like, well, let me take it back. So here's Hillary Scott. You're all gonna have to edit, so much of this this is awful um and so it's rambly because I haven't told the story like this long anytime I tell, I tell it released the sinct. So she comes over um or first I come home and I'm like, hey, Dave, I'm at this really beautiful girl she wants to write. And so we immediately go to her my Space page and she her songs are legit. She had been working with Vic Tailor Shaw. I mean she had songs like long Gone anybody that remembers our first record, Long Gone was on there, which made that record, and a couple of other songs which were just super like tight you know, Nashville demos, just ready to go. And we were like, whoa, we gotta get something ready. And so she comes over like a week or two later, and we had this song called All We'd Never Need, and I had a little bit of the verse and a little bit of the chorus, and I was like, I don't know how to finish it, and she mean, it couldn't have been two minutes when she was in our house and Dave's on the piano and she just starts singing the next line and we start finishing this thing. The second song Can't Take My Eyes off You, fourth or fifth song Lovedn't Live Here, and it was just like whoa this is? This is a badass and um for us, really, we were just writing, honestly, David and I, we're gonna just try to write for her record. We were like, I think this girl's gonna be a star, and randomly, um, you know, after a while, I was like, what if, just for fun, we we do this and just see how it goes. And we started doing a show at Third and Lensley. We opened up for my brother Josh one of his shows at third Lensley, and it was the reaction was just way bigger than anything we had ever done separately. And so that's kind of how it started. I just want to go back a little bit when you were enjoyed doing construct. No edity needed when you were doing construction. I mean, it kind of blows my mind to think someone that's as talented as you are is roof and houses. Well it was so I graduated with a fine Instagram at Georgia, So I mean I worked my butt off at Georgia, Like I mean, I had this like three eight. I thought I was just gonna have all these job job offers, no job offers. I think I got a job offer an enterprise car. So it really told me. It was like it's who you know. So anyway, as my older brothers ten years older than me, and he was like, dude, instead of going and getting some entry level job where you're getting coffee or something goes, come up here work with me and I'm building something, you know. And eventually I was just like, we're gonna you know, we're gonna build something like a like a real real business and a real company. And um, I just didn't have the patience. What I what were you singing? And what I mean? I mean I root houses for a long time. I don't have the physical gift. But were you singing? Were you flexing that muscles? So I did a ton. So we played in cover bands all growing up, middle school, in in high school, I um, we played in a band like inside Blue was our One of our first band was called Sport in middle school and we wore the little spoon and fork necklaces around school. And then our second one was called Inside Blue. We did a lot of blues and and all my brothers and just all kinds of different stuff. And so I played in cover bands all my life and something. When I went to college, Josh went to Old Miss because we were in the band together. And then when I went to Georgia and I didn't have my brother with me, I don't know, I just didn't. I was like, I can't do this anymore. Forget it. That's a pipe dream, you know. Or I don't even think I ever thought it was going to be a real job. It was just something I could do. And so in college it was kind of my my little party gag. If there was a band, I'd be like, hey man, you gotta get them sing a song. And would people be just stunned? They would be kind of It would be pretty cool, especially if I got like a really cool like R and B band and I go there and like, no, you won't me and they're like damn because they got how many drunk you know, college kids just let me sing the song. So you weren't known as the singer just generally, you weren't Charles, the guy who everybody knows can sing, because you weren't. I just didn't do it that much. And I don't know, it was one of those things I knew I could. I knew I could sing, but I don't know. I don't think I knew I was like good enough to do it for a living. I just thought it would be kind of a cool party trick, you know what about songwriting. Though, at what point either one of them did you realize I can actually play in the big leagues. Not until honestly, this is this is the honest guy truth. Probably not until Hillary and we got together, and it just I mean, we wrote Dave and I wrote probably fifty of the worst songs in the world, but they had a lot of great bones to them, like great melodies. I just didn't really know how to like wrap my head around the lyrics and really telling a story. But we were always David are really good at coming up with melodies. Um. But when Hillary got in the room and then she introduced just a lot of really heavy hitter songwriters, and you just start figuring it out, man. You start figuring out that this these little puzzle pieces to songwriting, and and you know, and and because there is there's there's a there's an archetype to it. You know, you got verse chorus Bridge brings back the concept of what the course is all about. And the overall theme and you start figuring this out. But um, but yeah, I don't think until we became a group that I actually wrote something that you know, I would send like my dad the songs and he didn't really react, really really react until I sent him All We'd Ever Need and then love Don't Live Here and he was like, he goes, don't let that girl go. What's interesting about you and Hillary is that vocally you're both alpha and in a lot of groups, most groups that that is not a factor. I mean I could probably just start to list groups where you have multiple lead singers. Yeah, I mean you can put them on. Put them on one hand, right, I mean, you go eagle. I mean they're just you know. So was there ever a conversation of who's the real lead singer? Um? Not really. I mean I remember some of the first UM got it so weird by the way, I feel like when I have both ears in, It's kind of like when I'm on like when I'm on stage two and I'm talking to the audience and I've got both of my headphones, then I have to take one out. I feel so disconnected. I don't know why you can still hear me microphone. It's just a weird thing. It's like, I still feel like I'm talking. I get it. I still feel like I'm talking in my head. But um, we'll take them off and then I'll tell you before we play some clips there. Yea, So what we're talking about. I was talking about the fact that you guys have two vocal outfits. So when we went on our first radio tour, it was really funny. He's become a dear, dear friend now. But Nate Deaton uh A, is up in San Jose and he was like, I just I just don't know if people are gonna get two different lead singers. He was like, y'all have to identify like people want to identify with a singer. And I remember being like, Nate, you know, I hear you, but I don't agree. I was like, what about what Matt, what about the Eagles? I said that, I mean those are they all had