The GRAMMY® Award-winning Zac Brown Band has proven that “overnight success” can be years in the making. New fans drawn by its irresistible hit singles, its awe-inspiring musicianship and dynamic live shows might have thought the Zac Brown Band emerged from nowhere. In fact, the band has paid its dues for years.
The band appeared on NACA’s Mainstage Showcase in Nashville as part of the 2009 National Convention, during a period in which it simultaneously became known by college audiences and began to find greater success in general.
The band’s first major label release, The Foundation, was one of Billboard’s Top 20 albums of 2009 and was the first major label debut album in 18 years to yield five No. 1 hits, including “Chicken Fried” and “Free.” Released on Nov. 18, 2008, on Atlantic Records, The Foundation debuted at No. 17 on the Billboard Top 200 Chart and No. 3 on the Top Country Albums Chart. It’s now certified double platinum by the RIAA, which Brown says, “solidifies an achievement that has been more than a decade in the making.”
In 2009 and 2010, Zac Brown Band successfully headlined the Breaking Ground Tour. “For us to come into our own, we had to make it happen as a headliner,” notes the Dahlonega, GA-raised Brown. There’s no question that the road-tested band had the chops to pull it off.
And while the band strongly identifies with country music and country radio and, of course, its following is not easily pigeonholed; while loyal country fans show up in droves, the band also appeals to lovers of bluegrass, jam bands, reggae and seemingly everyone in between. It’s no wonder that another famous genre-hopper, Michigan’s Kid Rock, has performed with the band and given it his strong endorsement. Zac Brown Band has also shared the bill for several Dave Matthews Band dates and has toured extensively with Kenny Chesney.
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