The trio originally formed in Nashville, Tennessee, in 2006 by Charles Kelley (lead and background vocals), Dave Haywood (background vocals, guitar, piano, mandolin) and Hillary Scott (lead and background vocals).
Scott is the daughter of country music singer Linda Davis, and Charles Kelley is the brother of pop artist Josh Kelley. It was these family connections and music industry ties that helped launch the band. Kelley moved to Nashville in mid-2005 from Winston-Salem, North Carolina, where he had been working construction with his brother John. Trying to become a successful solo country artist, Kelley convinced his old middle-school classmate, Haywood, to move to Nashville from Georgia in 2006 so they could write music together. Shortly thereafter, Scott recognized Kelley from MySpace, and they started to talk at a Nashville music club. Kelley later invited Scott to join him and Haywood in the new group, which assumed the name Lady Antebellum. The name Antebellum comes from when the group were photographing "antebellum" homes. The antebellum ('pre-war') architectural style describes the large plantation homes in the American South. While photographing the houses one of the group said that there's a great band name in there, and they adopted the Lady Antebellum name shortly after. The trio then began performing at local venues in Nashville before being signed in July 2007 to a recording contract with Capitol Records Nashville. In an interview with Sirius Satellite Radio, Scott claimed she was rejected from the hit show American Idol two times, not even making it past the first round.
Shortly after the trio signed to the label, adult contemporary artist Jim Brickman chose Lady Antebellum to sing on his 2007 single Never Alone, which reached #14 on the Billboard adult contemporary charts. In mid-2007, Lady Antebellum also wrote a song for the MTV reality television series The Hills.
Their solo debut single Love Don't Live Here was released in September of 2007, with a music video for the song following in December. This song was the lead-off single to the band's self-titled debut album. Released on April 15, 2008, Lady Antebellum was produced by Paul Worley and Victoria Shaw, a Nashville songwriter and former solo artist. Love Don't Live Here reached #3 on the Billboard Hot Country Songs charts. The album itself was the first album by a new duo or group to debut at Number One on the Billboard Top Country Albums charts.
A second single, Lookin' for a Good Time, was issued in June 2008 and peaked at #11 in December. In addition, Lady Antebellum was signed as an opening act on Martina McBride's "Waking Up Laughing Tour" in 2008. Lady Antebellum also contributed the song I Was Here to the AT&T Team USA Soundtrack, a song which peaked at #24 on the Bubbling Under Hot 100 based on downloads. In December 2008, their rendition of Baby, It's Cold Outside peaked at #3 on the same chart. Their third official single, I Run to You, was released in January 2009. It eventually became the trio's first Number One in July 2009.
On October 7, 2009 their debut album was certified platinum by the RIAA for shipments of one million copies in the United States.
In August 2009, the group released their fourth single, Need You Now, the lead-off single and title track to their second studio album. It debuted at #50 on the Billboard Hot Country Songs chart and became their second Number One hit on the charts for the week of November 28, 2009. The song also reached a peak of #2 on the Billboard Hot 100 and was a number-one hit on the Hot Adult Contemporary chart, making it a crossover hit. A second single, American Honey, was released to radio on January 11, 2010 and would become their third #1 hit. Our Kind of Love was released as the third single from the album on May 31, 2010 and became a #1 single in September, 2010.
The album debuted at #1 on the Billboard 200 and Top Country Albums charts for the week of Feb. 2, 2010, selling 480,922 copies in the first week. Four weeks after the album's release, it was certified platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America.
The week of January 9, 2011, the group ventured into the studio to begin recording for their third studio album. In an interview with Entertainment Weekly, Kelley said, "We actually just went ahead and decided we’re gonna take two, two and a half months straight in the studio to create this thing and not have all this distraction. Hopefully that will be a good thing". He goes on to say that the group has around 50 songs which they plan to choose from along with songs from other songwriters. However, he singles out a song called Dancing Away With My Heart as one the band is particularly excited about, a song that the group co-wrote with Josh Kear, who previously wrote with the group on their hit Need You Now.
On May 2, 2011, the group released the first single from their upcoming album, titled Just a Kiss. The group performed the single on stage on American Idol's result show on May 5, 2011.
On June 11, 2020, amid the George Floyd protests, the band announced they would rename themselves "Lady A" in order to avoid racist connotations with Civil War history, as the original name was based on the Antebellum South. The band stated on social media that they were "deeply sorry for the hurt this has caused and for anyone who has felt unsafe, unseen or unvalued."
