# Lady Antebellum is now Lady A **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [June 11, 2020, 9:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lady-antebellum-is-now-lady-a/855486 "2020-06-11T21:20:04Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Bijou\_Drains](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bijou_drains/32/2814_2.png) [@Bijou\_Drains](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bijou_Drains)\ **Post date:** [June 11, 2020, 9:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lady-antebellum-is-now-lady-a/855486/1 "2020-06-11T21:20:04Z")
But I will still have unclean thoughts about the girl. > **[Lady Antebellum is changing its name to Lady A | CNN](https://www.cnn.com/2020/06/11/entertainment/lady-antebellum-name-change/index.html)** > > Lady Antebellum is making a big change. ---
**Author:** ![Darren\_Garrison](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/darren_garrison/32/92_2.png) [@Darren\_Garrison](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Darren_Garrison)\ **Post date:** [June 11, 2020, 11:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lady-antebellum-is-now-lady-a/855486/2 "2020-06-11T23:18:55Z")
If two members quit, the remaining one can be Lady or Lad. ---
**Author:** ![Just\_Asking\_Questions](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/ba9def/32.png) [@Just\_Asking\_Questions](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Just_Asking_Questions)\ **Post date:** [June 11, 2020, 11:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lady-antebellum-is-now-lady-a/855486/3 "2020-06-11T23:34:52Z")
Fourteen years as a band and now they’re _just_ learning of the word’s association to slavery? Lying, or stupid - you make the call! ---
**Author:** ![outlierrn](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/outlierrn/32/3005_2.png) [@outlierrn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/outlierrn)\ **Post date:** [June 12, 2020, 12:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lady-antebellum-is-now-lady-a/855486/4 "2020-06-12T00:11:05Z")
I’m barely aware of the bands existence, but they’re statement > [@](#): > > we did not take into account the associations that weigh down this word is more tone deaf than lying or stupid. Be interesting to see what type and how much backlash they get. ---
**Author:** ![Jas09](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/d07c76/32.png) [@Jas09](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jas09)\ **Post date:** [June 12, 2020, 12:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lady-antebellum-is-now-lady-a/855486/5 "2020-06-12T00:31:45Z")
I’m pretty sure I heard that “excuse” from them years ago, when it was made clear to them what the “associations” were. They just thought it was too much of a hassle to change it. Now, obviously, they have changed their minds. So good on them, I guess. ---
**Author:** ![glowacks](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/glowacks/32/5548_2.png) [@glowacks](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/glowacks)\ **Post date:** [June 12, 2020, 12:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lady-antebellum-is-now-lady-a/855486/6 "2020-06-12T00:40:44Z")
Apologies for taking the conversation elsewhere, but this sorta reminds me that [Enter the Haggis - Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Enter_the_Haggis) changed their name to “Jubilee Riots” and released an album with a slightly different style of music, and promptly changed it back and went back to the original style of music. It’s uncertain why, but presumably their fans preferred the original sound and many of them didn’t know about the name change. A band originally called Rhapsody had to change their name for trademark reasons presumably, and ended up as “Rhapsody of Fire”, reusing the same basic logo so it was clear it was the same band on marketing material, and didn’t suffer at all. But how does someone use the name “Antebellum” and not know what that name primarily refers to and what the primary association with it is? Maybe Auntie Bellum was a bit too much of a Molly Coddle. They changed Justin Time. ---
**Author:** ![rsat3acr](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/a3d4f5/32.png) [@rsat3acr](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/rsat3acr)\ **Post date:** [June 12, 2020, 1:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lady-antebellum-is-now-lady-a/855486/7 "2020-06-12T01:30:05Z")
> [@Just\_Asking\_Questions](#): > > Fourteen years as a band and now they’re _just_ learning of the word’s association to slavery? Lying, or stupid - you make the call! Both ---
**Author:** ![BigT](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bigt/32/12044_2.png) [@BigT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BigT)\ **Post date:** [June 12, 2020, 2:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lady-antebellum-is-now-lady-a/855486/8 "2020-06-12T02:11:04Z")
Yeah, it’s obviously a cover. What they really mean is “we are just now aware that our intended audience is starting to be offended by our name.” But I’m fine with granting them their little lie in exchange for having yet another organization realize they need to stop glorifying the Confederacy or treating it as synonymous with the South or Southern culture. It would be like being mad at a Trump supporter who finally saw the light. ---
**Author:** ![Beckdawrek](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/beckdawrek/32/3647_2.png) [@Beckdawrek](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Beckdawrek)\ **Post date:** [June 12, 2020, 2:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lady-antebellum-is-now-lady-a/855486/9 "2020-06-12T02:43:46Z")
The country band Confederate Railroad is having similar problems. They also used the confederate flag on stage. Dumb. ---
**Author:** ![installLSC](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/54ee81/32.png) [@installLSC](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/installLSC)\ **Post date:** [June 12, 2020, 4:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lady-antebellum-is-now-lady-a/855486/10 "2020-06-12T04:47:54Z")
Don’t forget Alabama, which used a Confederate flag as their logo until the 90s. The band members had the same “gee we didn’t know we were offending anyone” excuse. Interestingly enough, there has been a small boomlet in black country singers lately. In the past few years, Darius Rucker, Jimmie Allen, and Kane Brown have all topped the country chart. Before then, country music was actually less diverse than in the 70s, when you had Charlie Pride and Hispanic singers Johnny Rodriguez and Freddy Fender. Now how does that happen? ---
