HARDY held a grudge for years.
Now, the award-winning, genre-blending artist says “sometimes holding a grudge is a good thing.” He kicked off his next chapter of music on Friday (January 12), sending a message to a hater on his autobiographical, spoken-word track “QUIT!!”
HARDY opened the visualizer with a throwback clip to the moment he accepted his Songwriter of the Year award at the 15th Annual ACM Honors on stage at the historic Ryman Auditorium in Downtown Nashville, Tennessee. HARDY, who premiered his short film becoming THE CROW (in reference to his 2023 half country, half rock album, the mockingbird & THE CROW), said at that time:
“In 2015, I was playing a songwriter round with a tip jar on the front of the stage. Nobody played on that stage that night had a hit. We just played original songs, and we might’ve made $10 in tips. But one person wrote ‘QUIT’ on a napkin, and they put it in that tip jar. And tonight, that ‘QUIT’ napkin will be sitting right beside this (expletive).”
“Thank you for inspiring me to be great,” HARDY said in a statement on Friday. “I guess sometimes holding a grudge is a good thing.”
HARDY also announced his 15-date headlining tour, set to start in late May with dates running through late July. The “Quit!! Tour” includes Kip Moore, Travis Denning, Ella Langley and Stephen Wilson Jr. Tickets will be available Friday, January 19 at 10 a.m. local time. See the list of tour stops below.
Listen to “QUIT!!” here (warning: explicit language):
May 30 – Rogers, Ark. – Walmart AMP ♠*◎
May 31 – St. Louis, Mo. – Hollywood Casino Amphitheatre ♠*◎
June 1 – Noblesville, Ind. – Ruoff Music Center ♠*◎
June 6 – Toronto, Ont. – Budweiser Stage ♠*◎
June 7 – Saratoga Springs, N.Y. – Broadview Stage at SPAC ♠*◎
June 8 – Buffalo, N.Y. – Darien Lake Amphitheater ♠*
June 14 – Charlotte, N.C. – PNC Music Pavilion ♠*✭
June 15 – Raleigh, N.C. – Coastal Credit Union Music Park ♠*✭
June 20 – Holmdel, N.J. – PNC Bank Arts Center ♠*✭
June 21 – Mansfield, Mass. – Xfinity Center ♠*✭
June 22 – Gilford, N.H. – BankNH Pavilion ♠*✭
June 27 – Camden, N.J. – Freedom Mortgage Pavilion ♠*✭
June 28 – Bristow, Va. – Jiffy Lube Live ♠*✭
July 25 – Cincinnati, Ohio – Riverbend Music Center ♠*
July 27 – Tinley Park, Ill. – Credit Union 1 Amphitheatre ♠*
♠ Kip Moore
* Travis Denning
✭ Ella Langley
◎ Stephen Wilson Jr.