two, three very distinct singers and it worked. And I was like, you know, in fact that there hadn't been much of that in uh you know, I don't even I was like, what about a little bit town? You know, they have to really well really four I mean think about even the songs that that like Philip sings on and and Kimberly and so, you know, I was like, don't let this be like some excuse not to play our music. But I will say early on, probably just because I was such an alpha, it kind of looked like maybe I was going to be more of the lead singer. But the songs, it was just I don't know. As as the songs that really started coming to a head, I think as Lurie got her confidence too, because who had never really performed live that much, and so she was always kind of a little shy, and you could just slowly start to see her confidence in her book start to become, you know, more of a giant factor in the face of the group, especially in the second record and you got Needs You Now and American Honey. But I don't know, I just think it just it was always the way we looked at it. I mean, we always from our very first record wanted it to be a very balanced thing, and um, and then finally, I don't know, if you know, in the new record, Dave's got his first lead vocal and so but I don't know, I mean, it's always been a pretty equal thing, you know, is it deliberately equal? It is? I mean, we write so much music. I mean, it's not like we're sitting there going you got four songs, I got four the three script where people are arguing about but we want to make We want to make it. It's what makes us us, you know. And um, I think it naturally has always been something we've always wanted to do. And we're we're giant fans of each other's voice. I've said it, This is not blowing smoke. I really truly think Hillary doesn't have as big of a range as some other singers, like she can't sing up in the stratosphere in really though, But in her range, I think she's unbeatle. I think she's got one of the best tone in our genre in her spot of anybody. I really truly believe that. And um, we're just really big fans of each other's voices and we have a lot of respect for for that. And I don't know, as we reflect back for a second on the origin of the band. Whenever you guys name yourself and you call yourself Lady Annabelle, um, I would assume most people think that she's Lady Annabella oh yeah, oh yeah, And I mean, which is so funny. I mean, obviously with all that has gone on with their name. I mean it was the most silly, innocent way of naming a band. Literally, we're taking these pictures from the antebellem Holmes coming with a name. We were about to call ourselves Spring Springdale or something. We didn't know. We were just like all these names. Did you guys name yourself though, or did someone say that we did? We did? When we're looking through these pictures, like, that's a beautiful Annabelle, I'm home right there. I was like an about it sounds southern. It just sounds graceful. It sounds like muscle shoals or something, you know. I pictured like I pictured like Savannah and this thing. I don't know why I said lady, but I guess I was thinking like Scarlett or hair. I mean, it's so funny if I could go back to what made because I'll I came up with that name, and I remember like saying and I said it today and he goes, that sounds cool, And I was like, people are just gonna be intrigued. At the time, all you wanted were people to go what what's what's Lady Annabelle? And I was like, man, you know there's all these that are like cool bands, like Jane's Addiction and all thea's like like it gives it a little bit of mysterious vibe and um, and I was like, maybe there's this like counted lady that used to live there, this thing I don't know laying about and it's just sounds southern. And and then I didn't really think about it. And when we started going on tour, it's like, oh, so she's the lead singer. I was like, I was like, I'm an idiot, Like I mean, if I could go back, I mean, especially when we were going through this whole thing with her name change. I can't tell you how many nights I would like stay up going and I would come up with names in my head, like why didn't I call myself, you know, freaking green Grass. Then a screen because it was like it was so and how do you how do you how how do you? How can you convince people that it was just like it just came out of the thin blue her. I don't know why it just did. It just came out and it sounded southern. And I remember having so many people going. I won't name the artis, but I remember having like two or three artists like y'all think you all would be as successful without such a cool name, you know what I mean? And it was like for them it just felt cool. It just felt us. I don't know. I can remember I was working and I was still doing pop and hip hop in Austin, and you guys were doing a radio tour because you'd bring by the little pictures signed and his very early on, and I was like, lady Anna Belle on, what the heck is he even is that? But I was curious enough to go and check it out, I know, and you know, and I don't think we thought past that. We we didn't never thought past like what's gonna make someone just push the click on my Space and say what let me hear it? And I don't know even thought it's kind of cool that would be like oh, and then a guy singing, I don't know what? Maybe why when you guys going you play in the open for your brother and it's the three of you. Were you doing what you and Dave did where you were just playing under your name or did you even have a name or did you have that name? But we had that we have that name by then we first before our first gig. I mean we initially started I think are or my Space. It might have been under Springdale or something like that. I think it was a road called Springdale. And I remember like telling that to somebody's or like that sounds cheesy and you know, and we're like, oh, it sounds a little bit too much like Sugarland too, you know, I mean, we're just the name is It's so hard to come with the name because everything, I mean, the Beatles goals, you know, all the mascots are basically taken. Yeah, and uh and so you know, we didn't want to be like two dudes in a chick or Hillary Dave, you know, Charles Band. So it was just like, you know, you could just come up with this name. But and yeah, it was just very intrigued to people and it worked. Was it a frenzy, a bidding war or you guys just got into with one label who believed in you know, it was it was pretty wild. Um, So Hillary had had this development deal on Sony. Unbeknownst to Dave and I, we didn't know what a development deal meant. I mean we had just moved to town and uh, and so she had had a development deal, I guess, and had done like a final showcase for them and Joe Gilani they passed. And this was like two or three months before she met me, or maybe a month before she met me. And she said it was almost like she says all the time, it's like one door closed and got opened another one. And I think, truly, she'll admit, and I'll admit that we brought out the best of each other. I needed something. I needed something to make me unique and define my sound because I was kind of sitting here floating between am I going to be like a pop singer and R and B singer, a country singer? Because I love it all and I think being that's the one problem about being in cover