CNN
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The Chicks will carry out the Nationwide Anthem on Thursday night time on the Democratic Nationwide Conference, a number of sources informed CNN.
The nation music group – previously referred to as the Dixie Chicks – are set to take the stage on the closing night time of the DNC, to kick off the night when Vice President Kamala Harris will make her speech.
The Chicks performing on the Nationwide Anthem is a notable reserving for the conference – not simply due to nation music’s traditionally conservative-leaning fanbases – however due to the band’s previous that has infamously intertwined with politics.
In 2003, earlier than the invasion of Iraq, the band’s lead singer Natalie Maines stated at a live performance that the group, which bought its begin in Dallas, didn’t endorse the struggle and have been “ashamed the president of america is from Texas.”
Their remarks about then-President George W. Bush triggered boycotts and backlash from followers, leading to nation stations throughout the nation pulling the group’s music from the radio. On the time, in March 2003, CNN reported that “station managers stated their choices have been prompted by calls from irate listeners who thought criticism of the president was unpatriotic.”
This won’t be the primary conference look for The Chicks, who additionally performed at the virtual 2020 DNC throughout the pandemic. Each of this 12 months’s political conventions have made way more of a splash, returning to their large-scale, stay and in-person codecs. The DNC, specifically, has introduced a revitalized Hollywood vitality with a slew of celeb appearances, performers, hosts and a lively music-filled roll call.
The Chicks – made up of Maines, Martie Maguire and Emily Strayer – are one of many best-selling feminine bands and nation teams in music historical past. The band has gained 13 Grammys, 10 CMA awards and eight ACM awards.
The Chicks are the newest nation stars to be recruited by the DNC this week, showcasing a shift within the historic leanings of many artists within the style – and maybe a few of their audiences, who the Harris-Walz marketing campaign hopes will flip as much as the polls. In recent times, as new artists have risen within the nation music scene, the style has seen some youthful and extra progressive stars.
On Monday, nation singer Mickey Guyton performed on opening night time on the DNC.
“For me, that is past a style of music,” Guyton informed CNN about her DNC efficiency. “That is about humanity. That is in regards to the tradition. That is about our nation, and I really feel honored to have the ability to witness historical past.”
On Wednesday, Maren Morris carried out on the conference. The singer is maybe probably the most vocal liberal nation star, talking loudly about LGBTQ+ rights and girls’s rights. In 2023, Morris informed the LA Times she was distancing herself from nation music due to the conservative-held views that she discovered problematic inside the business. “I believed I’d prefer to burn it to the bottom and begin over,” she informed the outlet of nation music. “Nevertheless it’s burning itself down with out my assist.”
In 2022, Morris bought right into a high-profile public spat with conservative nation star Jason Aldean over gender-affirming healthcare.
Aldean, who’s one in all Donald Trump’s largest supporters within the music business, attended the Republican Nationwide Conference final month. He didn’t carry out, however sat with Trump in his VIP field. When the previous president took the stage on the RNC, he hailed Aldean because the “largest star in nation music.”
Nation-rock star Child Rock carried out on the RNC, bringing chants of “struggle, struggle” and “Trump, Trump” right into a mashup of his songs “Cowboy” and “American Dangerous A—,” which he sang simply earlier than Trump took the stage for his speech. “He grew to become a pal of mine during the last ten years and he’s superb,” Trump stated of Child Rock. “Everybody loves him.”