The Red Clay Strays Sign with RCA Records
The Red Clay Stray are now major label artists. Announced on Saturday, March 30th, the throwback Sun Records-inspired outfit from Alabama has officially signed to RCA Records, which is a division of Sony. It comes amid the band’s meteoric rise in popularity as they’re selling out venues left and right, and being booked in big slots on major festivals throughout the United States.
“Well since the cat is out of the bag we figured we should go ahead and let y’all know because we want you to hear it from us first. We’re super excited to announce that we have signed with RCA Records!” the band said in a statement. “Signing with a record label wasn’t something we originally set out to do. It’s also not something that we rushed into doing.”
The Red Clay Strays are already considered one of the best live acts around. After releasing their 2022 album Moment of Truth, they announced in September of 2023 that they had signed with Thirty Tigers, and were working with well-known producer Dave Cobb on a new album. That same Dave Cobb-produced album is apparently still on the way. But since Thirty Tigers doesn’t make performers sign commitment contracts, they could still move on if another opportunity arises. Apparently it did with RCA.
“Over the last 6 months, it has become very clear to us that we’re going to need all the help we can get in keeping up with our rapidly growing demand while also reaching new fans all over the world,” the band continues. “After many meetings and much praying, we all truly feel that RCA is the best choice for us! We can’t thank y’all enough for the love and support you’ve shown us over these last seven years! We wouldn’t have made it this far without y’all. We’re excited to see what the future holds!”
Major labels picking the pocket of Thirty Tigers is nothing new. It happened with Tyler Childers and Luke Combs just to name a few. Colter Wall and his LaHonda label partnered with RCA Records in 2023 after Colter started on Thirty Tigers as well. Sturgill Simpson also signed with Atlantic from Thirty Tigers, though Simpson returned to Thirty Tigers after a falling out with Atlantic to release his final albums.
No word at the moment on when new music might be on the way from the Red Clay Strays, but it might be sooner than later. Meanwhile, you can check them out on their 2024 tour, which you would be wise to do before they’re playing massive venues for pricey admission.
April 2, 2024 @ 10:40 am
The whole Elvis routine doesn’t do it for me, but good for them
April 2, 2024 @ 11:42 am
Tell me you haven’t listened to them without saying that you haven’t listened to them, lol. Some people, I’ll tell ya.
April 2, 2024 @ 12:25 pm
More so referring to the slick backed gelled hair, dress shoes, and shaky hip dancing the lead singer does at their concerts than the music. The music is decent, still not my style though. Just another product in the TikTok factory mill as far as I’m concerned. It’s amazing how far farting out a song with lyrics that the Yellowstone watchers can lip sync to will get you these days. Like I said though, good for them.
April 2, 2024 @ 1:40 pm
I knew exactly what you were going for. So Charley Crockett is from the same TikTok factory then, according to you? And its funny you bring up Yellowstone, it got a lot of my favorite artists exposure they weren’t getting. Yet according to you they are all sellouts? Guess that includes Robert Earl Keen too, according to your logic? He was featured on Yellowstone.
I’d love to hear your favorite bands since you are such an expert on the subject matter.
April 2, 2024 @ 3:17 pm
For one, if you think Charley Crockett is a product of TikTok you’ve lost your mind. Sure people post about him on there sometimes but so does Johnny Cash. The guys 40 and been around a while, his highest listened to song on Spotify came out in 2016.
I was not referring to artists who were featured on Yellowstone, Tyler Sheridan has great music taste and features many great artists on his shows/movies. I was referring to the “western influencers” who derive their style from Yellowstone and are all over tiktok lipsyncing and dancing to songs, the amount of influence they have on songs blowing up is a tragedy. I don’t need a somebody playing dress up to tell me what to listen to.
And I listen to a lot of music. My country playlist is 80 hours long and i’m not in the business of throwing any old garbage on there all willy nilly either. You want particulars you can start with my profile picture, if you don’t know who that is I can’t help you. Based on how offended you are by this you must be somebody who needs a lot of help from an algorithm and curated playlists to tell you what’s the “cool” new music to be listening to, I’m not going to give you any help in that department.
The one thing I’ll say about the Red Clay Strays is that at least they aren’t trying to be Zach Bryan, we have enough of those going around. It may not be my kind of sound but at least they have their own sound.