bands, as you can sit there and be like, blame it all on my roots, and then you go, you know, all night long, and then you'd be like Marion Maroon five, you know, look get a bound and you're just like, who am I? I gotta find my sound, and you know, having her, I started bringing my register down and getting this kind of cool, you know, kind of kind of Greg allmond thing going to my voice, and she brought that out of me even more. And I think for me, I brought out some confidence in her, especially in the performance side, to just let loose and to just trust yourself. And uh, and also give her a sound, because you know, when you listen to some of the songs she was writing, it was kind of like, Okay, that's what all the girls are doing, you know, like what's going to separate you from you know, all the rest of the female country artists. And so I think I helped Dave and I helped give her this sound too, and and I don't know, it just felt like a cool package and there wasn't much like that around that time, you know. And so yeah, we we do this this showcase it at third Lensley and Victoria's Shaw hit invite all these people, I know, you know, Uh, Hillary's parents had invited some some industry friends, and slowly but surely it just grew. And I remember one of the last shows we had there at Third and Lendsley, we had pretty much every label represented and uh, Paul Worley like just was the first when we got done, jumped up and like rushed to the stage was like, I want to work with you guys, and he was at Warner Brothers and we eventually wanted to sign with Capitol Records, and he I don't know if this is true, but he said he left Warner Brothers specifically so he could work with us, and he became just strictly a producer again. And you know, did our first our first four records, the first record when you guys go in and you start to cut songs as a new group, did they have a lot of the songs laid out for you? How much of you? I don't know. It was that. I think that was the coolest thing. We had a pretty a pretty um alpha manager to Gary Boorman, he manages Keith Urban and um, you know we're we're with corn caption on now. But Gary did it did honestly a great job. I have I really do have a lot of respect for for him, and he it was kind of like, y'all gotta give these guys some artistic freedom, and but they never pushed. I mean, I remember the A and R team was a little kind of confused, you know. They wanted to kind of dig their heels in a little bit and send us some songs and we're like, no, man, I'm telling you. And I remember there was a big discussion on whether Love Don't Live Here really was a hit or just sounded cool because it took a minute and a half for the course to come in, and that was like, wow, that is a long time, especially now. But yeah, yeah, and there's two verses. I mean, it's like this whole verse and then I go, yeah, boom bump on it, and that's another verse, and then a chorus, then a verse, than a chorus and outra. So don't even have three courses. It's two courses, and so it's very left footed and uh. And I remember them being like, it's not we just don't know. And I remember us maybe I just didn't. I didn't know that I couldn't be this way, and I was like, no, this is the first thing. Will trust me. This is going to be huge. And I think our energy and our confidence just exuded. And I'm telling you, I was a more confident artist those first three or four records than I am now. It's like, once you know, a little failure feels like you start second guessing yourself. And that time I didn't know what failure felt like and I mean I was just like, we're the greatest, We're the greatest things that slicepread just trust us, this is going to work. Let's go a nothing to lose, I have nothing to like. And I felt the same way about the only part of my career and asked me nothing to So it was balls out, Let's go taking chances, big risk, and that's the truth. I mean it really there's something about that, that innocence that there's just a beautiful there's a beautiful concept and just the not knowing, I mean even being in that thing. I didn't know who Joe Glani or Mike Dungan was, or Paul Worthy and Hillary before that show at Thorn, Lindsay was like so nervous. It's like, well did you guys, Oh, there's just all these people. It's like, I don't know who those people are. And so, you know, it was just such an interesting thing that now you know, I will say, after having you know, certain singles flop that you thought were gonna be great, it was like, you know, once that you really pushed hard for that don't work, then you start going, maybe I don't know what I'm talking about, And that's when you get you know, maybe it's a healthy thing. You know again, I mean it's like anything you just kind of get a little bit of that second guessing going through your life. What was the first single you guys put out was it Love, Don't Love, Don't Live Here? And then we put out looking for a Good Time, which I will I will be honest, we were hesitant about that. I think they were just really wanting to push this youthful, fun thing. But like we listened to that song now and Hillary especially is like, it's so not us, Like, you know, it's like talking about like a one night stand. I mean, I'm not gonna say, like listen, I'm i mean, I've, I've I'm the wildest of the group, but like Hillary Scott singing it about having a one night stand is not Hillary Scott at all. And and it didn't do that well. I think it went to light number eleven or something. And then finally it was like, let's get back to the great songs off this record, and we put out run to You, and that was our first number one, So you've got run to You hits. The number one is needs You Now after run to You, which is the fourth single, so you at your first project. A lot of first projects. The first single off the second record was the first single off the second record, So I'm talking to Dave. That song almost didn't even make that record, almost record and had had to be heard back like an old voice memoir. So so this is by that time, Okay, So first record, we do this, and I believe we wrote all songs off the first record. Maybe there was one that was outside, but I think we had record did it before we even like, I think Victoria Shaw had written it, and I remember we heard and we're like, oh, we want to sing that. But we didn't cut any outside like pitches from the label at that time. And by the second record, we were definitely feeling that like, okay, this is this is big. And so we've written all these songs and we go into the song meeting and we're just just, you know, trying to help narrow down the songs because you get very much in your head. You you don't know what's good or bad by that time. If you've written sixty songs, it's like you always love the newest thing you've written. And we're in there and uh, we're playing all these songs and and I don't know what made me open it up, but I was like, oh, yeah, there's one I'm missing. There was something we wrote with Josh here, but it's a crappy little work tape, but I will say the verses kind of cool. And I played it and everybody's like, it's hard to hear. I mean, it's like something you recorded on your phone. We didn't have the harmonies worked out yet. In Autumn House and Melissa spilman Um both were like, that's cool. Like I don't know what it is, but it's cool. Just try it. And so our process at this time, Paul Worthy's process was to go into a rehearsal space before we went in the studio and just work up songs and work them up and see what works. And so I think we took let's say twenty songs and then we were able to narrow it down. And I remember like when we started working on Needs You Now, and all these different hooks started coming together, we were like, this is cool. This will be our favorite song off the record that won't be a single. You know how those are. It's like all my favorite records have like songs that never were singles, which are the greatest songs and um, I feel like a lot of our records have been there. I'm like, you know, it's like everyone's so afraid of putting out the ballot, you know, and it's like those are my favorites. But yeah, so we we end up cutting it and I think we cut we cut. We cut them in batches, um, and it was like we cut like six songs, and we were out on the road and our label was like, you know, we had had this like playing for them to come over and listening like the first batch of songs, but we had ran only had like some show we needed to go do, and so we were like, well, y'all just go listen and just let us know what what they think. And and we were like, they're gonna want our kind of law for a single, fun tempo duet out of gate big old hit and are I can't remember who Texas. I think it was like publicists, um, and she was like, they're losing their mind over needs you now. They're like we had to play it like multiple times and we're like, no kidding, needs you now? Wow? How about that? And you know it ended up changing our lives. Yeah, when did you realize that rocket ship was truly a rocket ship and different than we'll say the race car that the last record away. I don't know. I mean, obviously, there's so many different times. It's it's hard to remember. We were so busy and I didn't know any different. I didn't know any different. It was like, oh, this is this is what happens. But I do remember Rundy was a grind to get it up the charts. It almost died it like thirty and Jimmy Harnen, who were with now, was at Capital Um and I think that's why I wanted to go back and work with Jimmy Hardens so much, because I could, like I would be out on the golf course with him and he was on the phone the whole time. I was like, he's not very fun to play golf with, but that's who I want on my side. Um and he he really, I believe, single handedly pushed run to You through to get it hurt because songs like that. I me think of some songs like too, like like a girl Crush needed to just be heard to get through those and it really doesn't. Songs people don't realize don't really get hurt until their top twenty, not really not enough to soak into the ether of people's minds, and so it broke thirty, got a twenty, almost died broke twenty, and once it got up it kind of finally took off. But Kneed You Now was so easy. It was like every station was like, we're in, we love it, can't stop playing it, and it just blew and I remember being like, this is different and we had never had a song just like sell like this UM, and it just felt different. Well when did people start to go, hey, we're gonna actually tried this a hot ac or we're gonna see it's crossing over to pop? That was I believe I can't remember his name, but I believe the Nashville pop station was the first one to do it. UM if I'm not mistaken, And it's so funny if you listen. We had the cup we had to do. There was like a couple of stations that wouldn't play the slide guitar because they thought it was too country, and we were like, I think they thought it was a steel guitar, and it was like I remember being like, screw them, they don't play it. And then it was like no, this is a big song. So we changed the the so he goes dude the um where I saw if you notice on the on the pop version, it's just like kind of more of like just a eighties you know, kind of kind of riffy guitar apart. But I remember, you know, once it started getting played over there and really take it off, you know, it just it just took on a different life. I mean, obviously they're the Grammys. We've we got to perform it on the Grammys. And if I'm not mistaken, they had made a mistake. They thought Needs You Now had already gone number one or something. I think they felt they were getting run to You and Needs You Now mixed up, and they let us because because oh that's what it was. They felt Needs You Now was what we were nominated for. We were actually nominated for Run to You in the Country category in the country category, And if I'm not mistaken, they didn't realize. But but it was too late and then that the song was doing what it was doing, and Gary was like, no, we're gonna do need You Now, And so we do Need You Now on the Grammys, and I think it had just gone like around top ten or something, maybe number one, maybe top ten country country got it, and once we performed it on the Grammys, it took off and took on a whole another life. And that's when to all the other pop stations that were kind of you know, it just kind of blew up. Were you so busy that you didn' actually notice how famous you were getting? Oh? Yes, I still to this day being a being a guy in a group. I mean, there's such a beautiful annemity to it. It's like I've always thought it was the most beautiful thing. Mean, yes I'm tall walking through the airport, but people are still like, I recognize you, but I still don't really know. Are you from a little big town or you what? What are you famous? Are your baseball player or something? And there's just a beautiful an anemity to it. Um. You know, you get to go kind of be this freaking rock star in front of all these people and then literally go off and I could go to the Applebee's after the show and maybe one person would recognize me, which is great. And I've always thought that's the beautiful thing about being in a group, especially a country group. Um. But it was definitely different. I don't know. I think the three of us like humbled each other so much. We never like felt famous, and so each of us anytime like someone maybe try to like do something that was a little too famous or put like sunglasses onto the airport, we like, what are you doing? Stop doing that. In a few minutes, I want to talk about some songs that you wrote that other artists cut. There were massive songs. Put your headphones on for just second. I want to play some stuff from the new record. Am I rambling? Horrible? You're great at this? Okay, this is what this is? All right? Good? I just feel like I ramble. That's good. I'm not very good at like succinct answers. That's why this is perfect for you. This is the only this is the only place you should talk for now on in this room with me, and we'll just service it to everybody else. Uh, talk of this town. It's you three, Jordan Reynolds. I know if I'm working with Dan and Shay and the Nicole Galleon, who I know pretty well as well. When there are five of you in a room, those two powerhouses there. I was about say to the best song as we have, and I ask you this question. Honestly, when there are five of you in a room, are you going all right? We have five great songwriters here, are you going all right? This song? Is each of us like, no, you're not a no, no, not at all, Because I know some folks who don't want to write with more than three people because they're like, if this