After 30 years of hits, Lonestar is back in the studio re-recording their Top 10 singles and connecting with a new generation of country music fans.
Their upcoming album TEN to 1 is set for release in June, but the celebration has already begun with a tour of the same name which includes a stop at the inaugural Country Roots Festival in Kansas City, Kan. Lonestar will join fellow headliners, Trace Adkins, Chris Young and Gabby Barrett on May 13 at Legends Field. The Country Roots Festival is produced by Kustom 440 and all guests must be 21 or older.
Climbing the Charts
Lonestar debuted in 1992 as Texassee and signed with BNA Records in 1995. They released their debut single “Tequila Talkin’” that August and scored their first No. 1 hit with “No News” the following April. Both singles were featured on their self-titled debut album, which earned the group an Academy of Country Music award for New Vocal Group in 1996.
In 1999, the band’s third album Lonely Grill produced four chart-topping hits and went quadruple-platinum. “Amazed,” which was the album’s second single, spent eight weeks atop the country charts and reached No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100 as well. It was also No. 1 on the Billboard Year-End chart for country music which helped Lonestar earn a Country Music Association nod for Single of the Year and Group of the Year. The other No. 1s on Lonely Grill were “Smile,” “What About Now” and “Tell Her.”
In 2001, Lonestar won the CMA award for Vocal Group of the Year and topped the charts again with “I’m Already There.” It was their fourth album’s title track.
Current Day
The band’s 2023 album and tour TEN to 1 will feature Drew Womack on lead vocals, as well as original members Dean Sams, Keech Rainwater and Michael Britt. Womack, who took over after longtime vocalist Richie McDonald left in 2021 to join Frontment of Country, is an accomplished musician in his own right having co-written Kenny Chesney’s hit “She’s Got It All” and collaborated on Lee Ann Womack’s “I Hope You Dance.” His previous band, Sons of the Desert, even opened shows for Lonestar early in his career.
According to a February article from Taste of Country, these re-imagined versions of their 10 Billboard Hot Country Songs chart-topping singles will mirror some of the adaptations they have made on tour over the years.
“We’ve been doing this for a very long time, and we’ve been super blessed in our 30 plus years together to have 22 top 10 singles and then have 10 of those go No. 1,” Sams told the publication. “We’ve adapted our sound so much over the years through playing live, we’ve started approaching songs a little bit differently and so we just thought we should put a version of who we are today out there with all 10 of our No. 1s.”
The tracklist is as follows:
- “No News”
- “Come Cryin’ to Me”
- “Amazed”
- “Smile”
- “What About Now?
- “Tell Her”
- “I’m Already There”
- “My Front Porch Looking In”
- “Mr. Mom”
Lonestar at the Country Roots Festival
Lonestar is one highlight in the star-studded lineup for Country Roots Festival this spring where Jo Dee Messina and Clay Walker will also grace the stage. General admission and VIP tickets are available now. Get your Country Roots Festival tickets from TicketSmarter and get ready to enjoy Kansas City’s next big country music festival. For more information, visit countryrootsfest.com and follow Country Roots Festival on Instagram.
