Zac Brown Band is an American

country music Country (also called country and western) is a genre of popular music that originated in the Southern and Southwestern United States in the early 1920s. It primarily derives from blues, church music such as Southern gospel and spirituals, ...

band based in

Atlanta, Georgia Atlanta ( ) is the capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Georgia. It is the seat of Fulton County, the most populous county in Georgia, but its territory falls in both Fulton and DeKalb counties. With a population of 498,715 ...

. The lineup consists of

Zac Brown Zachry Alexander Brown (born July 31, 1978) is an American singer-songwriter, musician, and co-founder and lead singer of the country–rock Zac Brown Band, as well as electronic dance music group Sir Rosevelt. In 2019, Brown released a pop su ...

(lead vocals, guitar), Jimmy De Martini ( fiddle, vocals),

John Driskell Hopkins John Driskell Hopkins (born May 3, 1971) is best known for his role as a founding member, vocalist, multi-instrumentalist, and songwriter for the Grammy Award winning group Zac Brown Band. Hopkins co-wrote, with Zac Brown, Wyatt Durette, and Shawn ...

(bass guitar, guitar, baritone guitar, banjo,

ukulele The ukulele ( ; from haw, ukulele , approximately ), also called Uke, is a member of the lute family of instruments of Portuguese origin and popularized in Hawaii. It generally employs four nylon strings. The tone and volume of the instrumen ...

upright bass The double bass (), also known simply as the bass () (or by other names), is the largest and lowest-pitched bowed (or plucked) string instrument in the modern symphony orchestra (excluding unorthodox additions such as the octobass). Similar ...

, vocals),

Coy Bowles Coy Bowles is best known as a member of three-time Grammy Award-winning Zac Brown Band. He joined the Zac Brown Band in 2007, and plays guitar, slide guitar, dobro, piano and organ. He also contributes as a songwriter, and has writing credits on ...

(guitar, keyboards), Chris Fryar (drums),

Clay Cook Douglas "Clay" Cook (born April 20, 1978) is an American songwriter, producer, and musician who is best known as a member of the Zac Brown Band. After dropping out of college, he and classmate John Mayer formed the band Lo-Fi Masters. Cook co-wro ...

(guitar, keyboards,

mandolin A mandolin ( it, mandolino ; literally "small mandola") is a stringed musical instrument in the lute family and is generally plucked with a pick. It most commonly has four courses of doubled strings tuned in unison, thus giving a total of 8 ...

, steel guitar, vocals), Matt Mangano (bass guitar),

Daniel de los Reyes Daniel de los Reyes (born July 18, 1962) is an American percussionist who is a former member of Earth, Wind & Fire and Chicago. He is currently a member of the Zac Brown Band. Musical career De los Reyes was born in New York City and raised ...

(percussion) and

Caroline Jones Caroline Jones (born June 30, 1990) is an American country music singer, songwriter and radio host. Jones has released a number of albums, the most successful one being ''Bare Feet''. Her most recent album, ''Antipodes'', was released on Novemb ...

(guitar, vocals). The band has released seven studio albums along with two live albums, one greatest-hits album, and two extended plays. They have also 16 singles on the '' Billboard''

Hot Country Songs Hot Country Songs is a chart published weekly by ''Billboard'' magazine in the United States. This 50-position chart lists the most popular country music songs, calculated weekly by collecting airplay data from Nielsen BDS along with digital sal ...

or Country Airplay chart, of which 13 have reached number 1. Their first album, '' The Foundation'', is certified triple-platinum by the

Recording Industry Association of America The Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) is a trade organization that represents the music recording industry in the United States. Its members consist of record labels and distributors that the RIAA says "create, manufacture, and/o ...

, while its follow-ups, '' You Get What You Give'' and ''

Uncaged ''Uncaged'' is the third studio album by Zac Brown Band. It was released on July 10, 2012. The album's lead single, "The Wind" was released on June 6, 2012. The album received widely positive reviews from critics and debuted at number one on the ...

'', are certified platinum. Artists with whom they have collaborated include

Alan Jackson Alan Eugene Jackson (born October 17, 1958) is an American singer-songwriter. He is known for blending traditional honky-tonk and mainstream country pop sounds (for a style widely regarded as "neotraditional country"), as well as penning many ...

, Jimmy Buffett, Kid Rock,

Jason Mraz Jason Thomas Mraz (; born June 23, 1977) is an American guitarist, singer and songwriter. He rose to prominence with the release of his debut studio album, ''Waiting for My Rocket to Come'' (2002), which spawned the single " The Remedy (I Won't ...