April 2, 2024 @ 3:55 pm
Now I get it. Because you didn’t know who they were, you immediately wrote them off based on looks and because they were on TikTok. Brother, I am not even on TikTok. What does that say about you?
Oh, 80 hours; mine is 135! Who cares? For someone so against social media, you sure adopted it into your personality.
Anyway, you admit Charley is on TikTok and you like him? Your argument is eroding quickly. What was your point again?
It’s frustrating to hear you label them as a superficial, overproduced band. The truth is, they’re the complete opposite— a group of genuine, talented musicians. If you’ve had the opportunity to see them perform live, you’d understand why they’re gaining such popularity. They’re not just a TikTok-made band; their success was always in the cards. And if I were in a band, I’d definitely utilize social media to expand my fan base; it’s a strategic move, not a foolish one.
April 2, 2024 @ 5:02 pm
I have ears boss, I’ve heard their music, like I said it’s fine but not my kind of music. I didn’t even know what they looked like until much later. You could tell me that the guy saved a baby kitten from a flood and that wouldn’t change my thoughts on their music.
I have no doubt your playlist is 135 hours long, I’m sure you throw all sorts of garbage on there. You’re the one who assumed I don’t know anything about the music and asked, don’t get mad that I addressed your question. Also are you trying to insinuate that Spotify is social media? I got a real good laugh out of that. Regardless though, social media has it’s pros and cons and I am not attacking social media as a whole, but rather the effect specifically short form social media is having on music. The cohesive song and the story it tells doesn’t matter in short form social media, all that matters is that it has one line or short part that can get somebody to stop scrolling.
You continue to have the reading comprehension skills of a toddler, if you can find any line in which I said “if the artist is on tiktok they suck” I’ll send you a sticker. My problem is with the influencers, the algorithm, and the paying for trends. Having a social media account is a bare minimum necessity at this point for musicians, I have no strife with the artists for doing what is required. Levi Turner released one of my favorite albums last year and he got his start on Tiktok, there are gems among the all the noise. I don’t dislike the Red Clay’s music because it blew up on tiktok, I dislike their music AND it blew up on tiktok, which is just a trend I’ve noticed keeps happening more and more these days.
Finally, yes I use Tiktok a bit and I have for a while, it is fun time-killer. I’ve been on it long enough to remember what it looked like when songs used blow up on it organically, it still wasn’t a great format for blowing up the right stuff but at least it was organic. A lot of what’s been happening recently is at least partly bought and paid for, and anybody who’s been paying close enough attention and knows how this industry works has noticed.
April 2, 2024 @ 11:41 pm
Boy, you sure like to veer off the subject matter. We started with from you that RCS is a product of the industry and social media. Now we’ve made it to where you’ll admit they are legit artists, but you just don’t like them and hate that they come up in your social media feed all the time.
Why not lead with that? That you don’t like their sound. Making up a story so that you can hate on a band, for not even their artistry but their looks and popularity, is as disingenuous as it gets.
Yet you again bring up the playlist, lol. What’s funny is that’s what most social media addicts would bring that up. “Oh, I ratioed you.” The interesting part, thanks to Trigger, those 135 hrs are damn good music. Most are artists you are guaranteed a fan of, and some you may not even know.
The craziest part is you are so anti-social media, yet you engage in it more than I do. Everyone take a shot whenever you read “TikTok, influencer, algorithm” in his posts, and you’ll see what I mean. You let it affect your view of the world, which is sad.
At the end of the day, the much shorter comment was saying you just don’t like them.
April 3, 2024 @ 10:31 am
I feel I’m staying very on subject, you’re the one who keeps bringing up other nonsense and false quotes. One of which is saying I walked back on the band being primarily a product of tiktok success, which I did not. Not sure what makes an artist “legit”, but I’ve never used that word in any of my comments, if you mean they can play their instruments and sing then sure they’re “legit”.
If you recall I did lead with one sentence stating I did not like the band to which you replied to very offended saying I must have never listened to them. I replied and said I had but their music wasn’t my style. I’ve restated as such each comment because it continues to fail to register in your brain.
I have never once used the word “ratio” in my comments once. And once again Spotify is not social media, and even if it was I would not care. I don’t have shame for using social media. Once again my problem is not with social media as a whole but with short form social media’s effect on music.
And finally, yes, the much shorter comment is just saying I don’t like them. You can find that comment at the very top of the thread, it’s the one that first got you so upset.
