13 minutes | Monday, 13 November 2023
'The CountryLine Songwriter Series', is where you'll hear from some of the most successful artists and songwriters working in Nashville today. Country music is all about storytelling and this is where you'll discover the stories from the people themselves of how they managed to find their way into such a competitive industry and rise to the top. What motivates and inspires them and what they've learnt along the way.
Lady A formed after members Hillary Scott, Charles Kelley and Dave Haywood met in Nashville, and after a few months of performing around the area, they signed with Capitol Nashville in 2007. The band’s first single, "Love Don't Live Here”, peaked at number three on the country charts. A self-titled debut album followed in April 2008, featuring the chart-topping single "I Run to You”, which also enjoyed crossover success as a Top 40 pop hit.
Within a year-and-a-half, Lady A's debut had gone platinum and earned a Grammy nomination, and the group enjoyed their newfound success while putting the finishing touches on a second album. “Need You Now”, appeared in early 2010, and its title track became the band’s highest-charting song to date, topping the country charts and peaking at number two on the Billboard Hot 100. It eventually sold over three million copies. The album experienced similar success, going gold during its second week of release, and reaching platinum status soon after. The band took a break from recording a third studio album in order to attend the Grammys, where they took home five awards.
Lady A’s third studio album, 2011's “Own the Night”, generated a hit single right out of the box, "Just a Kiss”, which became the trio's fastest-rising single yet and crossed over, topping Billboard's adult contemporary chart. Their next single, "Dancin' Away with My Heart”, reached number two on Billboard's country chart. Lady A then released the holiday album “On This Winter's Night”, in the fall of 2012; the record entered the Billboard Top Ten upon its release and was certified gold in the U.S.
In May 2013, Lady A issued “Golden”, their fourth full-length studio album. Preceded by the hit single "Downtown”, the album entered the Billboard charts at number one. The trio quickly followed Golden with "747", in the fall of that year; the record's first single "Bartender", became a Top Ten smash prior to the album's release. "747", also produced two other modest hits -- "Freestyle" and "Long Stretch of Love".
Lady A took a hiatus in 2016, with Charles Kelley and Hillary Scott both pursuing solo projects, and then returned in the summer of 2017 with the soft and mellow busbee-produced “Heart Break”, which was nominated for a Grammy Award.
The band returned to Ireland to perform at Dublin’s 3Arena in October 2017 and chatted with Stuart Banford.