CHICAGO — Texas' The Chicks performed the National Anthem at the 2024 Democratic National Convention Thursday night.
The country group, formerly known as the Dixie Chicks, took the stage at the fourth and closing night of the DNC, before Vice President Kamala Harris will speak and formally accept the party’s nomination for president.
The Chicks are the latest country-adjacent act to be booked for the convention, which included North Texans’ Mickey Guyton and Maren Morris, both from Arlington. Other notable acts at the convention have included Stevie Wonder, John Legend, and Jason Isbell.
The Dixie Chicks, now known as The Chicks, was formed in Dallas by sisters Martie Maguire and Emily Strayer with the late Laura Lynch and Robin Lynn Macy as a bluegrass band. The Chicks’ past has long been intertwined with politics.
The band’s current lead singer Natalie Maines said at a concert in London in 2003 before the invasion of Iraq that the group did not condone the war and was “ashamed the president of the United States is from Texas” about then-President George W. Bush.
Their remarks triggered boycotts and backlash from some fans and even resulted in some country stations pulling their music from the radio.
It’s also not the Chicks’ first DNC appearance. The group performed at the virtual 2020 DNC during the COVID-19 pandemic.
The group – now made up of Maines, Martie Maguire and Emily Strayer – are one of the best-selling female bands and country groups in music history with 13 Grammys, 10 CMA awards and eight ACM awards.