April 2, 2024 @ 11:12 am
They have a great sound. Loved their last album, which I bought because of what was said on saving country.
April 2, 2024 @ 1:35 pm
Does anyone with more experience in the industry know what the benefits would be moving from thirty tigers to a major label like RCA? Possibly more promotional/ booking/ distribution capacity but I thought that was something thirty tigers already provided. Also, I know a big thing with thirty tigers is artists retaining ownership of their own music- I guess how much does a major label usually “control” (ownership, marketing, songs/sound)?
April 2, 2024 @ 2:01 pm
Generally speaking, Thirty Tigers allows an artist to basically own their own record label, keep control of their music, but they get the distribution of a big label along with other label services.
Traditionally, major labels retain the rights on an artist’s master recordings, require artists to sign multi-album deals, but also might forward artists big advances, and hypothetically, bring a “Big Machine” behind the artist to promote their music. One issue with majors though is you can also be put in the “artist protection program,” meaning you basically get buried on the roster, and your music doesn’t receive any support at all.
Sturgill Simpson’s whole “Sound & Fury” album was basically about being pissed off at Atlantic and later Elektra, when he got moved to the label without any say so.
That said, things are changing. If you’re the Red Clay Strays, you can negotiate with the majors for more creative control. They can come to a label from a position of power since they already have a big fan base, and perhaps, an album already in hand.
I have no idea about the specifics of the Red Clay Strays deal. Dealing with majors can be like a roll of the dice. If you roll right, it can be lucrative. If it goes bad, you can get locked in a terrible situation.
Let’s hope for the best for the Red Clay Strays.
April 2, 2024 @ 1:39 pm
If this signing means they have to give up ownership of their future records, I am betting it turns out to be a collosal mistake. So many bands sign their life away to a “major” only to realize they essentially gave away a lifetime revenue stream. No idea why a band would sign with a record company these days, unless you think maybe you will become the next Taylor Swift.
April 2, 2024 @ 2:44 pm
I caught them at a teeny little insignificant music fest in Ohio a few years ago with a couple hundred folks there early afternoon. I wouldn’t say they are a straight up country band, but when they want to they can play some mighty fine sounding honky- tonk and some Outlaw style singer- songwriter sounds. But then they switch up and give you Rockabilly and with their Les Paul slide playing guy, bring a Southern Rock style into it. In other words, everything I love musically rolled into one band. And make no mistake, southern boys they are. I won’t call then country, but I’m still buying what they sell. It’s like musical crack to me!
April 2, 2024 @ 4:03 pm
As of just now RCS have 4.9M monthly listeners on Spotify. Compare that to Jinks who just released an album and he’s at 3M. It’s simply gotten too big for these guys to manage. Look at the machine behind Jinks and the empire he’s built. That’s where Red Clay Strays are headed. I’ve watched it the last 2 years plus and have seen them no less than 7 times live. It started with shows in tiny venues with 100 people in the room. Now they sell out The Ryman 3 nights in a row. Unless they really want to manage all of this themselves and build the machine from the ground up they need a label to deal with all of this. Brandon’s brother has done a terrific job managing the band up to now, but I gotta believe these guys know that what’s coming their way is bigger than they could possibly handle themselves. They will only get bigger when the next album drops, with or without a label.
April 2, 2024 @ 7:26 pm
Can confirm. I saw them play 3rd & Lindsley back in early 2022, and the joint was maaaybe half-full. I loved the show so much that I went to see them again in December of the same year. I rolled up to 3rd an hour before doors, and the line was halfway down the sidewalk! I was honestly excited to see the draw they were pulling!
April 5, 2024 @ 11:29 am
I live on the Gulf Coast. Saw them in a bar on a Thursday night. I really liked them and found them unique. I thought then that they were like a pile of other acts I’ve seen over the years – immensely talented but will be forever unknown. Goes to show you what I know. If the move is good for them, then good on them. Tip of the cap to this Thirty Tigers bunch too. TT is probably like that awesome parent who does everything right for you, at times you resent the discipline, but you leave home to grow your own way the better for it. The parent is sad and proud at the same time when you leave. The child takes a few years, then looks back, and finally appreciates all that was done for it.
April 7, 2024 @ 5:53 pm
Saw them in January at Mile O Fest and they put on a good show. Seeing them again in May at Red Rocks as the middle act in Turnpike- American Aquarium sandwich.