The Red Clay Strays Release Soul-Stirring Third Studio Album, “Grateful”

Photo: Courtesy of Robby Klein

The Red Clay Strays have released their new album, Grateful, out today via HBYCO Records/RCA Records. A collection of 11 rollicking, soul-searching songs that can spill out of dance halls on Saturday night and fill church steeples on Sunday morning in equal measure, Grateful marks the latest chapter in The Red Clay Strays’ inspiring journey from their hometown of Mobile, AL, to packing arenas around the world with audiences ready to partake in an old-school roots-rock revival. The band first set out with something to prove on 2022’s RIAA Gold-certified crowdfunded debut LP, Moment of Truth, and then carved a path through hardship on 2024’s acclaimed Made By These Moments, earning them 3x RIAA Platinum certification for the #1 hit single, “Wondering Why,” worldwide critical applause, and a growing collection of awards and accolades.

To celebrate the release of Grateful, The Red Clay Strays have released a moving official music video for their new song, “Do Today,” streaming now on YouTube. Directed by Matthew Coleman, the video features dancer Sarah Allen performing an improvisational dance that matches the depth and power of the song’s grand, sweeping balladry.

Grateful now sees The Red Clay Strays paying tribute to the faith they held in each up-and-down moment. Working once again with 9x GRAMMY® Award-winning producer Dave Cobb with whom they previously collaborated on Made For These Moments between his Savannah, GA home studio and the historic RCA Studio A in Nashville, the six-member band – Brandon Coleman on lead vocals, guitar, Drew Nix on guitar, vocals, Andrew Bishop on bass, Zach Rishel on guitar, John Hall on drums, and Sevans Henderson on keyboards – reached a new level of comfort in the recording process, often workshopping ideas or collectively writing songs during sessions. The album showcases The Red Clay Strays’ gift for time-tested soul and sweat-drenched rock on such standout tracks as the churning hit single, “People Hatin’” and the tender “If I Didn’t Know You,” the latter joined by a heartwarmingly romantic official music video co-starring avowed fans, superstar comedian Matt Rife and fitness influencer Mariah Morse, now boasting over 5M views on YouTube. With Grateful, The Red Clay Strays turn survival into jubilation – a celebration of faith, a soundtrack to gratitude, and a clear-eyed reflection of the road traveled along the way.

“Moment of Truth was a big album about having faith in dark times, looking to a higher power,” says Coleman, “and Made By These Moments focused on realizing those dark times that you were having to have faith through, which made you who you are. You made it through when you didn’t think you would. And now we’re at a point where we’re grateful. Looking to God in whatever situation you're in is a denominator in all of the albums.”

“The title of the album’s a literal meaning to us at this moment in our careers,” says bassist Andrew Bishop. “We’re grateful for how we came out of Made By These Moments and what we have now.”

WATCH “DO TODAY” OFFICIAL MUSIC VIDEO
WATCH “DEMONS IN YOUR CHOIR” OFFICIAL MUSIC VIDEO
WATCH “IF I DIDN’T KNOW YOU” OFFICIAL MUSIC VIDEO
WATCH “PEOPLE HATIN’” OFFICIAL MUSIC VIDEO

Last month saw The Red Clay Strays honored as “Group of the Year” at the 61st Academy of Country Music Awards, their second consecutive triumph at the ACMs following a 2025 win as “New Vocal Duo or Group of the Year.” The band was also among the top stars performing at the event, lighting up Las Vegas, NV’s MGM Grand Garden Arena with a spectacular rendition of the first single from Grateful, “Demons In Your Choir,” joined onstage by a full gospel choir. “Transcendent,” raved Rolling Stone. “The performance showed why the Alabama band was worthy of their win for Group of the Year.”

WATCH “DEMONS IN YOUR CHOIR” LIVE AT THE
61ST ACADEMY OF COUNTRY MUSIC AWARDS

THE RED CLAY STRAYS
GRATEFUL
HBYCO/RCA

Tracklist:

“Demons In Your Choir”
“Don’t Wanna Know”
“Walkin’ Away”
“People Hatin’”
“Revival”
“Down South”
“If I Didn’t Know You”
“Fool’s Gold”
“Can’t Fix You”
“Do Today”
“Grateful”

The Red Clay Strays will also celebrate Grateful with an epic North American headline tour – the band’s biggest live run thus far. The Grateful Tour ’26 begins July 30 at Columbia, MD’s Merriweather Post Pavilion and then travels into mid-November. Highlights include headline shows at such iconic venues as Boston, MA’s TD Garden on August 1, New York City’s Madison Square Garden on August 9, Vancouver, BC’s Rogers Arena on August 30, two nights at Nashville, TN’s Bridgestone Arena on October 22-23, Atlanta, GA’s State Farm Arena on November 13, and Las Vegas, NV’s MGM Grand Garden Arena on December 5. A wide array of special guests will join the Mobile, AL-based rock band on select dates throughout the Grateful Tour, including The Revivalists, Dylan Gossett, Wyatt Flores, