Fans across Mississippi and the nation for that matter are Chapel Hart-broken after news that the country music trio is officially splitting after wrapping up its current lineup of shows.
On Monday night, the Poplarville-based group went to social media to announce that Danica Hart will embark on a career as a solo artist, while Devynn Hart and Trea Swindle will stay together as a new duo called Magnolia Rising.
“Over the last few years, Chapel Hart has taken us places we never could have imagined,” the announcement reads. “We have laughed, cried, grown, and stood on stages we used to dream about. More than anything, we have shared a bond that goes deeper than music, and that part will always remain.
“As we each step into new seasons of life, we have decided to press pause on Chapel Hart so we can explore other passions and dreams that have been calling to us individually.”
While fans flooded the comments on social media with broken-heart and crying-face emojis, as well as words of encouragement and sporadic jabs, Chapel Hart assured them that it’s not necessarily a goodbye; more so, it’s a see you later.
“This is not a goodbye. It is a celebration of everything that we have built and a step toward everything still to come,” the announcement continued.
The split comes nearly two months after Danica informed her social media following that after several months of silence, she was speaking out about “physical violence and abuse” and being “pushed out” of the band that first achieved fame on “America’s Got Talent” and has since performed in multiple countries, states, and on famous stages such as the Grand Ole Opry and Ryman Auditorium in Nashville.
Danica, the group’s lead vocalist, even said she was seeking an attorney over an alleged blackmail scheme to either keep her in the band or make it appear as if she was the catalyst in a potential break-up. She called out her sister, Devynn, and cousin, Trea Swindle, along with the group’s label JT3D LLC.
“Over the past several months, I have remained silent, but I can no longer stay quiet about what has happened,” Danica penned on July 2. “I am being pushed out of my band and my company, and throughout this time, I and other members of our team have been subjected to physical violence and abuse. I am at the point of breaking.”
Danica’s post was later deleted, she issued a public apology on July 10, and the band continued on its summer trek that included stops at the Choctaw Indian Fair in east Mississippi and at the Live on the Levee concert series in Charleston, W. Va. It’s unclear if Danica ever attained legal representation and how the group was able to come to a dissolution agreement. SuperTalk Mississippi News has reached out to her directly for comment.
In the meantime, those who want to catch Chapel Hart for what could be the final time can do so with the following shows left on the group’s schedule: Aug. 29 at the Stockbridge Amphitheater in Stockbridge, Ga.; Sept. 8 at the Mississippi Women’s Summit in Flowood; and Oct. 24-26 at the Keep It Country Festival in the United Kingdom.
“We want to celebrate the community we’ve built together, so as we finish playing our scheduled shows for the rest of the season, we hope that we get to see each and every one of you on the road!! We love and thank you for being part of the congregation, and we look forward to your continued support,” the announcement concluded.
Looking back
Chapel Hart became a global phenomenon when they became the first-ever group to garner a unanimous Golden Buzzer on “America’s Got Talent” in 2022. Simon Cowell, one of the show’s judges, predicted at the time that the group “may have just broken the door down” between them and Nashville.
After their run on the show, which ended in a fifth-place finish, the Hart sisters and Swindle experienced a meteoric rise through the country music scene. They went on several international tours, recorded two studio albums, and were named a “Next Big Thing” artist by CMT. Their most listened to songs are “You Can Have Him Jolene,” which received public support from Dolly Parton, along with “The Girls Are Back in Town” and “Ol’ Church Hymn” with Darius Rucker.
While Chapel Hart wasn’t known to the masses until recent years, the trio has been performing together since 2014. They started out with covers street-side in New Orleans before landing gigs inside bars and clubs and eventually reached fame with the help of “America’s Got Talent.”
Where does Chapel Hart go from here?
After scheduled shows are completed, Chapel Hart will exist no longer, unless band members decide to reconvene down the road. The break-up announcement plugged Danica’s incoming solo career and Devynn and Swindle’s new Magnolia Rising brand.
It encouraged fans to follow Danica’s Facebook page, where she has already announced solo dates between now and the last Chapel Hart show, and a new Facebook page for Magnolia Rising. As of Tuesday morning, Magnolia Rising had already garnered over 1,400 followers.
