NASHVILLE, Tenn. – The duo Big & Rich have always marched to the beat of their own drum, but now it seems that Big Kenny and John Rich are bucking the musical trends more than ever. With the entry of their latest single, “Lovin’ Lately,” into the Top 10 this week, the award-winning duo can claim a “hat trick” of three straight singles in that portion of the chart in their decade-plus history. But, the story doesn’t end there.
The singles – all from their Gravity album – were released on the group’s own Big & Rich Records label and promoted by their own independent promotion team at New Revolution – a rarity in today’s scene, controlled mainly by the majors. The duo had been part of the Warner Brothers roster for well over a decade when they decided to tackle a new way of doing things business-wise. Rich admits it was a little scary, but it’s paying off quite well.
“It’s terrifying and exciting all at the same time. You take on all the business and marketing side yourself, but there’s a big team of people that we have assembled that are helping us do this. But at the end of the day, our board meeting consists of two guys. If we agree, it will happen, and if we don’t, it doesn’t.”
The single features a vocal cameo from fellow hit maker Tim McGraw, who actually gave them the idea for the song. “He told it to us in a parking lot in Canada, where we were doing a show with him. He said he had a song title — ‘Who You Been Loving Lately?’ We thought it was brilliant. We wrote it, recorded it, and emailed it to him. His response was a video treatment — he wrote an entire video script for the song. I looked at Kenny and said, ‘I guess he likes it.’ Kenny said, ‘Apparently so, we should ask him if he wants to sing on it.’ He said, ‘Sure! What are you doing next Thursday at 3pm?’ We said, ‘Recording you, Brother Tim.”
And, the rest, as they say…..is another part of the Big & Rich story! For more information about the duo, visit www.BigandRich.com.
Big & Rich on Tour:
Oct. 14 Fresno, Calif. – Fresno Fair
Oct. 18 Denver , Colo. – Grizzly Rose
Oct. 25 Nashville, TN – An Evening With Black & Rich
Nov. 4 Evans , Ga. – Game Day @ Lady A
Nov. 5 Ocoee, Fla. – Ocoee Founders’ Day Festival
Nov. 9 Chicago , Ill. – CBS Radio’s Stars and Strings