song does hit, I don't want to split the money this much. I mean maybe you know, if anybody has that would have that concern, it should be a songwriter. I mean for us, you know, I've always said it's you know, we're which is why we cut a lot of outside songs. I mean, we make our money on the road. You know, we're we're selling T shirts and stuff. These songwriters are the ones that you know or sometimes in my opinion, getting very screwed with what's going on, you know, with with streaming and streaming and um and so if anything. You know, these are two powerhouses. They don't you know, they could just the three of them? Are the two of them could just write a song and send it to us and if we love it, we'll probably cut it. We're we don't have any ego with that. But I will say when the three. When Dave and Hillary and I can get together in a group with another writer, it just becomes our sound war and we know where our vocal parts need to go. You know, there's times that obviously we've cut outside songs, but you know, and there's been some that have been sent that I was like, it just didn't fit our voice, was like damn. But when you were in a room with with two writers like that, you kind of go into it going, there's no way we're gonna write a bad song. It would be impossible to write a bad song. Now, it doesn't mean there's not times we'll go in and write songs that just barely don't make the record. I mean there's and I and and sometimes I get such like do we make the right choice? You know, there's so many songs for every artist. I guarantee you Luke, Dan and Shay as much as they right have, you know, hundreds of hits out there just that you know we'll never see the light of day, which is kind of a shame, but but you know you're gonna go into the room and get something good with these two. Let me play and have a few tracks. I wanted to talk about specifically, here's that I talk to this town exactly. I don't want to be I'm gonna go to the second song and not that we're gonna do this all chronological. But I was my friends with Ryan Heard, who was one of the writers with you on this, on this next time. I just saw this morning. I was telling you right when I walked in here we were he was we're at our little I was working out and he was hitting golf balls. He uh had also posted which is why I looked this up. He had posted, Hey, thanks for letting me be a part of writing a little bit of this record. And it's you know this song here what a song can do. And it was you Ryan Heard, Sam Ls, Laura Belts, let me play this and a question you sn'll make it change? Sing just cool easy. You know you talk about being deliberately equal when you're singing. What about the songwriting process? And you know, because you have uh this the single now which Hillary wrote, you were not on that writing team. Are you guys deliberate about how many songs get on because it's hard, it's hard to be by. That's when you write no no doubt. Um. You know there was a time By the way, what a Song Can Do probably is my favorite song I've been a part of writing and four or five years. Why that specifically it is the sound of it is so quintessential lady a UM. To me, it's got the back and forth with Hillary, but it's got that kind of a little bit of petty Tom petty Southern. You know. It just reminds me of like, what if I never get over you need you now. It's in the same vein of all those little things that I feel like when we're at our best, that's the sound of our band. But and I love Ryan heard he does that so well. I told him. I was like, we could like that little writing group right there along with David Hillary, we could write an entire record together, you know, especially Sprinkling, like Jordan Reynolds and Nicole Galley, and it's like we all love the same types of sounds and music. Um. But this record in particular, you know, it was written during the pandemic and I I needed something to take my mind off everything, and I wrote almost every day and so it naturally was just that thing of like with this record. I mean, there were records in the past. I will say maybe around like the fourth or fifth record where you can tell like you're like, man, David, Hillary not into this song because they're not on it, or they just are they really listening to it. We're so at this point now, we're like, we're so in a weird way. I hate to say that, but we are like very kind of eagle lists egolists when it comes to the spand right now, we just want to stay relevant and make great music. And and and I mean, the first time I heard the funny thing is is like Hillary didn't write much at all this past year. I wrote an insane amount. Dave wrote a pretty solid amount, and Hillary didn't write that much. But whence she wrote, she is like when she wrote, she wrote like some of the best songs she's ever written. Worship What I Hate is probably the most powerful song off the record. Anybody that gets the record, I'm not you know. She wrote it with Dave, Um, Natalie Himby and um Amy Wash Amy wash writes a lot with Ed Shearing, And I remember hearing that and being like, if I was in the room and you threw out a title worship what I Hate, I would have been like, we're not writing that. That's too heavy, and so we've kind of learned to probably saying like a lady. I was like, like a lady. We're named lady a like a lady, which is kind of what's cool about it. I mean, like it's a little too feminine for us. We can't do that, man. I mean, we've got two guys in this group, and so we've learned that sometimes it's also nice and it gets us out of our own way, because when I get in the writing room, I'm I'm pretty opinionated, and I can't help myself, but really kind of insert uh in a big way, uh my opinions, and you know, so we've learned too that it's nice to step away. But we are at our best I think when the three were start in the righting room together. But but naturally this record. The reason I have so many is just I wrote so much. And what I love about David Hillary two is like I mean, when they first heard what a song could do, they're like, that's first off, that's got to be a single. At some point they were like, this is one of the best songs. You know, it was our story. You know, that song feels like such our story. So here is you talk about it. I also was going to highlight this. This is worship what I hate? That's the ultra I've heard it before, I know, but played the are you able to actually play play the some of the choruses? Mike, what do you have? I thought you were telling me like, this is a song you haven't heard before. I like, no, I know, but but but but it's some of the best Charleston lady, but some of the best lyrics. Man, um, you want it from the star it, man, just do it. It's like two in the morning here. But do you like the first first? Of course, I just this what's one of the best really played that much on a podcast? There's just music rights issues on Oh got you well? I get started from the first verse. Okay, okay, that's okay, that's of course nothing. You want it back? This is great? No, that's great. Okay, Body that I didn't have to play. I'm seeing every flog fame, insecurities and you're like trying to build a church out of Volma her when it really needs grace Hi game side something that's not the one of the best voices in country music rights, not only in this song. What stuck out to me, it's not just that she's a