Dave Grohl David Eric Grohl (born January 14, 1969) is an American musician. He is the founder of the rock band Foo Fighters, in which he is the lead singer, guitarist, and principal songwriter. Prior to forming Foo Fighters, he was the drummer of gru ...

Chris Cornell Christopher John Cornell (né Boyle; July 20, 1964 – May 18, 2017) was an American singer and musician best known as the lead vocalist, rhythm guitarist, and primary lyricist and songwriter for the rock bands Soundgarden and Audioslave ...

, Brandi Carlile, and

Avicii Tim Bergling (; 8 September 1989 – 20 April 2018), known professionally as Avicii (, ), was a Swedish DJ, remixer and music producer. At the age of 16, Bergling began posting his remixes on electronic music forums, which led to his first re ...

History

Formation

In 2002, Brown was traveling with a heavy tour schedule of approximately 200 dates a year. The initial Zac Brown Band lineup consisted of Brown, on acoustic guitar and lead vocals, backed by drummer Marcus Petruska and bass guitarist Jacob Lawson. In 2003, Brown started his own label, called Home Grown—it was later renamed "Southern Ground". In 2004, Brown opened a music club and restaurant with his father in the Lake Oconee area of Georgia, called "Zac's Place" where the fare was southern-style cooking. A developer bought the restaurant and, in turn, the Zac Brown Band bought a tour bus and began touring full-time, playing rock and country clubs, as well as folk and jam band festivals. The release of the Zac Brown Band's first independent album, ''Home Grown'', occurred during the same year. Also in 2004, Brown added violinist/fiddler and tenor vocalist Jimmy De Martini to the lineup. According to an interview with De Martini, he explained that Wyatt Durrette, Brown's frequent songwriting collaborator, was working as a bartender at Sidelines Sports Bar in

Kennesaw, Georgia Kennesaw is a suburban city northwest of Atlanta in Cobb County, Georgia, United States, located within the greater Atlanta metropolitan area. Known from its original settlement in the 1830s until 1887 as Big Shanty, it became Kennesaw under its ...

, at the time, where the Zac Brown Band frequently performed. Durette suggested De Martini to Brown, who was wanting a "lead instrument" in his band, as well as a harmony singer. After doing several performances with the band at the club, Brown asked De Martini to become a permanent member, to which De Martini gladly obliged. Brown met

in 1998 when Hopkins was hosting an open mic night at CJ's Landing in Buckhead, Georgia. Hopkins later recorded ''Home Grown'' in his music studio, Brighter Shade Studios. The two remained friends, and in 2005, Hopkins stepped in as bass guitarist while helping the group finish what became their number-one single "Toes". "Toes" was the second single from the band's major-label debut, '' The Foundation'', which was partially recorded in Hopkins' studio. '' You Get What You Give'' was also partially recorded in Brighter Shade Studios.

transferred to Atlanta's

Georgia State University Georgia State University (Georgia State, State, or GSU) is a Public university, public research university in Atlanta, Atlanta, Georgia. Founded in 1913, it is one of the University System of Georgia's four research universities. It is also the ...

to study music. He subsequently became involved in Atlanta's various music scenes, and eventually formed Coy Bowles and the Fellowship in 2004. Two years later, Bowles decided to reconnect with Brown. Through mutual friends, he learned that the Zac Brown Band was scheduled to perform in Atlanta one evening. Bowles and Brown spent the afternoon prior to the performance reacquainting with each other, which ended with Brown inviting Bowles to sit in with his band at that night's performance. To return the favor, Bowles invited the band to attend his own gig with the Fellowship a couple of months later, which in turn resulted in Brown and his band sitting in at that gig. This turn of events continued for eight months until Bowles concluded that it was too overwhelming to balance his time with Brown's band and his own band, in addition to other activities; he therefore made a decision to put the Fellowship on an indefinite hiatus, and became a permanent member of the Zac Brown Band. In 2008, the Zac Brown Band signed to Live Nation Artists Records, in association with Brown's own Home Grown label, after Chris Fryar became an addition to the band. An

Alabama (We dare defend our rights) , anthem = "Alabama (state song), Alabama" , image_map = Alabama in United States.svg , seat = Montgomery, Alabama, Montgomery , LargestCity = Huntsville, Alabama, Huntsville , LargestCounty = Baldwin County, Al ...

native, Fryar attended the

University of North Texas The University of North Texas (UNT) is a public research university in Denton, Texas. It was founded as a nonsectarian, coeducational, private teachers college in 1890 and was formally adopted by the state 11 years later."Denton Normal School," ...

and the

Mississippi University for Women Mississippi University for Women (MUW or "The W") is a coeducational public university in Columbus, Mississippi. It was formerly named the Industrial Institute and College for the Education of White Girls and later the Mississippi State College ...

