While in quarantine on their 250-acre Honky Tonk Ranch, The Bellamy Brothers strummed a few parodies of their classic hits, which included “If I Said You Had A Beautiful Body, Please Don’t Hold It Against Me” and several more during a jam session between David and Howard Bellamy. The Bellamy Brothers and their individual families live on a sprawling ranch that has been in their family for generations. “We went from probably one of the biggest tours in America, touring with Blake Shelton, to doing nothing. Everybody just put on the brakes all of a sudden,” he said.
“We were just sitting around and naturally, everybody turned to music. Howard and I were goofing around and we decided to put our own spins to the Coronavirus crisis. We parodied some of our own songs and it was a spur-of-the-moment thing,” he said.
The Bellamy Brothers hope to resume their touring once the COVID-19 pandemic is over. “We had planned a European tour for most of June and then we will be back in the United States for the rest of the summer and the fall,” he said. “A lot of the shows that we were going to do are being scheduled. The main thing is for everybody to get back to normal and to stay well.”
Their reality show, Honky Tonk Ranch, involves them opening their lives to television audiences. It airs Saturdays at 11:30 am EST on Circle, which is now available in Nashville on the WSMV channel 4.5 via antenna. Circle is also newly-launched on other Meredith Corporations stations including Atlanta, Houston, Phoenix, St. Louis, Kansas City, and Mobile. Honky Tonk Ranch is executive produced by David Bellamy and directed, filmed and edited by Derrek Kupish. “We are very excited about our reality TV show,” they said. “The Coronavirus crisis put a halt on that as well.”
“We love working with director Derrek Kupish. We enjoy him coming down. It’s a lot of fun. He’s like a part of our family,” he said.
On being an artist in the digital age, he said, “It is pretty interesting. I didn’t actually pick up a computer until I was 50 years old. When social media came along, people had to explain it to me. We are just adapting. The digital age is all about how we get music out.”
For young and aspiring country musicians, he said jokingly, “Go to law school.” “There will always be creative young people coming up. It’s a real different age now. It’s hard to tell somebody what to do. I just tell people to do what they love.”
David and Howard Bellamy of The Bellamy Brothers are true country music pioneers for over four decades. They helped pave the way for such duos as Brooks & Dunn, Montgomery Gentry, Big & Rich, and even The Judds. They are the sole American country music act that has toured in India, Sri Lanka, New Caledonia, and Qatar. “You can walk down the street in Sri Lanka, and don’t be surprised if you see a statue of Jim Reeves. They love country music in Sri Lanks, and Jim Reeves is still an idol there. They also got into our music in Sri Lanka. A lot of the people in that country can sing songs like ‘I Need More Of You.’ It’s so great,” he said.
“We have actually toured in over 70 countries, and I believe we have toured more countries than any other country act,” he said.
To this day, they hold the record for most country duo nominations in the Academy of Country Music (ACM) and the Country Music Association (CMA) awards, and they have secured several Grammy nominations along the way.
For their fans and supporters, he concluded, “We wouldn’t be here without the fans. That’s the main thing. They have always kept us alive, motivated, and relevant. We wish the fans luck with all of this madness and we hope that everybody is well. We hope everybody gets back to normal.”
For the latest news on The Bellamy Brothers, check out their official website and their Facebook page.
