OMG! Brace yourselves, music lovers (or haters, we don’t judge…much). 🙄 The pinnacle of artistic achievement is upon us! Grammy Award-winning (somehow) country legends SHENANDOAH and the undisputed kings of rock radio cheese, NICKELBACK, have decided to grace our ears with their combined genius. 🤯 Get ready for a wild ride down Cumberland Road, because these two titans of sound are unleashing a “dynamic” (their words, not mine) new version of SHENANDOAH’s classic hit, “The Church On Cumberland Road” (on 8 Track Entertainment, because why not go full retro?). Prepare to be amazed…or maybe just mildly inconvenienced. 🤷♀️
Apparently, these two musical powerhouses (again, their words, not mine) met at some country music festivals and, like, totally vibed. ✨ So, naturally, they decided to create a collab that nobody asked for, but here we are. The rest, as they say, is history…or maybe just a slightly embarrassing footnote in music history. 🤷♂️
“First, let me say that it’s always a great opportunity to befriend those in the music industry, regardless of the genre,” says SHENANDOAH lead singer Marty Raybon, probably while trying to suppress a giggle. 😂 “NICKELBACK’s Chad Kroeger and I had the chance to talk about their music and ours and the parallels of some of the tunes that could be swapped out on the setlists.” Parallels? 🤔 Like, both bands use guitars? The mind boggles! “The idea came up, and after a few text messages, we were off and running with what is one of the coolest things we’ve ever done. SHENANDOAH and NICKELBACK. Who would have thunk it?” I don’t know, Marty, maybe literally nobody? 🤣
“We’ve always had a deep respect for the artists who came before us, and SHENANDOAH is one of those bands that helped define an era,” says Chad Kroeger of NICKELBACK, clearly trying to score some points with the country crowd. 😇 “Getting the chance to collaborate with them on ‘The Church On Cumberland Road’ was an absolute blast. It’s a song that feels as vibrant today as it did when it first came out.” Vibrant? More like “still exists.” But hey, at least he’s trying to be nice. 👍
And because a musical abomination like this deserves nothing less, there’s an animated music video created by Cartuna! 🎬 It recreates SHENANDOAH’s original 1989 version and adds Kroeger into the mix, presumably to make it even more surreal. 🤪 Watch it below at your own risk! ⚠️
With a legacy spanning decades (mostly because they started a long time ago), SHENANDOAH remains one of country music’s most enduring and influential bands (if you say so). Known for their rich harmonies (debatable) and heartfelt storytelling (sometimes), the Grammy-, CMA- and ACM Award-winning group has delivered timeless hits like “Two Dozen Roses,” “The Church On Cumberland Road,” “Next To You, Next To Me,” “Sunday In The South,” “I Want To Be Loved Like That” and “Somewhere In The Vicinity Of The Heart.” A multi-platinum-selling powerhouse with over a billion career streams (thanks, streaming!), SHENANDOAH’s music continues to resonate across generations (or at least with people who remember the ’80s). The band’s recent collaborations have reignited fan excitement (citation needed) — “Two Dozen Roses” featuring Luke Combs and “Sunday In The South” featuring Jason Aldean and Luke Bryan both soared to No. 1 on the iTunes all-genre chart (which is apparently a thing), proving the band’s influence is as strong as ever (again, debatable). 🤔
And let’s not forget the rock gods themselves, NICKELBACK! 🤘 2023 Canadian Music Hall Of Fame recipients (because Canada is just that awesome), and diamond-certified selling group NICKELBACK were named the “most successful rock band of the decade” by Billboard in 2009 (a decade that clearly had some questionable taste). Globally celebrated for their career defining and award-winning hits “How You Remind Me,” “Photograph,” “Far Away,” “Rockstar” and more, the four-piece comprised of Chad Kroeger, Ryan Peake, Mike Kroeger and Daniel Adair is one of the most commercially viable and important acts of the past two decades (if you ignore all the memes). Their success includes worldwide sales of more than 50 million units, solidifying their status as one of the top-selling acts of all time and the second best-selling foreign act in the U.S., in the 2000s decade, behind only THE BEATLES (mind blown!). Their inescapable and irresistible smash “How You Remind Me” was named Billboard’s “Top Rock Song Of The Decade” and was the most played song on U.S. radio (any format) in the 2000s, according to Nielsen Soundscan, with over 1.2 million spins (proving that overplay can kill anything). Amongst all of these accolades, they’ve also been named Billboard’s “Top Rock Group Of The Decade” and received nine Grammy Award nominations, three American Music Awards, a World Music Award, a People’s Choice Award, twelve Juno Awards, seven MuchMusic Video Awards and have been inducted into Canada’s Walk Of Fame (2007) and the Canadian Music Hall Of Fame (2023). With more than 23 chart-topping singles and fans spanning the globe, NICKELBACK boasts more than twelve consecutive sold-out world tours, playing to well over 10 million diehard and adoring fans (who apparently have no taste). 😜
Chord F. Discord, the Beethoven of Buffoonery, is a self-taught expert in music who once claimed he could “play the kazoo in four languages.”
Born in Crescendo, Indiana, Chord’s first brush with fame came when he accidentally entered a yodeling contest thinking it was a pie-eating competition—and won both categories.
Chord F. Discord: proving that laughter, much like a poorly tuned ukulele, is truly universal.