**Author:** ![amarinth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/3be4f8/32.png) [@amarinth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/amarinth)\ **Post date:** [June 12, 2020, 5:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lady-antebellum-is-now-lady-a/855486/11 "2020-06-12T05:54:11Z")
> [@Just\_Asking\_Questions](#): > > Fourteen years as a band and now they’re _just_ learning of the word’s association to slavery? Lying, or stupid - you make the call! Completely lying. It’s one of those things where country music openly celebrated slavery and everyone thought it was nifty. They talked about the origins of the name long, long ago. They knew. Pro-slavery just sells well with their target audience. I guess it’s better to have finally changed it than never, but it took them way too long to get there and the country music industry’s endorsement of their original name speaks volumes. ---
**Author:** ![Pantastic](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/3bc359/32.png) [@Pantastic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Pantastic)\ **Post date:** [June 12, 2020, 12:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lady-antebellum-is-now-lady-a/855486/12 "2020-06-12T12:06:45Z")
It’s perfectly believable that when the band came up with the name, they just thought about the architecture style or the time period in general - people do that kind of thing all the time. But it’s just not plausible that in the 14 years since, no one mentioned the connection between the end of slavery and the civil war to them and they’re just learning about it now. They were happy to have a nod-and-wink to the slavery era with a fig leaf of ‘no, we’re talking about the art style’ until association with the Confederacy became a really bad business decision this year. While I think it’s good that ‘Confederate Pride’ is becoming synonymous with ‘White Pride’ as something you don’t want to promote, the band’s explanation that they just figured it out is very weak. ---
**Author:** ![Beckdawrek](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/beckdawrek/32/3647_2.png) [@Beckdawrek](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Beckdawrek)\ **Post date:** [June 12, 2020, 12:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lady-antebellum-is-now-lady-a/855486/13 "2020-06-12T12:45:00Z")
And there’s the ‘Dixie Chicks’ ---
**Author:** ![CalMeacham](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/calmeacham/32/35_2.png) [@CalMeacham](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CalMeacham)\ **Post date:** [June 12, 2020, 12:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lady-antebellum-is-now-lady-a/855486/14 "2020-06-12T12:56:56Z")
I’ve long thought that Sarah Bellum from the PowerPuff Girls could consider herself the Girls’ adopted aunt. Then she’d be Auntie Bellum. ---
**Author:** ![Ludovic](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/7ab992/32.png) [@Ludovic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ludovic)\ **Post date:** [June 12, 2020, 1:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lady-antebellum-is-now-lady-a/855486/15 "2020-06-12T13:30:16Z")
> [@installLSC](#): > > Before then, country music was actually less diverse than in the 70s, when you had Charlie Pride and Hispanic singers Johnny Rodriguez and Freddy Fender. Now how does that happen? Not sure how it happened in country, but the same thing seemed to happen in rock in the 80s and that is due to MTV, where you could now _see_ the band you were listening to instead of just hearing them on the radio. ---
**Author:** ![WOOKINPANUB](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wookinpanub/32/132_2.png) [@WOOKINPANUB](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WOOKINPANUB)\ **Post date:** [June 12, 2020, 1:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lady-antebellum-is-now-lady-a/855486/16 "2020-06-12T13:42:42Z")
Country isn’t my bag but there were a couple of crossover(?) songs that made it onto Top 40 stations so I have at least heard of them. It never occurred to me that their name has racist connotations. It made me think “stupid country band” but I didn’t associate it with slavery. And yes, I absolutely knew / know the definition of “antebellum” but, I guess as part of my white privilege, I tend to think of architecture / styles of the time. They were reporting about this on one of the morning shows (The one with Gail King). One of the quotes from LA mentioned that “they don’t have any excuse and can only apologize and move forward” so it would seem they have been called out. Seems fair to me. BTW, GK says she never associated the band’s name with slavery either. ---
**Author:** ![Bijou\_Drains](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bijou_drains/32/2814_2.png) [@Bijou\_Drains](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bijou_Drains)\ **Post date:** [June 12, 2020, 2:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lady-antebellum-is-now-lady-a/855486/17 "2020-06-12T14:20:36Z")
Don’t see any reason to bash them for not changing the name earlier. A lot of things were “OK” in the past and now are not. ---
**Author:** ![TriPolar](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tripolar/32/3008_2.png) [@TriPolar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TriPolar)\ **Post date:** [June 12, 2020, 2:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lady-antebellum-is-now-lady-a/855486/18 "2020-06-12T14:49:17Z")
> [@Bijou\_Drains](#): > > Don’t see any reason to bash them for not changing the name earlier. A lot of things were “OK” in the past and now are not. Agreed. They’ve done the right thing. That’s something to encourage. ---
**Author:** ![Ashtura](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ashtura/32/2963_2.png) [@Ashtura](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ashtura)\ **Post date:** [June 12, 2020, 3:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lady-antebellum-is-now-lady-a/855486/19 "2020-06-12T15:02:42Z")
I agree, there is no way they the didn’t know what “Antebellum” meant. That’s ridiculous. However, I think if someone changes to become something acceptable, or apologizes, or whatever, that their motivation shouldn’t be questioned. There will come a point where people just stop apologizing if they keep getting raked over the coals regardless. ---
**Author:** ![Ukulele\_Ike](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/df788c/32.png) [@Ukulele\_Ike](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ukulele_Ike)\ **Post date:** [June 12, 2020, 3:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lady-antebellum-is-now-lady-a/855486/20 "2020-06-12T15:12:10Z")
I understand that their music still sucks, though. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lady-antebellum-is-now-lady-a/855486.md?page=2)