, and made a name for himself in the

Birmingham Birmingham ( ) is a city and metropolitan borough in the metropolitan county of West Midlands in England. It is the second-largest city in the United Kingdom with a population of 1.145 million in the city proper, 2.92 million in the West ...

music scene. According to Fryar, a mutual friend recommended him to Brown, who was in need of a new drummer for the band. Fryar, who in turn had just finished a stint with a previous band, subsequently auditioned and shortly afterward became the Zac Brown Band's newest member. In 2014, with the addition of bass guitarist Matt Mangano to the line-up, Hopkins expanded from his own role as bass guitarist to add other instruments in his arsenal such as standard six-string guitar, seven-string guitar, baritone guitar, ukulele, double bass, and banjo.

Commercial success

The Zac Brown Band's debut single, "

Chicken Fried "Chicken Fried" is a song by American country music group Zac Brown Band, which frontman Zac Brown co-wrote with Wyatt Durrette. The song was first recorded in 2003 for the 2005 album ''Home Grown''. A second version was then released in 2006 by ...

", was originally recorded in 2003 and included on the ''Home Grown'' album, but later re-recorded and released to country radio in 2008. This song was also recorded by

The Lost Trailers The Lost Trailers are an American country music band. Established in 2000, the band originally comprised Ryder Lee (lead vocals, keyboards), Manny Medina (guitar), Andrew Nielson (bass guitar), Stokes Nielson (vocals, lead guitar), and Jeff Potte ...

, whose 2006 recording was released as a single but withdrawn after Brown decided that he wanted to release it himself. Brown also co-wrote "Simple Life", a song recorded by The Lost Trailers on their 2006 self-titled album. In the third episode of HBO's music documentary series

Sonic Highways ''Sonic Highways'' is the eighth studio album by American rock band Foo Fighters, released on November 10, 2014, through Roswell and RCA Records. Similar to their previous album, ''Wasting Light'' (2011), it was produced by the band with Butch ...

, Brown was a featured interviewee and explained why Lost Trailer's version of "Chicken Fried" was pulled from the radio. Brown stated that after six years of touring that he was broke and sleeping in his tour van. In 2005 the Lost Trailers contacted Brown and expressed interest in recording "Chicken Fried". Brown stated he agreed under the condition that the song would only be an album cut and not a single as he still had hopes of releasing the song as a radio single himself. Both parties agreed and the Lost Trailers recorded the song. Some months later the Lost Trailers landed a deal with Sony Nashville, and when they submitted the tracks for their album, they included "Chicken Fried".

Joe Galante Joe Galante (born December 18, 1949, New York City, NY) is an American music industry executive. He is noted for his role in developing the careers of Waylon Jennings, Dolly Parton, Alabama, Kenny Chesney, Sara Evans, Brad Paisley, Martina McBride ...

, then the Chairman of Sony Music Nashville, heard the tracks and chose "Chicken Fried" as the single that the label wanted to promote. Brown described hearing his song on the radio: "The first time I hear 'Chicken Fried' on the radio and it wasn't us singing it. It was a nightmare." Brown then called his lawyer to have the song pulled from the radio immediately. Brown's lawyer warned him that because of Galante's power in the Nashville music scene that pulling the song could essentially have him blackballed in Nashville. Brown was insistent that his agreement with the Lost Trailers was violated, so his lawyer issued a cease and desist letter and the single was pulled from the radio. A few months later The Zac Brown Band was booked to perform at 3rd and Lindsley in Nashville and producer Keith Stegall came to watch their performance. Stegall and Brown had drinks later that night and Brown recalled Stegall stating, "I just had to meet the kid that told Joe Galante to fuck off!" Brown credits this incident and his meeting and collaboration with Stegall as the beginning of his success in the music business. In October 2008,

Atlantic Records Atlantic Recording Corporation (simply known as Atlantic Records) is an American record label founded in October 1947 by Ahmet Ertegun and Herb Abramson. Over its first 20 years of operation, Atlantic earned a reputation as one of the most i ...

acquired distribution of "Chicken Fried" after Live Nation Artists closed. The band's album '' The Foundation'' was released under Atlantic Records' newly re-established country division in association with the Home Grown/Bigger Picture label on November 18 of that year. "Chicken Fried" reached No. 1 on the country charts that same month, making them the first country band to reach No. 1 with a debut single since

Heartland Heartland or Heartlands may refer to: Businesses and organisations * Heartland Bank, a New Zealand-based financial institution * Heartland Inn, a chain of hotels based in Iowa, United States * Heartland Alliance, an anti-poverty organization i ...

did so in 2006 with "

I Loved Her First ''I Loved Her First'' is the only studio album by the American country music band Heartland. Issued in 2006, it includes the single "I Loved Her First", a number one on the ''Billboard'' Hot Country Songs charts. Also released from this album were ...

". In July 2012, Zac Brown Band debuted their new CD, ''Uncaged'', which was well received. Billboard considered the album to be the best country album of 2012 as of its release. On January 7, 2013, Zac Brown Band performed the National Anthem at the 2013 BCS National Championship Game between the Alabama Crimson Tide and the Notre Dame Fighting Irish at Sun Life Stadium in Miami. Just two weeks later on January 20, 2013, the band performed the National Anthem during the NFC Championship Game between the Seattle Seahawks and the San Francisco 49ers at the CenturyLink Field in Seattle. On January 1, 2014, Zac Brown Band performed the National Anthem during the NHL's Winter Classic between the

Detroit Red Wings The Detroit Red Wings (colloquially referred to as the Wings) are a professional ice hockey team based in Detroit. The Red Wings compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Atlantic Division (NHL), Atlantic Division in the East ...

Toronto Maple Leafs The Toronto Maple Leafs (officially the Toronto Maple Leaf Hockey Club and often referred to as the Leafs) are a professional ice hockey team based in Toronto. They compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Atlantic Div ...

Michigan Stadium Michigan Stadium, nicknamed "The Big House," is the football stadium for the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor, Michigan. It is the largest stadium in the United States and the Western Hemisphere, the third largest stadium in the world, and the ...

in Ann Arbor, Michigan, home of the Michigan Wolverines football team. The Zac Brown Band announced on January 12, 2015, that it had finalized a four-way strategic partnership involving the Southern Ground Artists record label, Big Machine Label Group, Republic Records, and

John Varvatos John Varvatos (born 1954) is an American menswear designer. Early life The Varvatos family is originally from the village of Poulata on the island of Kefalonia, Greece. Varvatos was born in Detroit and grew up in Allen Park, Michigan. He ...

Records for the release of its fourth studio album. The terms of the deal state that the Zac Brown Band will work with Big Machine Label Group for marketing and distribution, while Southern Ground Artists will work on radio promotion, Republic will provide support in the area of non-country radio formats and international promotion, and Varvatos will oversee branding and styling. Brown stated in a press release:

Southern Ground Artists together with John Varvatos Records, Big Machine Label Group, and Republic Records is the dream team for Zac Brown Band's evolution ... We're excited to reach new music fans worldwide.

Inclusion of Clay Cook

In January 2009, two months after "Chicken Fried" went to No. 1, Atlanta native

joined the Zac Brown Band as its multi-instrumentalist and high tenor vocalist. Cook had previously collaborated with John Mayer and

Shawn Mullins Shawn Mullins (born March 8, 1968) is an American singer-songwriter who specializes in folk rock, instrumental rock, adult alternative, and Americana music. His 1998 single "Lullaby", hit number one on the Adult Top 40 and was nominated for a Gr ...

, and was also a member of the

Marshall Tucker Band The Marshall Tucker Band is an American rock band from Spartanburg, South Carolina. Noted for incorporating blues, country, and jazz into an eclectic sound, the Marshall Tucker Band helped establish the Southern rock genre in the early 1970s. Wh ...

for two years prior to joining the Zac Brown Band. Cook explains how he first met Brown: Brown himself admitted his strong desire to add Cook to the lineup, for he believed Cook's musicianship would enhance the Zac Brown Band's overall musical style: With the new Zac Brown Band lineup completed, the band released its second single, " Whatever It Is", which went to No. 2. In October 2009, a third single, "

Toes Toes are the digits (fingers) of the foot of a tetrapod. Animal species such as cats that walk on their toes are described as being '' digitigrade''. Humans, and other animals that walk on the soles of their feet, are described as being '' pl ...

", became the band's second Number One. The album's fourth single, and third No. 1, was " Highway 20 Ride". " Free" was the album's fifth single and on the week of August 21, 2010, it also peaked at Number One.

