A Thousand Horses Talk Eye-Opening ACM Nomination: Ram Report

It’s often a very tough road for a band trying to make it in country music, but A Thousand Horses are traveling it well. The Southern-rock-inspired foursome of Michael Hobby, Bill Satcher, Graham Deloach and Zach Brown scored their first Number One in 2015 with “Smoke” — a rare chart-topping debut from a group with more than three members — and released the riff-heavy album Southernality to wide acclaim. 

Earlier in 2016, they were recognized with an ACM nomination — their first — for Top New Vocal Duo/Group but missed the news while catching up on sleep.

“I woke up to a text from my buddy,” recalls singer Hobby. “He said, ‘Congrats man. Way to go!’ I literally was like, ‘What are you talking about?’ He was like, ‘Your ACM nomination.’ I immediately got on the Internet.”

A Thousand Horses started out the year on Jason Aldean’s We Were Here Tour and will resume their supporting duties (along with Thomas Rhett) in late April. They previously spent time with Darius Rucker playing large venues, but this spring and summer they’ll be taking their full band — including three gospel-slanted backup singers — to sports stadiums like Fenway Park behind Aldean.

“I just think it gets you more excited and more fired up to get out there and rock it,” says Hobby. “It’s a dream come true.”

“And we’re always trying to push forward too,” agrees Satcher. “So the show this year is different than it was last year. Every show we play, we try to figure out how we make it that much better.” 

The band recently released Southernality‘s title track as a single, and this week they’ll head to the United Kingdom along with many of their fellow country performers for the C2C Festival.