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."
Ready to Love Again
Lady Antebellum Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
I barely recognize my own reflection
Oh, scared of love but scared of life alone
Seems I've been playing on the safe side baby
Building walls around my heart to save me
Oh, but it's time for me to let it go
No longer am I afraid of the fall down
It must be time to move on now
Without the fear of how it might end
I guess I'm ready to love again
Just when we think that love will never find you
You've run away but still it's right behind you
Oh, it's just something that we can't control
Yeah I'm ready to feel now
No longer am I afraid of the fall down
It must be time to move on now
Without the fear of how it might end
I guess I'm ready to love again
So come and find me
I'll be waiting up for you
I'll be holding out for you tonight
Yeah I'm ready to feel now
No longer am I afraid of the fall down
It must be time to move on now
Without the fear of how it might end
I guess I'm ready
Ready to love again
Oh, I'm ready to love again
The lyrics of Lady Antebellum's song Ready to Love Again describe a person who has recently come out of a bad breakup and is scared of falling in love again. They feel lost and unsure of themselves, walking in the wrong direction and barely recognizing their own reflection. They confess to having built walls around their heart to protect themselves from being hurt again, but now they realize that it's time to let go of their fear and open up to love once more.
The chorus of the song speaks to the person's newfound courage, as they declare that they are ready to feel again and not afraid of the possibility of falling down. They acknowledge that love is something that cannot be controlled, but they are willing to take the risk and see where it takes them. The song ends with the person inviting their potential lover to come and find them, holding out hope for a new beginning.
Line by Line Meaning
Seems I was walking in the wrong direction
Feeling lost while moving towards the incorrect path.
I barely recognize my own reflection
Feeling like a completely different person, almost unrecognizable to oneself.
Oh, scared of love but scared of life alone
Fearful of both loving someone and being alone in life.
Seems I've been playing on the safe side baby
Always taking the safe route in life, avoiding risks and potential heartbreak.
Building walls around my heart to save me
Putting up emotional barriers to protect oneself from getting hurt.
Oh, but it's time for me to let it go
Realizing that it's time to move on from the past and let go of the emotional barriers.
Yeah I'm ready to feel now
Feeling emotionally available for the first time in a while.
No longer am I afraid of the fall down
Not fearing the potential of heartbreak or emotional pain anymore.
It must be time to move on now
Realizing that the time has come to move forward in life.
Without the fear of how it might end
Not worrying about how a new relationship will end or if it will end at all.
I guess I'm ready to love again
Finally feeling ready to open up to the possibility of love once more.
Just when we think that love will never find you
Feeling like love will never come your way.
You've run away but still it's right behind you
Even when trying to avoid love, it still manages to find you.
Oh, it's just something that we can't control
Love is not something that can be controlled or predicted.
So come and find me
Open to the idea of being found by love.
I'll be waiting up for you
Ready and willing to wait for the right person to come along.
I'll be holding out for you tonight
Being patient and hopeful for love to come into one's life.
Oh, I'm ready to love again
Excited and ready for the opportunity to love and be loved.
Lyrics © BMG Rights Management, Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC, Warner Chappell Music, Inc.
Written by: Hillary Scott, Charles Kelley, David Haywood, Mike Busbee
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind