The Shires: A look at the British country duo's career through the years
From The X Factor to taking the country music world by storm
Last updated 7th Jul 2021
Since bursting onto the scene back in 2013, singer-songwriter duo Ben Earle and Crissie Rhones, better known as The Shires, have become the UK's biggest and most successful country act.
After finding success on both sides of the Atlantic, the British country duo have won multiple awards, headlined the acoustic stage at Glastonbury,have four Number 1 albums under their belts and are even heading on tour in 2021. So we've decided to take a look back at The Shires' incredible career through the years.
The Shires: Their biggest career moments through the years:
2013: Career beginnings
After both being unsuccessful as solo artists on popular singing show The X Factor, Ben Earle and Crissie Rhodes met on social media through a mutual friend and bonded over a shared love of country music. They decided to form a country group called The Shires.
Shires is the traditional word for a county in the UK and the duo felt it was the perfect name to honour their British roots.
The duo began writing and performing together and within eight months secured a record deal with both Decca Records in the UK and Universal Music Group Nashville in the US.
2014: The Shires release their debut single
The Shires released their debut single 'Nashville Grey Skies' from their upcoming album 'Brave' in April 2014. The song was written by Ben Earle before the group were signed and shares his desire for the UK to have their own version of Nashville. It has since become one of the band's signature songs.
The Shires were invited to perform at the C2C: Country to Country 2014 Festival. As part of the BBC's coverage of the festival the duo were featured in a short documentary titled 'Nashville UK' which looked at country music's popularity in the UK.
2015: 'Brave' and Grand Ole Opry debut
In March 2015, The Shires released their debut studio album, 'Brave'. The album peaked at Number 10 on the UK Albums Chart, making The Shires the first UK country act to have an album in the Top 10. It also reached Number 1 on the UK Country Album Chart and was the group's first gold certified album.
After the success of their debut album, The Shires made their debut at the Grand Ole Oprey, the first UK Country act to do so since the radio station's inception in 1925.
2016: 'My Universe' is released and Glastonbury
The Shires released their second album, 'My Universe' in September 2016 and it included the singles, 'Beats to Your Rhythm' and 'My Universe'. The album performed exceptionally well in the UK, reaching the Number 3 spot of the UK Album charts as well as becoming the fastest-selling UK country album of all-time.
Just three weeks after the album was released, The Shires made music history again by becoming the first UK country group to sign a record deal with the Nashville record label, Big Machine Label Group.
The Shires also went on to headline the acoustic stage at Glastonbury Festival 2016. Ben almost missed the set due to his son being born just hours before they were set to go on stage.
2017: The Shires win their first CMA Award
The Shires were awarded the prestigious CMA Jeff Walker Global Artist Award by the Country Music Association during a surprise presentation in March 2017. This award recognises outstanding achievements by a country music artist originally signed outside of the US. The Shires made history once again by becoming the first ever UK artists to be awarded a Country Music Award.
Later that year, The Shires were presented with their second gold disc in a year after officially announcing that their hit album, 'My Universe' had sold more than 100,000 copies in the UK.
2018: 'Accidentally on Purpose' is released
The duo returned to Nashville to record their third studio album in 2018, which the band wanted to be more of a crossover record with influences from both pop and country music. 'Accidentally on Purpose' was released in April 2018 and was followed by the singles 'Guilty', 'Accidentally On Purpose' and 'Echo'.
The album reached Number 1 on the UK Country charts and Number 3 on the UK album charts. Following the release of 'Accidentally On Purpose', the group wet on a lengthy sold-out UK tour which included a debut show at the Royal Albert Hall. They were also the support act for Candian superstar Shania Twain during her 'Now Tour 2018.'
2019: Collaborations and doctorates
Following on from the success of their UK tour and third album release, The Shires went on to support country sensation Carrie Underwood on the UK leg of her 'The Cry Pretty Tour' in 2019. Ben Earle and Crissie Rhodes were also awarded Honorary Doctorates of the Arts by the University of Bedfordshire for their services to the Arts.
2020 : 'Good Years' is released
The Shires released their fourth album, 'Good Years' in March 2020. Once again the album reached the Number 1 spot on the UK Country album charts and Number 3 on the UK Album charts.
That same year, the duo released their first greatest hits album which feature their most popular songs from their first three albums including 'Ahead Of The Storm', 'Stay The Night' and 'State Lines'.
After making his BBC Radio 2 broadcasting debut in 2019, Ben Earle was awarded the CMA 2020 for International Country Broadcaster Award by the Country Music Association. The award recognises the outstanding achievements by a radio broadcaster outside the US who has made important contributions for the development of Country Music in their country.
2021: The Shires acoustic UK tour 2021
The Shires took to their Instagram in July to announce that they will be heading on tour in the UK throughout October and November. The tour will be at smaller, more intimate venues as they perform acoustic sets.
Now read:
The Shires: How the country music duo achieved worldwide fame
All the winners from the 56th Academy of Country Music Awards
Your complete guide to the ACM Awards 2021