Wait, Did Sugarland Break Up? Is the Band Back Together?
Kristian Bush and Jennifer Nettles of Sugarland.
Sugarland formed in 2002 out of Atlanta, Georgia, with Jennifer Nettles, Kristian Bush and Kristen Hall, and came out of the gate strong. Their debut single, "Baby Girl," peaked at No. 2 on the Billboard Hot Country Singles & Tracks chart, at the time making it the highest-charting debut single for a country group in 13 years. Although Hall left the group in 2005, its two remaining founders went on to have great success in the roughly five years that followed, putting out four additional studio albums, and winning two Grammys and multiple Academy of Country Music Awards.
But then, in 2010, Sugarland broke up. What happened?
Read on for a better understanding of what went down and where the band stands today.
Who is in Sugarland?
Since 2005, Sugarland has consisted of Jennifer Nettles and Kristian Bush. For the first few years of its existence, the band also included a third founding member, Kristen Hall.
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What happened to the third member of Sugarland?
Kristen Hall unexpectedly left Sugarland in 2005. On Jan. 17, 2006, shortly after Nettles and Bush appeared on The Tonight Show With Jay Leno without Hall, the duo posted a statement on their website announcing her exit. "Kristen has decided that she wants to stay home and write songs, and we support her in that decision," it read. A couple of months later, the band release its first album as a twosome, Enjoy the Ride, which included the eventual Grammy-winning hit "Stay."
Meantime, Hall hardly released any new music after leaving the band save for a six-song EP, Katy the WonderCub, in 2008.
That same year, she sued Nettles and Bush (who had just put out their third album, Love on the Inside), claiming she was cut out of her fair, one-third share of the band's profits and asking a judge to award her $1.5 million, plus attorney's fees. In response, Nettles and Bush claimed they never entered a profit-sharing agreement and downplayed Hall's contributions to the band.
Three days before the case was set to go to trial—at which point Hall was asking for $14 million—the band settled out of court. The terms of the settlement were not disclosed.
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Did Sugarland break up?
Sugarland did indeed split up in 2012, but according to Nettles, it wasn't the dramatic breakup the media made it out to be—it was more like an amicable hiatus. And, anyway, she and Bush reunited in 2017.
“I used to love VH1 Behind the Music, but they made everything a soap opera, you know what I’m saying?” she told Country Living in 2019. “But that’s really not the case. I was ready for something different, and ready to make brave new steps in my life and my career and so I did. It’s pretty simple.”
In addition to having a baby (born December 2012) and exploring on-screen opportunities, Nettles put out her first major-label solo debut, That Girl, in January 2014. “The decision to make this solo album was really one from an artistic and personal standpoint,” Nettles told The Denver Post that year. “I wanted to do it, personally—and, artistically, I needed to do it."
“It was getting to a point, for me at least, in Sugarland that I didn’t want to stagnate artistically," she continued. "I didn’t want to become a caricature, which is super easy to happen, especially when you put success in the equation. And I wanted to push myself and shake it up and do something different.”
But again, she and Bush had no hard feelings. “We always said that door was open [for reuniting], but the media loves a scandalous spin,” she said backstage at their July 2018 show in Louisville (via Billboard). “I think they’ve been so accustomed to when people do solo work that they never work together again because they have had a falling out. Neither of those things were the case with us.”
The band remains together to this day and is about to embark on tour with Little Big Town.
Why did Sugarland disband?
Nettles and Bush have both cited personal reasons for why the band went on hiatus. Nettles wanted to focus on raising her son and making solo music, among other professional endeavors; Bush was going through a divorce and eager to explore his own creative curiosities.
Upon the release of his solo album Southern Gravity in 2015, however, Bush stressed that Sugarland wasn't done for good. "I see us making more Sugarland records," Bush told The Providence Journal. "I'm just not sure when." He turned out to be right.
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Did Sugarland get back together?
Yes, Nettles and Bush reunited in 2017 and released the album Bigger in 2018. The band will go on tour with Little Big Town this fall.
Who's in Sugarland now?
Bush and Nettles are currently the only members of Sugarland.
What song did Sugarland win a Grammy for 2008?
The duo won their first Grammy for Best Country Performance by a Duo or Group for the song "Stay" from their album Enjoy the Ride.
What's Sugarland doing now?
Sugarland is set to embark on tour with fellow country superstar group Little Big Town. Called "Take Me Home," the tour is named for their newly released cover of the Phil Collins hit, which they performed at 2024 CMT Awards on April 7, 2024.
The tour will stop at 18 cities across North America, kicking off Oct. 24 in Greenville, South Carolina before it wraps on Dec. 13 in Nashville. Tickets go on sale April 12.
Next, Everything to Know About the 2024 CMT Music Awards, Including Nominees, Performers and How to Watch
