Dixie Chicks’ First Album in 14 Years Delayed But Can Be Pre-Ordered

For 14 years, fans of American country music group Dixie Chicks had waited to get their hands on a follow-up album by the superstar trio. Less than two weeks before their album was scheduled to drop, the band decided to postpone the release of their eighth studio album. The country music trio had last released a song in 2006, but they debuted a new one in early March 2020. The song was called Gaslighter, which was a scathing anthem about an unrepentant liar. The group had announced that an album of the same name would drop on May 1st, 2020 via Columbia Records. 

But, the group is delaying its plans amid the COVID-19 pandemic. The cancellation of the May release date had been expected for a few weeks, as most of the A-list artists who had album releases scheduled for April, May, or June have ended up delaying their release for a couple of months, including Sam Smith, Lady Gaga and Luke Bryan. While the long-awaited album of any popular band automatically sparks anticipation, the upcoming project by the Dixie Chicks had drawn some extra attention due to the group’s polarizing legacy.

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It was back in May, 2006 that they had released the album called ‘Take the Long Way’. This was a candid response to the backlash they had gotten three years earlier when President George W. Bush had been criticized by lead singer Natalie Maines. The comments had been about the Iraq War and had threatened to end the group’s career. The album had dominated the 2007 Grammy Awards and walked away with Album of the year. Afterward, Maines and her sisters, Emily Strayer and Martie Maguire, had decided to take a long hiatus. 

The other two had formed a duo called the Court Yard Hounds while Maines released a rock album. The trio had reunited for a tour in 2016 and had shown that they could still sell out arenas worldwide. In the last year and a half, the band had been dropping hints of a new record. Anticipation amongst the audience was at an all-time high, particularly after the release of the title song ‘Gaslighter’, with its fiery lyrics and great video. 

However, as the trio had begun to embark on a press tour like an appearance on ‘The Ellen DeGeneres Show’ and the cover of Allure Magazine, the coronavirus began spreading across the United States, halting everything.