News Archives
May 2000 - July 2000
- One week after the Dixie Chicks' "Fly" album broke the record for spending the most weeks at the No.1 spot for a group on Billboard's Country Albums Chart, the critically-acclaimed disc has been certified for sales in excess of six million units. 7/19/00 prnewswire
- The Dixie Chicks have added another accomplishment to their already long list of achievements. The group's sophomore album, Fly, has earned the distinction of spending the most weeks at Number One on the Billboard Country Albums chart. The album has spent 32 weeks at Number One, beating out the record set previously by Alabama, whose albums Feels So Right and Mountain Music spent 28 weeks at the top of the charts. 7/13/00 launch.com
- Just weeks into their first tour as headliners, it's already clear that there's no hotter act on the road this summer than the irrepressible Dixie Chicks. In the two-and-a-half years since the Dixie Chicks hit the national scene, their Wide Open Spaces and Fly albums have amassed over 15 million in sales. Now, one month into their ``Fly Tour,'' the Texas trio has sold out arenas at every date they've played so far -- many in the first day and several within an hour.
In the past week alone, five additional cities on the tour went on sale, selling 66,076 tickets for a gross of over 2 1/2 million dollars. With the first 17 shows under their belt, including five Canadian dates, the Chicks have grossed over $8 million. Multiple shows have been added in major markets such as Los Angeles, New York and Washington, D.C. in order to meet the high demand for tickets.
What is this ``Chicks Craze'' all about? Rave reviews from fans and critics alike depict a show that brilliantly captures their irresistible blend of personal charm and musical power and proves their spectacular rise to stardom rests not on studio tricks and clever videos, but on musicia.
Chicago-based Jam Production's Arny Granat, one of the biggest independent concert promoters in the U.S., is quoted as saying: ``The Dixie Chicks are redefining the country music landscape, pushing the envelope as to what a 'country' artist is, how they present themselves and their art to the public, and who that public actually is.''
That they've achieved these impressive results not only in the heart of country music territory, but also in places like Minneapolis, Los Angeles and New York City (where they sold out Radio City Music Hall within an hour) is a testament to the Chicks' unusual, across-the-board appeal. Wherever they've been or are headed, the story is the same: Chicks rule!
``This tour is like a snowball going downhill with each date that goes on- sale selling out faster than the next,'' says Mary Gelliott of Moore Entertainment, one of the three tour promoters. ``These are dates that are playing big, metro areas, not rolling along the back roads of America. The Dixie Chicks are successfully playing the North and the West as easily as the Mid-West and the South.''
Named for their second multi-platinum album, the ``Fly Tour'' will take Natalie Maines, Emily Robison and Martie Seidel, their crack six-piece band and more than 60 support personnel over 30,000 miles of road between the tour's start in early June and the end of October.
Perhaps the most exciting aspect of the Dixie Chicks' dramatic ascent to the top ranks is the way the band has caught the interest of youthful listeners. Early reports make it apparent that there's something new and different here. ``This was not your father's country concert,'' reported Larry Rodgers of the Arizona Republic.
While their bluegrass-based harmonies, banjo, fiddle and pedal steel guitar have won the approval of country music's traditional audience, the Chicks' saucy attitude, cutting-edge fashion sense and eclecticism have earned them millions of young, often female, fans around the country who are turning out in unprecedented numbers to catch the trio in person.
``The impressive thing about the Chicks is that they've been able to make commercial inroads into the pop field without compromising their country music sensibilities,'' wrote Robert Hilburn, pop critic for the Los Angeles Times, in his concert review. ``The trio showed why it is the freshest thing in mainstream country music since the arrival a decade ago of Garth Brooks.'' In Tacoma, where the Dixie Chicks sold an impressive 19,639 tickets, critics reported kids and teenagers dancing in the aisles next to older couples, while observers elsewhere have commented on the numbers of youthful fans in ``Chick duds and 'dos.''
``This gig is rapidly crossing the line from being a successful music act to being a phenomenon,'' says Gene Harbrecht of The Orange County Register. ``There hasn't been this much sheer excitement and adulation surrounding a girl band since, well, maybe forever.''
If the Chicks are very much artists of today and tomorrow, they are no less conscious of their links to yesterday, and their distinctive blend of past, present and future makes them a rare presence in the ranks of top- grossing acts. With months of critically anticipated sold-out and sure-to- sell-out appearances ahead, the Fly Tour offers a unique opportunity to tap into one of the most engaging yet substantive acts on the music scene today.
``As I left the arena three things crossed my mind. One, when do we get a live album so we can experience that show whenever we want? Two, how in the hell did these girls get to be so damn good? Three, when is the next plane leave town for where it is they're playing next? This has my vote for show of the year, go get your tickets now while you still can!'' 7/2/00 PR newswire, frontpage publicity
- Dixie Chicks lead singer Natalie Maines tied the knot over the weekend after her group performed in Las Vegas. Maines stole away to A Little White Wedding Chapel on Saturday to marry actor Adrian Pasdar in a simple $55 ceremony. 6/25/00 nashville, tn (PR Newswire)
- Much to the dismay of their fans, the Dixie Chicks were unable to attend Fair Fair this year. The trio was originally scheduled to sign autographs on Monday (June 12) at the MusicCountry booth. But the Learjet the group had hired to take them from Portland, Oregon, where they were performing, to Nashville had mechanical problems, which forced the singers to cancel the Fan Fair appearance. The Dixie Chicks will resume their Fly tour on June 15 in Sacramento, California. 6/13/00 launch.com
The Dixie Chicks Headlining Tour kicked off 2 nights ago and sure was a blast, as critics have described it. From dropping pants, to audience participation, and non-stop energy, be sure to check it out at a venue near you. 6/3/00 Click here for tour dates
Your eyes were not misleading... If you saw a cover of the album, Fly, at a local music store, you might have seen if in a totally different color. There has been a special re-issue of the album that features all new and different neon colors. 5/14/00
Natalie Maines joins her famous father, on the May cover of Texas Monthly magazine. Lloyd Maines produces many alternative Texas acts and was a founding member of the Maines Brothers Band on Mercury. Also, the be listening and requesting the latest
Congratulations to the Dixie Chicks for taking home awards for "Album of the Year" and "Vocal Duo/Group of the Year" last night at the 35th annual ACM awards. The show was broadcast live on CBS from Los Angeles. Other winners included Shania Twain for Entertainer of the Year, Tim McGraw for Top Male Vocalist, Faith Hill for Top Female Vocalist, and Lonestar with Amazed as the Single Record of the Year. 5/4/00
News Archives (January 2000-April 2000)
News Archives (August 1999-December 1999)
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