The country-rock band performed their song about political division at the 59th CMAs
The Red Clay Strays are sick and tired of division. During their CMA Awards performance on Wednesday night, the Alabama country-rock band delivered a live call for unity with the song “People Hatin’.”
“I’m sick of people turning on their neighbor/I’m sick of people dying in the street,” lead singer Brandon Coleman sang. “Everybody giving into anger/That’s not the way things ought to be.”
The band’s song was one of many rock-edged performances of the night, following Luke Combs’ show-opening “Back in the Saddle” and Chris Stapleton’s “Bad As I Used to Be.”
The Red Clay Strays are nominated for Vocal Group of the Year at the 59th CMA Awards, facing off with perennial winners Old Dominion. Earlier this year, the Strays teamed up with another group, Needtobreathe, for the comforting ballad “Momma Loves Me.” Produced by Grammy-winning producer Dave Cobb at his Savannah, Georgia, studio, the song taps into the shared beliefs and upbringings at the heart of both Needtobreathe and Red Clay Strays. “Take my scars, and take my troubles/spread my ashes in the wind/Momma loves me, I’m still born again,” Needtobreathe’s Bear Rinehart and the Strays’ Coleman sang in the chorus.
Message songs have been an important part of the Red Clay Strays’ origin story since the group launched in Mobile, Alabama, in 2016. They’ve also never shied away from their faith. In “People Hatin’,” they embrace the notion of loving one another and say there’s a way to heal a divided nation. “Maybe we should try to mind our business/Maybe we should turn the other cheek,” they sing. “The only way for us to ever end this/Is loving unconditionally.”
The 59th annual Country Music Association Awards, hosted by Lainey Wilson, are airing live from Nashville’s Bridgestone Arena and will stream beginning Thursday on Hulu. Wilson, Ella Langley, and Megan Moroney lead all nominees with six.
