Country music icons the Dixie Chicks have announced they’re changing their name to a more succinct, The Chicks.
On their website, the trio only offered this statement: “We want to meet this moment.” In a press statement, they added, “A sincere and heartfelt thank you goes out to ‘The Chicks’ of [New Zealand] for their gracious gesture in allowing us to share their name. We are honoured to co-exist together in the world with these exceptionally talented sisters. Chicks Rock!”
The band dropped ‘Dixie’ from their name ‘cos it’s a nostalgic nickname for the Civil War-era South which has racist connotations.
The move comes in light of the country’s ongoing protests and conversations regarding the history of racism in the U.S., and follows on the heels of Lady Antebellum pulling a similar move by changing their band name to Lady A.
Along with the name change, the Chicks released a brand new single on Thursday, titled ‘March March’, which will be appearing on their upcoming fifth studio album, Gaslighter.