''Uncaged'' and ''The Grohl Sessions, Vol. 1''

On April 25, 2012, it was announced via the Zac Brown Band's website that percussionist

had joined the band on a permanent basis. De los Reyes had previously performed with the band as a touring musician and participated in the recording of their album ''

''. De los Reyes has also performed with artists and groups such as

Earth, Wind and Fire Earth, Wind & Fire (EW&F or EWF) is an American band whose music spans the genres of jazz, R&B, soul, funk, disco, pop, big band, Latin, and Afro pop. They are among the best-selling bands of all time, with sales of over 90 million reco ...

, Jennifer Lopez and Sting. " Goodbye in Her Eyes" reached Number One on the

Country Airplay Country Airplay is a chart published weekly by ''Billboard'' magazine in the United States since January 20, 1990. This chart lists the 60 most-listened-to records played on 150 mainstream country radio stations across the country as monitored ...

chart in 2013. The album's third single, " Jump Right In", was released to country radio on February 25, 2013. It peaked at number 2 on the Country Airplay chart in August 2013. The album's fourth single, " Sweet Annie", was released to country radio in August 2013, and rose to number 1 in January 2014. In December 2013, the band released a digital four-song EP titled '' The Grohl Sessions, Vol. 1'', produced by

Foo Fighters Foo Fighters are an American rock band formed in Seattle in 1994. Foo Fighters was initially formed as a one-man project by former Nirvana drummer Dave Grohl. Following the success of the eponymous debut album, Grohl (lead vocals, guitar) re ...

. It was later given a physical release featuring a 45-minute DVD on the album's creation. " All Alright" was released as a single from the EP, charting at number 17 on

. In April 2014, the band announced its summer tour schedule, which included

Kacey Musgraves Kacey Lee Musgraves (born August 21, 1988) is an American country singer. She has won six Grammy Awards, seven Country Music Association Awards, and three Academy of Country Music Awards. Musgraves self-released three solo albums and one as Texa ...

as an opening act, and the addition of Matt Mangano as an eighth member. Mangano previously performed live with Zac Brown Band when they performed "Blackbird" on the " Pass The Jar" live album. Mangano assumed the role of

bass guitar The bass guitar, electric bass or simply bass (), is the lowest-pitched member of the string family. It is a plucked string instrument similar in appearance and construction to an electric or an acoustic guitar, but with a longer neck and ...

ist, while original bassist John Driskell Hopkins began adding other instruments including banjo and

''Jekyll + Hyde''

The band signed to

Big Machine Records Big Machine Records is an American independent record label, distributed by Universal Music Group. Specializing in country and pop artists, Big Machine is based on Music Row in Nashville, Tennessee. The label was founded in September 2005 by fo ...

in 2015 and released its sixteenth single, " Homegrown", in January. The song, co-produced by

Jay Joyce John Joseph "Jay" Joyce is an American record producer, songwriter and session musician. In the 1990s, Joyce, with Chris Feinstein and Brad Pemberton, recorded and toured as Iodine and began working as a record producer, working with artists suc ...

, was the lead single to an album, titled ''

Jekyll + Hyde ''Jekyll + Hyde'' is the fourth major-label studio album by the Zac Brown Band. It was released on April 28, 2015. The album's lead single, " Homegrown", was released on January 12, 2015. " Heavy Is the Head", featuring Chris Cornell, was release ...

'', which was released on April 28, 2015. Despite being a country album, Jekyll + Hyde features prominent styles from other genres in several of its tracks including rock ( Heavy Is the Head), EDM ( Beautiful Drug ), celtic (Remedy), reggae ( Castaway) and traditional pop/jazz (Mango Tree). On Saturday, March 7, 2015, the band made their ''

Saturday Night Live ''Saturday Night Live'' (often abbreviated to ''SNL'') is an American late-night live television sketch comedy and variety show created by Lorne Michaels and developed by Dick Ebersol that airs on NBC and Peacock. Michaels currently serves a ...

'' debut, performing "Homegrown" and "Heavy is the Head". The band contributed vocals on the

song " Broken Arrows", released in September 2015. Jekyll + Hyde is the first album that ZBB recorded when they weren't on the road.

''Welcome Home''

On January 30, 2017, the band previewed cover art for a new album titled ''Welcome Home'' produced by Dave Cobb, was released on May 12, 2017. The first single from the album, " My Old Man", was released on February 3, 2017. Their latest song "Roots" was released on May 3, 2017. The band performed the song on ''

The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon ''The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon'' is an American late-night talk show hosted by Jimmy Fallon that airs on NBC. The show premiered on February 17, 2014, and is produced by Broadway Video and Universal Television. It is the seventh incar ...

