PLAYS APOLLO THEATER “FOR THE FIRST TIME”
“For the First Time” Music Video Premiered Friday (10/20)
HARLEM, N.Y. – In the hours before releasing his fifth country album on Capitol Records Nashville, When Was The Last Time, Darius Rucker celebrated the latest milestone and bucket list moment in his groundbreaking, multi-genre music career from the iconic stage of the Apollo Theater in New York City. Performing hits spanning his country career – from his first country No. 1 single “Don’t Think I Don’t Think About It” to his most recent chart-topper off the new album, “If I Told You,” – to a few classic crowd-favorites from his career as lead singer of Hootie & the Blowfish, Rucker kept the crowd on their feet all night.
“I asked myself, ‘if I could play any song at the Apollo tonight, what would it be?’,” Rucker marveled midway into his two-hour set. “I knew I had to play this song tonight because I’ve always been a huge Patsy Cline fan, and for me, this song, ‘Another Night With You,’ is a true country song,” before launching into track 9-of-12 on the album that dropped overnight.
And it wasn’t just Rucker’s excitement fueling the crowd. After an album-collaboration earlier this year, Darius brought out Robert Randolph to duet on their “Love Do What You Do.” The pedal steel rock star stayed on stage transitioning into an Apollo-only-worthy collaboration on “Hold My Hand.”
It seemed Rucker didn’t want the night to end any more than the sold-out crowd. After a three-song encore, the Charleston, South Carolinian took a moment to take it all in before taking a final bow.
With appearances on CBS Sunday Morning (10/22), Today Show (10/24), The View (10/25), The Chew (10/27), Harry (11/1), Jimmy Kimmel Live!, and more, the 3-time GRAMMY winner’s new album was worth the wait. USA Today observes, “Rucker is a seriously underrated singer. Blessed with a rugged but warm timbre, he has a rare ability to invite listeners into a song rather than keep them at a distance through extraneous, show-offy display.”
The first single from When Was The Last Time, “If I Told You” has already achieved chart-topping success, and second single “For The First Time,” co-written by Rucker with Derek George and Travis Hill, is available digitally now and currently climbing the country charts. Rucker shared the behind-the-scenes of the music video exclusively with PEOPLE.com, here.
Complete track listing for When Was The Last Time:
1. “For the First Time” (Darius Rucker, Derek George, Scooter Carusoe)
2. “Bring It On” (Ross Copperman, Ashley Gorley, Dallas Davidson)
3. “Life’s Too Short” (Copperman, Jon Nite, Jaren Johnston)
4. “If I Told You” (Copperman, Shane McAnally, Nite)
5. “Don’t” (Adam Doleac, A.J. Babcock, Pete Good)
6. “Twenty Something” (McAnally, Nite, Zach Crowell, Josh Osborne)
7. “Straight to Hell” with Jason Aldean, Luke Bryan and Charles Kelley (Kevin Kinney)
8. “Count the Beers” (Rucker, Dean Dillon, Josh Thompson)
9. “Another Night With You” (Rucker, Dillon, Josh Thompson)
10. “Hands On Me” (Copperman, McAnally, J.T. Harding)
11. “She” (Chris Tompkins, Rodney Clawson)
12. “Story to Tell” (Copperman, Gorley, Rucker)
For more information about new music, appearances and tour dates, please visit www.dariusrucker.