After nearly 17 years of controversy, The Dixie Chicks are finally being played on country radio again, and somehow , people are still mad.
Riddle me that.
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First of all, before we dive into this, it’s important that I gear your attention to how truly remarkable The Dixie Chicks were — and still are.
Not only did they make some of the biggest bangers in country music history, but they were also sharply outspoken about their opinions.
Instead of avoiding controversial topics or politics in fear of being ostracized, they challenged them head on.
Unfortunately, that is what got them banned from country radio in the first place.
It all went down in 2003.
News had surfaced globally about the United States’ impending invasion of Iraq, under the leadership of then-President George W. Bush.
While performing at the Shepherd’s Bush Empire theater in London, England, kicking off their world tour, in support of their 2002 album, “Home”, the lead singer of the trio, Natalie Maines, made a comment that sparked the Dixie Chicks’ doom.
She began by introducing their latest single “Travellin’ Soldier”.
“Just so you know, we’re on the good side with y’all,” she said.
“We do not want this war, this violence, and we’re ashamed that the President of the United States is from Texas.”
Despite making those comments in England — far from home — her remarks circulated very quickly back to the US.
Several radio stations immediately stopped blacklisted The Dixie Chicks and stopped playing their music after hearing the news .
Numerous other country artists, like Toby Keith and Reba McEntire spoke out directly, dragging the trio for bashing the President.
They didn’t hide away.
Although the Dixie Chicks were facing a ton of backlash from the media and the music industry, they remained solid as ever — wrapping up their world tour and returning back to the US.
That’s when they released their famous hit, “Not Ready To Make Nice” — a song written about their estrangement from the music industry.
Unfortunately, the scrutiny didn’t end there.
The trio was completely banished from mainstream country radio, not to mention the ruthless harassment they were receiving from the public.
In 2006, the trio actually released a documentary called Shut Up And Sing that revealed the women receiving threats of physical harm and death wishes.
After years of remaining quiet, the trio toured Canada and Europe in 2013 and the US in 2016.
However, they admitted their defeat. Natalie mentioned that their comeback to mainstream country seemed unlikely at the time.
“I feel like we are tainted,” she said in 2016. “I don’t know if we put a tour up, if people would come.”
But thanks to one Taylor Swift, The Dixie Chicks are finally gracing our ears on country radio again.
Taylor Swift’s “Soon You’ll Get Better” that features the famous country trio hit the airwaves a couple of weeks ago.
Most people could hardly tell that the Dixie Chicks were even on the song — as their background vocals are quiet and hardly detectable.
But once it was brought to the listener’s attention, radio stations revealed that they were being bombarded with calls protesting the song.
“You can’t even tell [they’re on the song],” Johnny Chiang, Director of Operations for Cox Media Group Houston; KKBQ, said . “The backing vocals are so benign you can barely hear them.”
“But when his DJs identified the singers, listeners were still angry enough to pick up the phone.”
People really know how to hold a grudge, huh?
On the bright side, there are still a lot of people out there who appreciate their music, and are happy to hear them on the radio again.
Maybe having country radio blacklisting one of the greatest country bands of all time wasn’t the smartest move?
Especially when you consider how many celebrities have spoken out in the current political climate.
And instead of being cancelled , you’re simply faced with a slew of opinionated comments.
And if you’re craving new Dixie Chicks music, don’t worry, it looks like we can expect some coming soon!
According to Natalie, anyway, who teased us with a video of her and the band in the studio with the hashtag, #DCX2019.
It’s been 16 years. Can we just let The Dix Chicks sing again, please?
If you’re still mad — to have to quote T-Swift’s latest hit — you need to calm down .
Sorry, not sorry!
