Lady A Reach Out to Blues Singer Lady A for ‘Transparent, Honest and Authentic Conversations’

The band formerly known as Lady Antebellum — recently renamed Lady A in the name of social awareness — are making amends with the original Lady A, a blues singer who has been performing under that name for more than two decades and was not happy with the band overstepping on her brand.

The original Lady A, who is black, originally noted that she was not only irritated that the country trio appropriated her name without doing their due diligence, but also that she felt it was nothing more than a PR move geared toward showing solidarity with the black community after the death of George Floyd. However, per a social media post from the band Lady A, they and the singer recently met virtually.

In their Instagram post, the former Lady Antebellum note that they had a fruitful discussion with the original Lady A.

"Today, we connected privately with the artist Lady A. Transparent, honest, and authentic conversations were had," the band -- Dave Haywood, Charles Kelley and Hillary Scott -- writes. "We are excited to share we are moving forward with positive solutions and common ground. The hurt is turning into hope. More to come."

The post was accompanied by a photo of a four-way, Zoom-type conversation, with everyone involved widely smiling. The singer Lady A posted the same photo and caption to her own social media shortly after the band posted theirs.

To USA Today, Lady A adds that the country group were the ones who contacted her about having "open and honest conversations." Scott offered an apology, which Lady A says she accepted.

The multi-platinum trio announced their decision to drop "Antebellum" from their name and shorten it to Lady A, a longtime fan nickname, on June 11, noting that they recognized the word's connections to the Civil War era, which included slavery. The singer Lady A, whose real name is Anita White, responded immediately not only with sharp words, but a threat to pursue legal action.

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