The Chicks have discussed their decision to change their name from Dixie Chicks in June of last year. The trio announced at the time that they’d be changing it due to the racist connotations with the word “dixie”.
Speaking with The Independent, The Chicks discussed the decision.
They said that Nascar banning the confederate flag in light of George Floyd’s death motivated the change.
Lead vocalist, Natalie Maines told the publication she thought, “If Nascar can do that, we gotta change our name for sure.”
She says that after texting the others, “Everybody was right on board.”
“It almost seemed like people were wondering what had taken us so long.”
Martie Maguire adds that, “People who live in the South have lived with the word ‘Dixie’ and the flag for a long time.”
“I think about Dixieland music, and the flag is everywhere, but you definitely feel like you have to wake up and mature up and go well, wait a minute, no, this is hurtful, this is something that has very negative connotations.
“And it takes a movement,” she said.
“If Black Lives Matter and George Floyd’s murder hadn’t happened, we might’ve waited another couple of years, I don’t know, but it definitely lit a fire in us to be on the right side of history.”
The Chicks released Gaslighter on Friday, 17th July, their first album in 14 years.
