Lifestyle

Annabelle Road Represents Detroit's Country Roots

March 14, 2014, 11:30 AM by  Karolina Powalka

Since forming in 2007, Detroit country band Annabelle Road has opened for some of country’s biggest artists, performing in venues across the country. They’re scheduled to perform at St. Andrew’s Hall on March 29 as part of the Road to Faster Horses Series Concert Preview.

What's the meaning or story behind the name Annabelle Road?

Amanda Bailey: The meaning is a closely-guarded band secret. The only chance of finding out where the band name came from would be having a major tour contract in hand for us to sign. Haha, sorry!
How would you describe the band’s style of country music?

Bailey: Annabelle Road is young country with a heavy hit of southern rock. We love to throw it back to the classics, but have a young, fresh sound that draws heavily on our parents’ favorite rock 'n roll groups.

What's it like being a country band from Detroit where a lot of musicians don't go the country route? How has being from here affected your music and why did you choose that specific genre?

Bailey: It always makes me laugh that people don't tie Detroit and country music together.  The auto industry was largely made up of workers from the south. With them came amazing music to Detroit! While the rest of the country knows us for rock 'n roll, anybody that's from Detroit knows we love country! Case in point: 99.5 WYCD has won “Major Market Country Station of the Year” many years in a row! You can't do that without a huge country following behind you.

With the melting pot of music here in Detroit, it has given all four members of Annabelle Road different musical experiences and backgrounds. I think this really helps us choose and write music that all of our fans can get into. I can't tell you how many times we've heard somebody say, "I don't like country music, but I love you guys!"

What's the coolest/most memorable experience you've has as a band?

Bailey: How do I narrow that down to one? We've gotten to play on stages I dreamed of my whole life. We've recorded at the world-famous Blackbird Studio in Nashville Tennessee, and we've shared the stage with those we look up to. But the coolest experience of all was probably headlining Joe Louis Arena. By a turn of fate, we were bumped from opener to headliner. Then we got interviewed by CMT and ended up on the CMT Television network.

If you could play with any country artist who would it be?

Bailey: Well, some of the people that would be on our list, we've already had the opportunity to play with! For me, it was Dierks Bentley. As for the guys in the band, their dreams may come true this summer! But we can't tell you about that just yet!

Who are some of those artists that you’ve played with?

Bailey: We’ve opened for Miranda Lambert, Toby Keith, Jason Aldean, Big & Rich, Gretchen Wilson, Eli Young Band, Jana Kramer, Gloriana, Clint Black, Lonestar, Justin Moore, Easton Corbin, Phil Vassar and others!

What are some goals for Annabelle Road?

Bailey: The goal is to always to do what we love, to step on stage every night for an hour or two and make the audience forget about their problems. While this summer is filling quickly with tour dates, opening slots, showcases and more, we try very hard to always keep our priorities straight: family, friends, great music. That's the way we’ve run our band for years, and it seems to be working pretty well for us this far!

 You can see Annabelle Road perform at St. Andrew’s Hall on March 29th.


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