The hit country group Lady Antebellum announced they have changed their name to Lady A and dropped the “Antebellum” due to the word’s ties to “slavery.”
“We’ve watched and listened more than ever these last few weeks, and our hearts have been stirred with conviction, our eyes opened wide to the injustices, inequality and biases black women and men have always faced and continue to face every day,” a statement on Lady A’s website read Thursday. The post was noted by CMT. (RELATED: David Hookstead Is The True King In The North When It Comes To College Football)
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“Now, blind spots we didn’t even know existed have been revealed,” the message added. “After much personal reflection, band discussion, prayer and many honest conversations with some of our closest black friends and colleagues, we have decided to drop the word ‘antebellum’ from our name and move forward as Lady A, the nickname our fans gave us almost from the start.” (RELATED: Minneapolis 3rd Police Precinct On Fire After Officers Evacuate Building Amid George Floyd Riots)
The trio, made up of band members Hillary Scott, Charles Kelley, and Dave Haywood, started some 14 years ago. The group also explained that they chose their name based off the “the southern ‘antebellum’ style home where we took our first photos. As musicians, it reminded us of all the music born in the south that influenced us…southern rock, blues, R&B, gospel and of course country.”
“But we are regretful and embarrassed to say that we did not take into account the associations that weigh down this [word] referring to the period of history before the Civil War, which includes slavery,” the statement went on to read. “We are deeply sorry for the hurt this has caused and for anyone who has felt unsafe, unseen or unvalued. Causing pain was never our heart’s intention, but it doesn’t change the fact that indeed, it did just that.”
Later, the statement explained the group’s next step will be “a donation to the Equal Justice Initiative through LadyAid. Our prayer is that if we lead by example with humility, love, empathy and action…we can be better allies to those suffering from spoken and unspoken injustices, while influencing our children and generations to come.”
The move comes following protests and riots across the country after the death of George Floyd, the man who died while in custody of a Minneapolis police officer.