Little Big Town Surprise Kenny Chesney

Author Cody

April 13th, 2023 7:47 AM

HOLLYWOOD, CALIFORNIA - FEBRUARY 08: (L-R) Jimi Westbrook, Kimberly Schlapman, Karen Fairchild and Phillip Sweet of Little Big Town speak onstage during A GRAMMY Salute to The Beach Boys at Dolby Theatre on February 08, 2023 in Hollywood, California. (Photo by Amy Sussman/Getty Images for The Recording Academy)

Little Big Town is coming to Augusta tomorrow night (Friday, April 14)! But on their way to Augusta, it looks like Little Big Town stopped to surprise Kenny Chesney in Birmingham!

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Kenny Chesney (@kennychesney)

We are so excited to see them tomorrow night at The Bell Auditorium! If you don’t have your tickets yet… better get ’em quick! There are just a few left. All the details HERE!

8 Little Big Town Songs That Secured Their Place In Country Music

Little Big Town’s Karen Fairchild is spending her 54th birthday today (9/28) at work as she and her bandmates host tonight’s People Choice Country Awards in Nashville at the Grand Ole Opry House.

Karen, her husband Jimi Westbrook, and bandmates Kimberly Schlapman and Phillip Sweet have been staples in the Nashville music scene for over twenty years.

As a journalist, I’ve been interviewing this group since day one, and Little Big Town members are some of the nicest people in Nashville. In 2015, the group struck a chord when they released their Pain Killer album, which had such songs as “Girl Crush” and “Day Drinking” on it. That album won a Grammy for Best Country Album in 2016 and also won the Album of the Year honors in 2015 for both the ACM and the CMA.

I chatted with Karen not long after the album came out. She responded to the praise it was getting. Karen told me about Miranda Lambert, who cited Pain Killer as her favorite album at the time. “For me personally to know that another singer-songwriter entertainer of the year Miranda Lambert would like what we’re doing and you know, be listening to it is incredible. We listen to all her records.” She added, “She (Miranda) raised the bar. We wanted to up our game too. It’s like every time we get back in the studio, we wanna take it to a new place and a better place, and we’re super proud of the way Pain Killer turned out.”

I spoke to Fairchild again in 2016 when her group released the Taylor Swift penned “Better Man.” Karen told me how they presented the song to the public without revealing the superstar behind it. She said, “Taylor is the biggest pop star in the world, but she’s a songwriter from Nashville, Tennessee, and she likes to tell a story, and we didn’t want you to have any subtext there other than to hear this song.”

She continued, “And we did that, and it had the biggest add day in our history with the guys at Universal that we ever had, and so we were like, ‘Damn, we were right! This is a good song! You know? Nobody even knows!’ So, for all the people that we told little white lies to, we didn’t really lie. We said a young girl from Nashville, Tennessee, wrote it.”

As we celebrate Karen on her big day, we take a look at some of her group’s biggest and best songs.

RELATED: Little Big Town Features Well-Known Actor In 'Rich Man' Video

8. “Day Drinking” – 2014
Share
This song was released in June 2014 as the lead single from their sixth studio album, 'Pain Killer.' Little Big Town debuted the song at the CMT Music Awards on June 4, 2014. It's a crowd-pleaser at their shows.
7. “Tornado” – 2012
Share
This song features lead vocals from Karen Fairchild and uses a tornado as a a metaphor for a woman's anger at her lover being unfaithful. CMA winner Natalie Hemby wrote the song with Delta Maid and said that the idea came when Maid asked if the area had frequent tornadoes. The music video was filmed in Watertown, Tennessee, and co-stars Johnathon Schaech as the object of the band's wrath.
6. “Boondocks” – 2005
Share
An LBT classic that has stood the test of time. It became their first Top 10 hit on the U.S. Billboard Hot Country Songs charts. The song was written by Karen Fairchild, Kimberly Roads, Phillip Sweet, Jimi Westbrook, and Wayne Kirkpatrick. In the song, all four of the group's members trade off lead and harmony vocals, with all four members singing in various combinations throughout.
5. “Pontoon” – 2012
Share
The group's breakout hit. This song became the group's first No. 1 single on the Billboard Hot Country Songs chart for the week of September 15, 2012. The song won the 2013 Grammy Award for Best Country Duo/Group Performance.
4. “The Daughters” – 2019
Share
A touching song released in 2019 from the group's "Nightfall" album about what we tell our daughters when we explain the world to them. The group debuted the song at the CMA Awards. Phillip said of the song when it came out, "We had been working in the studio, and Karen came back -- she had been in a session -- and she was like, 'Guys, I think I just wrote the best song I've ever written. I just want you to hear it.' And we heard it, and we all just loved it and loved what it said and thought it was poignant for the times."
3. “Girl Crush” – 2014
Share
What a powerful song this is! It elevated the group to the next level with its words and story. This song won five music awards, including two Grammys (Best Country Duo/Group Performance and Best Country Song), reached number one on country radio, and ended up being the second-most played song of 2015 in country music.
2. “Wine, Beer, Whiskey” – 2020
Share
Just a fun song whether you drink or not. Little Big Town performed the song on live TV for the first time on June 1, 2020, on the "Tonight Show with Jimmy Fallon." The band also performed it at the CMT Music Awards on October 21, 2020, as the show's closing performance.
1. “Better Man” – 2016
Share
Written by Taylor Swift, the song is a gem. "Better Man" was first performed live at the 50th CMA Awards on November 2, 2016. The song won Song of the Year and was nominated for Single of the Year and Music Video of the Year at the 2017 CMA Awards. The song won a Grammy Award for Best Country Duo/Group Performance and was nominated for Best Country Song at the 60th Annual Grammy Awards.

“Cody” Blaine Jackson is one half of the Kicks Wake Up Krew on Kicks 99, and also serves as the Digital Program Director for Beasley Media Group in Augusta. She’s a Georgia native but currently resides just across the river in South Carolina. She started in the radio industry as a part-time board operator, and moved up through various roles, including on-air positions and program director for multiple stations. Her passions include fitness and anything to do with animals, as she has two fur babies, her dogs Harley and Waylon. Cody likes to write about pets, fitness and Augusta local events.

Have The KICKS 99's Neon Notes Newsletter Delivered To Your Inbox

Enjoy latest Country music, entertainment, and local stories, exclusive contests, games and more.

By clicking "Subscribe" I agree to the website's terms of Service and Privacy Policy. I understand I can unsubscribe at any time.

Author Cody

Category:

Tags:

Kenny Chesney,Little Big Town

News

Trending

Shows

Latest Kicks Wake Up Krew

Listen + Watch

“Alexa, Open Kicks 99”

Podcasts

Galleries

Connect

Join The Kicks VIP Club

Preferred Pros

Advertise with Kicks

The Kicks Wake Up Krew

The Kicks Wake Up Krew

The Kicks Wake Up Krew

Little Big Town Surprise Kenny Chesney

8 Little Big Town Songs That Secured Their Place In Country Music

8. “Day Drinking” – 2014

7. “Tornado” – 2012

6. “Boondocks” – 2005

5. “Pontoon” – 2012

4. “The Daughters” – 2019

3. “Girl Crush” – 2014

2. “Wine, Beer, Whiskey” – 2020

1. “Better Man” – 2016

Have The KICKS 99's Neon Notes Newsletter Delivered To Your Inbox

Enjoy latest Country music, entertainment, and local stories, exclusive contests, games and more.

More Augusta News