'' on March 29, 2017. In September 2018, it was announced that Zac Brown Band would make their second appearance of ''

CMT Crossroads ''CMT Crossroads'' is an American television program broadcast on CMT that pairs country music artists with musicians from other music genres such as alternative rock, pop, R&B, Rock, soul and more, frequently trading off performing one anot ...

'' along with

Shawn Mendes Shawn Peter Raul Mendes (; born August 8, 1998) is a Canadian pop singer. He gained a following in 2013, when he posted song covers on the video sharing platform Vine. The following year, he caught the attention of artist manager Andrew Gert ...

, which was televised on October 24, 2018.

''The Owl''

The band released their sixth album ''The Owl'' on September 20, 2019. The album includes collaborations with

Skrillex Sonny John Moore (born January 15, 1988), known professionally as Skrillex, is an American DJ and music producer. Growing up in Northeast Los Angeles and Northern California, he joined the post-hardcore band From First to Last as the lead si ...

Max Martin Karl Martin Sandberg (; born 26 February 1971),Max Martin
allmusic.com known profess ...

Ryan Tedder Ryan Tedder (born June 26, 1979) is an American singer, songwriter, and record producer. As well as being the lead vocalist of the pop rock band OneRepublic, he has an independent career as a songwriter and producer for various artists since th ...

Benny Blanco Benjamin Joseph Levin (born March 8, 1988), known professionally as Benny Blanco (stylized in all lowercase), is an American record producer. He is the recipient of the 2013 Hal David Starlight Award from the Songwriters Hall of Fame. He is als ...

, Andrew Watt, Jason "Poo Bear" Boyd, and others. A digital single from the album, "Leaving Love Behind" was released on July 26, 2019. Brown describes some songs on the album as "personal" and "pretty heavy." Concurrently, Brown released a solo album called ''Controversy'', accompanied by a new single called "Swayze".

The Comeback

On October 15, 2021, the band released their 7th album ''The Comeback.'' The first single from the album, "Same Boat", was released on June 11, 2021 by Homegrown Music and Waner Music Nashville. The song became the band's first number one single on the

chart since 2016's " Beautiful Drug" and their fourteenth overall. The album's second single " Out in the Middle" was released in January 2022 and reached number thirteen. A deluxe edition of the album was released in September 2022 and features several tracks reimagined as duets featuring

Blake Shelton Blake Tollison Shelton (born June 18, 1976) is an American country music singer and television personality. In 2001, he made his debut with the single " Austin". The lead-off single from his self-titled debut album, "Austin" spent five weeks at ...

Ingrid Andress Ingrid Elizabeth Andress (born September 21, 1991) is an American country music singer-songwriter. Her breakthrough single, " More Hearts Than Mine" peaked at number 30 on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100. Andress released her debut studio album '' ...

and

Jamey Johnson Jamey Johnson (born July 14, 1975) is an American country music singer and songwriter. Signed to BNA Records in 2005, Johnson made his debut with his single " The Dollar", the title track to his 2006 album '' The Dollar''. He was dropped fro ...

Cody Johnson Cody Daniel Johnson (born May 21, 1987) is an American country music singer-songwriter. He self-released six albums, including ''Gotta Be Me'', which debuted at number two on ''Billboard''s Country Albums chart, before releasing his first major- ...

and Jimmy Buffett. On November 3, 2022, it was announced that

had joined the group as an official member after having opened for and toured with the band since 2017.

Awards

Since 2009, the Zac Brown Band has earned 55 award nominations from the

Grammys The Grammy Awards (stylized as GRAMMY), or simply known as the Grammys, are awards presented by the Recording Academy of the United States to recognize "outstanding" achievements in the music industry. They are regarded by many as the most pres ...

Academy of Country Music The Academy of Country Music (ACM) was founded in 1964 in Los Angeles, California as the Country & Western Music Academy. Among the founders were Eddie Miller, Tommy Wiggins, and Mickey and Chris Christensen. They wanted to promote country music ...

American Music Awards The American Music Awards (AMAs) is an annual American music awards show, generally held in the fall, created by Dick Clark in 1973 for ABC when the network's contract to air the Grammy Awards expired, and currently produced by Dick Clark Pro ...

, Country Music Association and Country Music Television, and has won 8. They have received four nominations for the 2009 CMA Awards: New Artist of the Year, Song of the Year, Single of the Year, and Music Video of the Year for their No. 1 single, "Chicken Fried". That same year, they received three Grammy nominations for Best Country Album, Best Country Performance By a Duo or Group With Vocals and Best New Artist. On January 31, 2010, the band won the Grammy award for Best New Artist. The Zac Brown Band was also nominated in 2009 for three ACM awards, "Album of the Year", "Vocal Group of the Year", and was one of eight contenders for "Entertainer of the Year". The Zac Brown Band led the nominees for the 46th annual Academy of Country Music Awards 2011, with a total of nine nominations including: Vocal Group of the Year, Album of the Year, Single Record of the Year, Song of the Year, Vocal Event of the Year.

Grammy Awards

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Collaborations and appearances

Along with recent commercial success, the band has made appearances at The Hangout Music Festival, Hullabalou Music Festival and the Bonnaroo Music Festival in 2006, 2009, and 2010 along with an opening slot for the

Dave Matthews Band Dave Matthews Band (also known by the initials DMB) is an American rock band formed in Charlottesville, Virginia, in 1991. The band's founding members were singer-songwriter and guitarist Dave Matthews, bassist Stefan Lessard, drummer and bac ...

during their 2010 Summer Tour. Also, after several years as perennial favorites on the annual

The Rock Boat The Rock Boat is an annual rock music-themed "floating music festival at sea" aboard a cruise ship. It takes place in different locations each cruise, with several dozen bands performing in each cruise.Blackberry Smoke held a concert tour at venues and amphitheaters including Hollywood Bowl in Los Angeles, CA. On April 28, 2013, the Zac Brown Band headlined the 2013 Stagecoach Festival in Indio, California. Zac Brown Band completed a three-night, headlining stint at

Red Rocks Amphitheatre Red Rocks Amphitheatre (also colloquially as simply Red Rocks) is an open-air amphitheatre built into a rock structure in the Western United States, western United States, near Morrison, Colorado, west of Denver. There is a large, tilted, flyi ...

on Wednesday, May 8, 2013, Thursday, May 9, 2013, and Friday, May 10, 2013. All three performances were sold out. On September 6, 2013, Zac Brown sat in with

The String Cheese Incident The String Cheese Incident (SCI) is an American jam band from Crested Butte and Telluride, Colorado, formed in 1993. The band is composed of Michael Kang (acoustic/electric mandolin, electric guitar, and violin), Michael Travis (drums and percus ...

and performed as the Zac Brown Incident during the inaugural Lockin' Festival in Arrington, VA. On November 6, 2013, Zac Brown Band performed at the 2013 CMA awards with

on drums, debuting their new song "Day for the Dead". On November 24, while being interviewed at the

American Music Award The American Music Awards (AMAs) is an annual American music awards show, generally held in the fall, created by Dick Clark in 1973 for ABC when the network's contract to air the Grammy Awards expired, and currently produced by Dick Clark Produ ...

s, Grohl revealed that he recently produced the band's new EP. On January 21, 2014, Zac Brown Band released a live version of their 2010 #1 hit "Free" (transitioning into the

Van Morrison Sir George Ivan Morrison (born 31 August 1945), known professionally as Van Morrison, is a Northern Irish singer-songwriter and multi-instrumentalist whose recording career spans seven decades. He has won two Grammy Awards. As a teenager in t ...

classic "Into the Mystic"). The track features

Clare Bowen Clare Maree Bowen (born 12 May 1984) is an Australian actress and singer, best known for her role as Scarlett O'Connor in the ABC/ CMT musical-drama television series ''Nashville''. Alongside her music releases from ''Nashville'' and her solo ...

and precedes their January 22 appearance on the

ABC ABC are the first three letters of the Latin script known as the alphabet. ABC or abc may also refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Broadcasting * American Broadcasting Company, a commercial U.S. TV broadcaster ** Disney–ABC Television ...

TV show ''

Nashville Nashville is the capital city of the U.S. state of Tennessee and the seat of Davidson County. With a population of 689,447 at the 2020 U.S. census, Nashville is the most populous city in the state, 21st most-populous city in the U.S., and the ...

''. The song(s) were recorded at the 2013 Southern Ground Music & Food Festival in

. In 2016, Zac Brown formed a side-project, Sir Rosevelt, that released several singles and announced an album that was released December 15, 2017. Zac Brown Band re-recorded the song "From Now On" from ''

The Greatest Showman ''The Greatest Showman'' is a 2017 American biographical musical drama film directed by Michael Gracey in his directorial debut, written by Jenny Bicks and Bill Condon and starring Hugh Jackman, Zac Efron, Michelle Williams, Rebecca Ferguson, ...

'', as part of a compilation album, ''The Greatest Showman: Reimagined''. The album was released on November 16, 2018. Brown performed "Colder Weather" at the 2019

Musicians Hall of Fame and Museum The Musicians Hall of Fame and Museum (MHOF) in Nashville honors all musicians regardless of genre or instrument. The MHOF timeline starts with the beginning of recorded music and inductees are nominated by current members of the American Feder ...

Concert and Induction Ceremony.

Revenue

In 2015,

Forbes ''Forbes'' () is an American business magazine owned by Integrated Whale Media Investments and the Forbes family. Published eight times a year, it features articles on finance, industry, investing, and marketing topics. ''Forbes'' also re ...

estimated that Zac Brown Band's annual income was $32 million.

Philanthropy

The band has also supported Little Kids Rock, a national nonprofit that works to restore and revitalize music education programs in disadvantaged U.S. public schools, by donating items for auction to raise money for the organization. On January 16, 2013, Zac Brown, Clay Cook, and David Ryan Harris played a benefit with John Mayer for the firefighters and the residents of Pine Creek in

Park County, Montana Park County is a county in the U.S. state of Montana. At the 2020 census, the population was 17,191. Its county seat is Livingston. A small part of Yellowstone National Park is in the southern part of the county. History The Territorial Legis ...

, who fought a fire that swept through the area, and destroyed five homes.

Band members

Current members *

– lead vocals, guitar, banjo, bass guitar (2002–present) * Jimmy De Martini – fiddle, guitar, mandolin, backing vocals (2004–present) *

– bass guitar (2005–2014), guitar, baritone guitar, ukulele, upright bass, banjo (2014–present), backing vocals (2005–present) *

– guitar, slide guitar, Hammond organ, piano (2007–present) * Chris Fryar – drums, percussion (2008–present) *

– guitar, slide guitar, Hammond organ, piano, backing vocals (2009–present) *

– percussion (2012–present) * Matt Mangano – bass guitar, backing vocals (2014–present) *

– vocals, guitar, banjo, mandolin, dobro, piano, steel guitar, autoharp, harmonica (2022-present) Past members * Marcus Petruska – drums, percussion, backing vocals (2003–2008) * Jacob Lawson – bass guitar (2003–2005) * Tim Ussery – guitar, mandolin, bass guitar (2003–2005) * Joel Williams – guitar (2005–2008)

Timeline

Discography

* '' The Foundation'' (2008) * '' You Get What You Give'' (2010) * ''

'' (2012) * ''

'' (2015) * '' Welcome Home'' (2017) * '' The Owl'' (2019) * '' The Comeback'' (2021)

Tours

Headlining *Uncaged Tour (2012–13) *The Great American Road Trip Tour (2014) * Jekyll + Hyde Tour (2015) * Black Out The Sun Tour (2016) *Welcome Home Tour (2017) *

Down the Rabbit Hole Live Down the Rabbit Hole Live was the fifth headlining concert tour by American country music group the Zac Brown Band, in support of their fifth studio album '' Welcome Home'' (2017). The tour began on June 8, 2018, in Lincoln, Nebraska and conclude ...

(2018–19) *The Owl Tour (2019) * The Comeback Tour (2021) Supporting * Goin' Coastal Tour with

Kenny Chesney Kenneth Arnold Chesney (born March 26, 1968) is an American country music singer, songwriter, and guitarist. He has recorded more than 20 albums and has produced more than 40 Top 10 singles on the US ''Billboard (magazine), Billboard'' Hot Coun ...

(2011)

References

Other sources

* Zac Brown, Havighurst, Craig. ''Acoustic Guitar'' 20.10 (April 2010): 58-61. International Index to Music Periodicals Full Text
Zac Brown Band and the art of the cover song at Jazz Aspen Labor Day fest

External links

Official Site
*

Zac Brown Band Zac Brown Band is an American country music band based in Atlanta, Georgia. The lineup consists of Zac Brown (lead vocals, guitar), Jimmy De Martini ( fiddle, vocals), John Driskell Hopkins (bass guitar, guitar, baritone guitar, banjo, ukul ...

Billboard.com ''Billboard'' (stylized as ''billboard'') is an American music and entertainment magazine published weekly by Penske Media Corporation. The magazine provides music charts, news, video, opinion, reviews, events, and style related to the music ...

{{DEFAULTSORT:Brown, Zac, Band Country music groups from Georgia (U.S. state) American rock music groups American reggae musical groups Atlantic Records artists Bigger Picture Music Group artists Grammy Award winners Musical groups from Atlanta Musical groups established in 2000