Charles Kelley is branching out from his Grammy winning band, Lady Antebellum, and exploring the prospects of a solo career. His first efforts have manifested in a music video for his single, "Driver," which features fellow country musicians Eric Paslay and Dierks Bentley.
The video is a sort of guys-night out, playing poker and singing about their days on the road as the singers trade off verses and support each other with polished three part harmonies.
"'The Driver' is my last eight years of life put in a song," Kelley told Rolling Stone Country. "I had this idea of, 'I'm the driver, bringing the circus to town/First one in, last rolling out.' I played it for Eric Paslay and Abe Stoklasa in a writing session . . . and the struggle was, how do we bring in the audience? It's not just the driver. You have to have the dreamers and believers, and of course the last verse being the singer."
The ballad has the boys driving on a tour bus to Nashville's War Memorial Auditorium, where Paslay and Bentley flank Kelley on both sides of the stage with guitars, and each have their own scene highlighting each vocal part. Producer Paul Worley and Kelley reportedly both came to the decision that this song needed to be sung by a trio like Kelley typically does in Lady Antebellum, but thought he'd reach out for some fresh voices. Watch below.
Earlier this month, Kelley announced his first solo tour, which kicks off next week in Ohio. Check out the full list of dates below.
November 28 - Cleveland, OH @ House of Blues
November 29 - Asbury Park, NJ @ The Stone Pony
December 1 - New York, NY @ Gramercy Theatre
December 3 - Charlotte, NC @ The Fillmore Charlotte
December 4 - Tallahassee, FL @ The Moon
December 5 - Atlanta, GA @ Tabernacle
December 10 - Kansas City, MO @ Uptown Theatre
December 11 - Oklahoma City, OH @ Diamond Ballroom
December 12 - St. Louis, MO @ The Pageant
December 17 - Dallas, TX @ House of Blues
December 18 - Houston, TX @ House of Blues
December 19 - New Orleans, LA @ House of Blues
January 7 - Milwaukee, WI @ The Rave
January 8 - Chicago @ House of Blues
January 9 - Cincinnati, OH @ Bogart's
January 16 - Washington, D.C. @ The Fillmore Silver Springs
January 17 - Boston @ House of Blues
January 22 - Louisville, KY @ Mercury Ballroom
January 23 - Springfield, IL @ Boondocks
January 24 - Sioux City, IA @ Hard Rock Hotel and Casino
January 26 - Denver @ Gothic Theatre
January 28 - Las Vegas @ House of Blues
