Civil Wars Cancel Tour Dates Due To 'Internal Discord'
It's been only a short while since music group the Civil Wars emerged from the indie world and gained widespread recognition among the country music community. This was thanks in no small part to their two GRAMMY wins (and performance during the ceremony), their CMT award nominations, their "Safe and Sound" collaboration with Taylor Swift, and their inclusion on the Hunger Games soundtrack.
Their sole full-length album Barton Hollow even went gold this past September, selling over 500,000 copies--no easy feat these days.
Free MP3 download: The Civil Wars, "Barton Hollow"
However, this week the duo of Joy Williams and John Paul White (who, by the way, are professionally but not romantically involved) announced in a message on their Facebook page that they have cancelled all tour dates due to what they called "internal discord and irreconcilable differences of ambition."
The full message reads:
"We sincerely apologize for the canceling of all of our tour dates. It is something we deeply regret. However, due to internal discord and irreconcilable differences of ambition we are unable to continue as a touring entity at this time. We thank each and every one of you for your amazing love & support. Our sincere hope is to have new music for you in 2013."
Note that the focus here is on their work as a "touring entity." It ends by saying they "hope to have new music" out next year.
The Civil Wars perform "Barton Hollow" Live from Studio X, courtesy of WXRT/Chicago
The duo have been together for three years, and they've definitely struck a chord with a new group of fans across folk, country, and rock, so here's hoping they can work things out.
In the meantime, on Nov. 13 the Civil Wars are still set to release content from their VH1 Unplugged set recorded earlier this year, which includes a cover of Michael Jackson's "Billie Jean."
- Kurt Wolff, CBS Local
