The Chicks Call 2016 CMAs' 'Disrespect' Towards Beyonce 'Disgusting'

The Chicks made a splashy return to the Country Music Awards in 2016, but the reception to the trio wasn't as they had envisioned.

Speaking with The New York Times, members Natalie Maines, Emily Strayer and Martie Maguire, formerly known as the Dixie Chicks, recalled their performance, alongside Beyoncé, at the the 50th annual ceremony where they performed the pop titan's Lemonade cut, "Daddy Lessons." "They treated us very weird backstage," Maines, 45, recalled, adding that the poor reception to Bey’s surprise appearance was not appreciated. "For them to disrespect her that way was disgusting." Alan Jackson reportedly walked out on their performance.

Elsewhere in the interview, Strayer admitted that she “used to care way too much what people thought,” but has since moved on from that mentality. “I really have a don’t-give-a-[expletive] part to me now, which I didn’t have before,” she added.

In case you forgot, the Chicks' performance at the ceremony marked their big return to the CMA stage after being blacklisted from the country music industry in 2003 for talking down on then-President George W. Bush and the Iraq war. "We’re ashamed the president of the United States is from Texas," Maines said during the band's performance in London that same year.

As for their name change, the Chicks admitted it has been a long time coming. “We wanted to change it years and years and years ago. I just wanted to separate myself from people that wave that Dixie flag," Maines said, before Maguire chimed in. "We were literally teenagers when we picked that stupid name."

Photo: Getty Images


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