Next: Lady Antebellum

The Lady Antebellum trio of Dave Haywood, Hillary Scott and Charles Kelley came together in 2006 in Nashville, Tennessee and by 2010 have already won several CMA Awards and a Grammy Award.

Lady Antebellum released its first single in early 2008, “Love Don’t Live Here,” which rose to number three on the Billboard Country Music chart. The band’s first album signed under Capitol Nashville was released shortly after and debuted at number one on the Billboard Country chart. This feat had never before been accomplished by a new country duo or group.

While touring with Martina McBride on her Waking Up Laughing Tour in 2008 Lady Antebellum released its second single “Lookin’ For a Good Time” which peaked at number 11 on the U.S. Charts. The third single from the self-titled debut album Lady Antebellum, “I Run To You,” became the band’s first number one single in July of 2009.

In the middle of working on its second album, the band took a break to tour with Keith Urban. Initially being upset about having to put recording on hold, the members now credit this time away from the studio as a period in which they were able to further explore creative options on Need You Now.

Lady Antebellum’s second studio album Need You Now was released in early 2010 and hit the Billboard 200 at number one. The first single - matching the album’s name - was released in 2009 at number 50 on the Billboard Hot Country Songs but quickly skyrocketed to number one. The group acknowledged that it had much more creative freedom on the second album after establishing success with the first. Lady A has production and writing credit on eight of 11 tracks on Need You Now.

In just three years Lady A has garnered nominations for three CMT Music Awards, three Country Music Association Awards, an Academy of Country Music Award and four Grammy Awards. If being nominated for these prestigious honors wasn’t enough, the band secured all three CMA award wins, an Academy of Country Music award and a Grammy win for “I Run to You” in 2010. Along with various nominations and awards, both of the band’s albums have reached Platinum status in the United States and cracked the top five on the Canadian music charts.

The group has a wide range of musical influences, citing Keith Urban, Dave Barnes, John Legend, the Eagles and Sara Evans along with rapper T.I. and John Legend. The band members believe that their extraordinary success can be attributed to the unique composition of their group. Having both a male and female lead singer helps them to reach a much larger audience. By appealing to both sexes, they are able to “tell a more dramatic story,” and “take their fans on a more intense journey,” according to singer Charles Kelley.

Lady Antebellum has paired up with the Mocha Club – a non-profit organization that supports various education projects in Africa. The organization asks members for a donation of $7 per month – the approximate cost of two mochas. The money goes to costs to teach business and trade skills to native Africans to better equip them to support their family and community. Lady A regularly donates to the organization and encourages fans and followers to join the movement.