Did Rascal Flatts Break Up? 5 Burning Questions About Their Farewell Tour
Farewell means goodbye, right? For Rascal Flatts, that's a tricky question — one they dodged in talking about their upcoming 20th anniversary and a planned Farewell Tour for 2020.
When asked on CBS This Morning if they were saying "goodbye," guitarist Joe Don Rooney said, "We're saying thank you." That's how singer Gary LeVox framed it as well, making clear at the beginning of the interview they just want some time to reflect, and after that ... who knows?
This 5 Burning Questions video explores the "after that." Solo careers, another tour, their legacy and the likelihood that this is it for a group that debuted with "Prayin' for Daylight" in 2000 — we're addressing those questions. And what about their legacy?
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Anyone who calls this a breakup is turning a blind eye to recent and not-so-recent history. You don't have to look at rock and classic rock to find bands that say farewell and then return to the road or studio. Alabama did a farewell tour and album in 2003, but embarked on an ambitious 50th Anniversary Tour just last year, a tour that will linger into 2020 and perhaps beyond. Shania Twain's Rock This Country Tour was billed as her final tour. Brooks & Dunn's Last Rodeo Tour was a farewell that started in 2009 and ended one year later, but here we are in 2020 and the duo has dates on their calendar.
Kenny Rogers seems to be the only one who's announced a farewell concert and meant it, but he's 81 years old with knees he can barely stand on. Rooney, LeVox and Jay DeMarcus are in their mid-to-late 40s and admit they're not done making music. They're just tired, which is fair after 20 years.
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