great singer, but you can also hear her be vulnerable with that voice at times, I'm telling you, man, when she's when she's at her best, she like like there was a song on the one before which was the type track, and then there was a song on the one before called Hurt, And we always try to find this that one thing that just breaks your heart and it's always everybody's favorite off the record that never becomes a single like that. That was her to me in this song. Was you hear her not be super strong vocal, hillary her be a great singer, but also great communicator with her boy exactly you can tell. I mean that song is about, you know, what we were all doing, especially during a pandemic. Just everyone's just sitting there doing these unhealthy things, drinking too much. Lord knows. I was uh looking at our phones all the time, comparing ourselves to others, and and it was like, you know, I worship what I hate, Like I'm this is like my idol. Now, this phone is my idol. This this is you know. And it was like when I heard it, I was floored. I was just blown away and I and I literally texted David Hillary. I was like, I'm so glad I wasn't there that day. I think I was like, I was golfing. I was like, guys, I got like one of I think I was probably golf with Darius. It was like when Darius wants to golf, I always say yes and um how And I was like, man, I just I've been writing a lot of y'all just go and do this. And I just was like, gosh, that's for me. I'll ask you about one more song. And mostly it's not so much about this song, but there's a song friends Don't Let Friends, which where was that playing this? Mike? Why has this been played recently? We did it on New Music Nice we did Yeah, that's what it is, Okay, okay. So we were talking about this song and it's you Carly t R Darius, and it just reminded me of the awkward when you have to ask somebody or you asked someone to do a project or song with that. Do you ever asked somebody and they say no, yeah, oh yeah, you ever, I'm assuming you it's a it's a given take, or I'm yeah yeah, and we've been asked. I mean honestly, Like, I mean, I've asked several artists and they were just like, man, I mean literally like I've been on you know most most of the time. It's like I'm on so many And the truth is it is I mean, think of all these artists, I mean, how many other projects there on. And there was a couple that that you know, I was like, I get it, like you know, and you're like, they're like, man, I got a single about it, come out with this part. You know, You're like, I totally understand, because the last thing you want to do is put them on a song, and then you don't get single rights for those out there listening, Like just because they're on this song, you know, we'll still have to run through like we'll we'll have to for us to put this song out to radio, like we'll have to ask Darius Is people and in Universal and um if it's not a single. Though, at some point, I'm gonna I'm gonna I'm gonna raise a sting because it's one of my favorite songs. I wrote this with tr down at the beach. We were literally watching our kids play and we had a little beer in our hand and we were like friends on that friends Rik alone, we gotta write that and so yeah, what a song can do? Uh? New record? Fourteen songs, A lot of songs. I mean, you know, considering what people are putting records now, and a lot of people are focusing on four or five song packages. Why was it important to you guys to put out such a robust Well, I don't know. I mean, we just had a lot of material. I mean, but you don't know if you notice we'd put out you know, put them out in chapters like seven first and seven later, And I don't know if that was the right or wrong move. We're trying to just see if people could wrap their heads and consume the music a little bit more that way, because not from a necessarily sales standpoint, Just like for me, I will, I will, be honest, it's hard for me to wrap my head around more than about eleven songs, and and honestly, moving forward, who knows if we'll ever do as much you know, I mean, because I really do. Whatever a year that goes by, it's like this is a singles game, but or at least you know, maybe the thing for me would be beautiful. It's like put out like these little four songs, the EPs where you've got like the radio single, then you've got some other stuff. But it's just I don't know, Man, always breaks my heart how much music we write that we feel really proud of and you just wanted to get out there. And I don't know, now we're getting to the spot where it's like we don't have to be the biggest thing in the world. I don't you know, we've we've in my favorite acts. Man. I mean, I'll be honest with you. You know, I was probably really focused on their first three or four records and then kind of like I'm still a big fan of like Bruce Springsteen, but I haven't bought one of his new records, and and I totally get it. We're if we're not selling or consuming as much as we did in the beginning, where you know, but I do think this record and in our last record, Ocean is some of the best music we've ever put out. And um, we finally have just gotten out of our way of trying to like put out or right what we think. Like you guys you know are gonna love don't don't look at me. I have with it. I know that. But you know what I mean, I've gotten further out of that game than than I ever right, Um, when you talk about artists, it's just what you're saying to me that I had the same conversation with Luke Brian. We were flying to Idle together and he was like, man, he was like, I've had my time. He's like, I always want to be the guy, but I've had my time being the guy. He's like, it's time for the next people that are the guy to be the guy. Well, he's always going to be sorry to keep me and you're Mike, He's always gonna be He's Luke Bryant. But yeah, I mean, at some point you've got to like the only way this genre survives is for us to give these new artists a chance. And they've learned off of us and seeing what we've doing, and I hope they take it and take it to a whole another level. If anything, I'm just looking for, you know, that was why I get really obviously when Marion came out, she was just so like such a breath of fresh air, you know, Ingrid Andrewson, I'm I'm waiting for more of that, for people to start taking some chances a little bit, and uh and and us as a genre to take some more chances because there is a lot of the same out there. And that's okay too. I mean, it's very it's it's great, it's fun, it's easily digestible. But man, I like I want, I'm ready for more because I need it too. Man. I thrive off of like discovering new music and and uh, you know, I'm ready for the next big thing. Before we run here, I do want to highlight a few songs that you wrote that other artists we mentioned Luke uh two thousand nine, Luke Bryan and do I Baby. Was this your first songwriting success at all? Yes, well at all outside of the band? Yes, yes, meaning did you write it for you guys? We just I don't know what made us. Um. I think we just became good friends with Luke, and I don't necessarily know if we were trying to like get an outside cut or I was just like Luke, we should write some time, and um, yeah, we just let's see. This was so The funny thing this was we wrote this around kind of the time probably Running You was doing its thing. The reason I remember