Nothin' Like the First Time
Lady Antebellum Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
At our old favorite coffee shop
Then you walked up
I tried to hide behind my cup
When you said, how you've been doing,
I gave you the typical line
I've been fine
But I was lying, and dying, yeah
You rocked me then and it still does cause
Ain't nothin' like the first time
Nothin' like the first smile
Looking at you seeing forever
Keeps me going till the last mile
And I held on like crazy
Until our goodbye baby
And I still miss you lately
Ain't nothin' like the first time
Nothin' like the first time, yeah
I remember you stole my breath
Underneath the stadium steps
Now I'm walking 'round the block
Ten years later knock knock knock
Knocking on these memories
Flooding back of you and me
When love was free
We were shining, flying
Yeah, I didn't understand
I had you right there in my hands
Ain't nothin' like the first time
Nothin' like the first smile
Looking at you seeing forever
Keeps me going till the last mile
And I held on like crazy
Until our goodbye baby
And I still miss you lately
Ain't nothin' like the first time
First time
Never get it back again
But I still remember when
First time
First time
There's a magic in the way
You will always stay
Yeah
Oh oh oh
Ain't nothin' like the first time
Nothin' like the first smile
Looking at you seeing forever
Keeps me going till the last mile
And I held on like crazy
Until our goodbye baby
I still miss you lately
Ain't nothin' like the first time
There's a magic in the way
You will always stay
There's a magic in the way
You will always stay
The song "Nothin' Like the First Time" by Lady Antebellum is a nostalgic ballad that reminisces on the memory of first love. The first verse sets the scene at a café where the singer bumps into an ex-lover whom they haven't seen in years. The singer puts up a front, claiming that they have been fine since the breakup, but admits later on that they were lying and still miss their first love. The chorus explains the irreplaceable feeling of first love; no smile or everlasting moment will ever compare to the initial sentiment two people experience when falling in love. The second verse almost seems like a dream sequence as the singer flashbacks to their first time together, underneath the stadium steps. A decade has passed since that encounter, and the singer walks down memory lane while feeling the magic that still lingers between them, even though they are no longer together.
The song emphasizes the significance of the first time falling in love, and how it's a feeling that can never be replicated, no matter how deeply one might fall in love later in life. The pure, unconditional love that people feel when they fall in love for the first time is unique and cannot be compared to any future encounter. The song suggests that even if lovers move on from each other and find love elsewhere, the magic of the first time will always stay.
Line by Line Meaning
Last time I saw you I was fueling up
The last time we encountered, I was refueling at our usual coffee shop
At our old favorite coffee shop
I was at the coffee shop we used to frequent
Then you walked up
You approached me
I tried to hide behind my cup
I attempted to mask myself with my mug
When you said, how you've been doing,
You asked me how I was doing
I gave you the typical line
I provided the typical response
I've been fine
I stated that I was alright
But I was lying, and dying, yeah
But I was untruthful and severely struggling
I was a kid in love
I was a young person in love
You rocked me then and it still does cause
You excited me at that time, and it still exhilarates me now
Ain't nothin' like the first time
There's nothing like the initial experience
Nothin' like the first smile
No comparable feeling to the first smile
Looking at you seeing forever
Staring at you and seeing eternity
Keeps me going till the last mile
Allows me to continue forward till the very end
And I held on like crazy
I clung on like a mad person
Until our goodbye baby
Up until we said our farewells
And I still miss you lately
And recently, I still long for you
I remember you stole my breath
I recall that you took my breath away
Underneath the stadium steps
Beneath the bleacher steps
Now I'm walking 'round the block
Now I'm walking in the neighborhood
Ten years later knock knock knock
A decade later, knock knock knock
Knocking on these memories
Reviving these recollections
Flooding back of you and me
Flooding back of you and me
When love was free
When love was free
We were shining, flying
We were dazzling, soaring
Yeah, I didn't understand
However, I didn't comprehend
I had you right there in my hands
I had you right there in my hands
First time
Initial moment
Never get it back again
Will never experience it again
But I still remember when
But I still have remembrance of the past
There's a magic in the way
There's a magical quality to
You will always stay
You'll always be with meForever
Oh oh oh
Oh oh oh
There's a magic in the way
There's a magical quality to
You will always stay
You'll always be with meForever
Ain't nothin' like the first time
There's nothing like the initial experience
Nothin' like the first time
No comparable feeling to the first time
Keeps me going till the last mile
Allows me to continue forward till the very end
And I held on like crazy
I clung on like a mad person
Until our goodbye baby
Up until we said our farewells
I still miss you lately
Recently, I still long for you
Lyrics © Warner/Chappell Music, Inc., BMG RIGHTS MANAGEMENT US, LLC
Written by: HILLARY LINDSEY, JEDD HUGHES, SARAH BUXTON
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind