The Grammy-winning The Dixie Chicks are now just The Chicks.
The country trio, which consists of Natalie Maines, Emily Strayer, and Martie Maguire, changed its social media handles Thursday and their official website, thechicks.com, had a message scrawled across the top that reads: “We want to meet this moment.”
The band also recognized that the name was already in use by a band in New Zealand.
“A sincere and heartfelt thank you goes out to The Chicks of NZ for their gracious gesture in allowing us to share their name. We are honored to co-exist together in the world with these exceptionally talented sisters,” the group said in a statement.
The name change comes amid nationwide protests highlighting racial injustice in America. The term Dixie refers to Southern U.S. states, especially those that belonged to the Confederacy.
Country music group Lady Antebellum made a similar move, dropping the word Antebellum from its name due to the term’s slavery connotation — used particularly to describe existing before the American Civil War. They now are Lady A.
The Chicks, who are releasing their first new album in 14 years next month, also released a new video for their new song, “March March” that features videos and images from the recent Black Lives Matter rallies.
The Chicks are the best selling female group in America with more than 33 million albums sold in the United States, according to the Recording Industry Association of America. Formed originally in Texas as a bluegrass group, the band hit commercial fame with their breakthrough album Wide Open Spaces. The band has won 13 Grammys.
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