around the time it was is because we had need You Now at number one, and do I was at number two, So talk about as a songwriter. I remember being like, uh yeah, cool and now I'm like going back like that doesn't happen, dude. And I remember calling up Mike Dungan you were on the same label, and I was like, dude, he'll need you now. Do I go up to number one? He goes, we can't, Like you can't need you now right now? Like this is a needs you now? Set up there for like four weeks. Why do I would like set up there like waiting for its turn. And then finally we had dropped just enough for Dye to get in there and get the number one. And I remember being as a songwriter like this is pretty dad, I'm cool, but um man, Luke, I mean we can't. I can't take a ton of credit. Luke had this idea and the course was half as long, and I was like, of course, is so houcky. Luke. I was like, we gotta double that chorus and then it's got to come back to the do I he had to do? I turn't you want to don't want to kiss your baby? Sign to me wanting your drive? You crazy baby? Do. I that's as long as it was. It was like, no, man, keep it going. And so we I feel like some of Dave and I was pop melody, you know, kind of got in there and uh and you know, and it was Luke's first number one, but I feel like it opened it opened him up in a big way that he wasn't just this kind of one trick pony. But obviously nothing did for Luke what Country girls shake it from Me did for Luke, right, But it was cool to be a part of his first number one. And and by the way, you have I believe eleven number ones with Lady A that you've written. So what I mean songwriter? I mean that you was just a songwriter that you weren't singing with your own voice on our record. And so that's um, I grabbed a cap Darius homegrown honey, Yeah, honey again, when you write this, what's the what's the mindset you're writing for? Darius? Um? We knew. I had told Darris, like, you know, I was like, we've never written together, man, have we never written together? This is crazy? We're like best friends, which is the same thing with like Thomas Rhett, He's got two songs off this new records, like we've been friends for freaking seven eight years, Like how have we never written together? And the only two songs we've written made this record, Friends and lent Friends and in a song called things he handed down, But Darius, we were there and uh, and so I went over to Nathan Chapman's UM studio a little bit before and I was like, we're about to write with Darris. We gotta get something kind of brewed up, and uh, we kind of had this little chorus is honey, honey, so money? And I was like, oh man, that sounds like that could be a cool lady A song. I was like, and I was like, if he doesn't like this, we're gonna save this for lady A. And the minute we played it for he was like, that's awesome. And so, you know, we were just off to the races. But um, but yeah, that day we were in my head. We were trying to write for Luke, I mean, Darius one more two eighteen, Brett Young here tonight. Were you guys touring to I feel like we're touring together when you wrote this? We were, And I don't know if he still does this. He can't write without a whiskey in his hand. He is so funny, like because he's like he's superstitious or yes, I don't know if a superstitious or it just calms him down. He's not like I don't want to say this and not and I hope he wouldn't think I like him like throwing under the bus because he's not like I drink more than than than Brett. I mean, he's very controlled guy. But like I remember we wrote it like eleven o'clock and I was like, do you are you drinking whiskey at eleven? It's like do we need to talk? We have a talk, and you know, I'd like just woken up. I had like a coffee by and I was like, and you're a rock star, dude, He goes, Dude, I can't write without having a whiskey man. And uh So, anyways, that one, I had just had a little bit of that melody the of the end, and I was trying to write for him. He probably thought he was trying to write for for me, which happens a lot. I wrote a song with Marion and Ryan heard and I thought I was going in there to write a song with with Maren for her record and uh and and she's sang in the demo and she's like and she was like, Hillary is gonna kill this. I was like, I was like, no, Maren, You're gonna kill this. And uh, it's so funny. It almost made our record. It may make a future record, but uh. But yeah. The last things I'm gonna ask you are a bit about the name change, but not really what you expect about the name change. I don't mind at all. I'm not I'm really not that interested in in the drama of that. I mean, I think we kind of all saw that play out. But it's like all the murch you had with Lady Annabellum written, like those are the questions I have, Like what the crap do you do with It's like a world serious team to finish a second, like you got it all printed out? What do you do with it? Then? I don't know. I mean, listen, I love you know. I just think we're in a time now where like when you know better, you know, when you know better, you do better. And we had never thought about that name. I mean I had talks with so many of my you know, my black friends, and they were like you know, I never really thought about it, but when I look at it, you know, we like because I know you guys, and I know that's not but they were like I could see how that just and I don't know, man, with everything that's going on, it's like, I don't want to be a part of any I don't want to have anything associated with us that would make any human being think that that was any part of our hearts because it could not be any more different. Um. I just think it's just one of those I call one of those little blind spots, especially when you grow up in the South. You're like you kind of you kind of in a weird way, romanticize some some things around here that you're not necessarily associated it with the bad. You're associating it with like the grace this, and you know what I mean. And I think that was kind of naively kind of where we were in that and and there's a lot of people that I thought we folded or whatever. And it's like, well, you know what, then if you if you don't want to be a part of the conversation of change and just opening ourselves up to like making a better world, and that's fine, you know, dig your heels in. But that was what it was all about. And yeah, I mean probably a lot of tea shirts out there. There was a lot of like all kinds of stuff we you know, and people still will call us lady and a Bellman. I slipped and have done that on the operating stage and I was like, I was like, god, no, listen, that's okay. I mean, same thing with the Dixie Chicks. They never had there's no way they had any intention of that being offensive. And there's a lot of people are like, well it's not offensive. It's like, well, no, kid, it's not offensive to you. And Lady and Bella is not offensive to you. Listen. It wasn't offensive to me. It's not necessarily I don't associate those things with that word, but a lot of people do. And when you can make a change, especially when people called us, you know, lady a. That probably would have been the most difficult thing if we didn't because think about the brand recognition. That would have been the most difficult thing if we didn't have a name that already everyone associated. I mean from the day day one. I mean I remember, like the first time we went on Today's Show, it was like lady A taking over the pavilion. This was like two thousand seven, so everyone's been calling us lady A. But it was a very difficult time. I mean really wild Um never been in our lives kind of misinterpreted like like that or whatever, or you know, And because it's always been about the music and that's that's what we wanted about. That was one reason you know that wrote that song on Talk of this Town was like, I don't want to be the talcoless town. It's got a little double meaning there, um. But man, we learned a lot about ourselves and it kind of made us even more passionate about being a part of of a band that represents love and a welcome and vironment and and putting out music that makes people feel good. I don't know. So for us, it's like, I know there's something beautiful that's going to happen, and I know there's something beautiful that's that's out there that you know, we're we're all, we all are going to make changes and people are always so resistant to it, and uh, I don't know. I just I'm hoping that there's gonna be some beauty from the from the name change at some point because I will say right now, it's it's been it's been pretty tough to be misinterpreted so bad with your intentions, especially people that I don't know, you never even tried to know, you never even tried. They're only basing their only knowledge of you off a headline that they read exactly and and and and trust me, there's so much more to that in a very crazy way that people wouldn't even understand, you know. But but listen, we're just we're trying to do our best like everybody else. And I think as long as you try and and um and you know, try to leave the world a little bit better. You know, I don't want my my old boy as he grows up and he's in history class going dad, well what did you mean by that? And what you now? Because when I learned about I was like, well that's hard to explain. I don't know, and so I don't know. It just we grew up, man. You grow up and you start looking at the world and going all right, man, we can all do better. And that's just the bottom line. We can. And sometimes it takes a pandemic and you know, and and and a lot of things that happened that that kind of change the world for the better, you know, And it takes time. It's it's it's still going to take a long, long, long time. But there's a there's some beauty I think that's going to come out of this pandemic and everyone having some forced stillness and um, it's also gonna be a lot of anxiety and and and therapy we're all gonna have to go through after this. What a song can do is the new record? Uh going to talk to you? Yeah? Man, I mean it's not like we don't ever talk, but no, usually it's with the three of us, or it's I think the last time I saw he was in the hallway the opry and everybody's got their families or you know, people with them. How you like a married life? Man, it's good. Just feel any different, are you? It feels yes, it feels different in that I always feel like people in my life are going to leave me because growing up that's what happened. But dad left, my mom died, everybody left. But it's gonna be hard for her to do that legally, Like like that's the that's the difference. I always I always felt like, man, she's she's so freaking smart, she's so pretty everything she shouldn't be with me. And I always thought, well, eventually she's going to figure it out. But now if she figures it out, it's just gonna take a couple more steps, and I feel like in the midst of those steps I can convince her otherwise. So, yes, it has been so great that I get scared. It's so great. Well that's that's good. At least it's so great. I mean, dude, the first I remember the first year, I mean being my my wife, you know, uh, sorry, Mom and Dad. We lived in sin for a year, and it was like, you know, once we moved in, it was it didn't feel that much different because we had already kind of been together, you know, but and we were dated for like six months then or four months or so. Then the pandemic hit and we were stuck together, really had to get to know each other. Yeah, and then it was like, oh, yeah, this is for her, Well then you're awesome. Yeah, then you if you got through that, you get through anything. Anybody that literally we're dating and got through the pandemic together or probably on a heck of a path. It's been awesome, so awesome that I'm scared to say it's been awesome. Um okay, well well we'll leave it there. You guys check out the new record. Um good, good talk talk. You nailed this, man. We just did an hour rambly and not not ramble at all on ramble j over here, No no, no, you conversationally and how you communicated, how you should communicate. It's hard to communicate on any sort of show when you have nine minutes and three people. As much as you love those three people, I was telling them before you came in, it's like, all I got to spend enough time with Dave. I s been enough time with Charles. I guess been enough time with Hillary, and then I gotta make everybody feel like they're walcome and then nope, time to go. Second segments over. So yeah, for sure, send my loved everything and you should get You should get the two of them one separately. It would be interesting. So Dave has been on Okay, cool, Dave came over for a long time. But David, Dave sent me to on site basically yeah, so I mean he did me too. When you guys, when you guys had the controversy or the like I was reaching out today of like, because I've been a lot of trouble and I've not recently, but through my career I've been sued. I've been and so I reached out to Dave and was like, hey, man, I'm thinking about you. Here's what I know. Here's what I'm seeing from an outside because you know he's been I mean, he sent me to on site, which is the place to go. I wouldn't take that lightly. Yeah, but that's, you know, a guy that I trust. Yeah, Yeah, he's he's he's one of the best, the most genuine and one of the biggest lessons our first manager said he had. He'd been around managing every act under the sun. He goes, here's you're famous. N Till you've been sued at least two or three times. People don't come after people without that are are are aren't successful? You know what I mean? I mean when they see there's like a whole group of lawyers and stuff out there too, looking for little little ways of making money off of off off of people. I mean, this is just it is what it is. It don't You're not alone, There isn't There isn't an artist in this town that's successful that hasn't been sued for something. I remember hearing a story one time that Bruce Springsteen got sued by someone in that had said he had written a poem in jail, and it was easier to give the guy like thirty grand than to fight it with the lawyers. And that's what they bet on. It's so messed up. It's the it's it's just I can't even get it. It's so ikey. And that's why my even my car insurance is so high, honestly, like, I have an umbrella insurance policy that it's like if somebody hits you and they see it's it's automatic. There's money to be made out there. There's people that are prized that are gonna come and try to get it. All right, you go, Charles Kelly at Charles Kelly on Instagram. Lady is got a lady ya, he's got a new record and uh, we'll see you soon. Yeah, man, where there is m hm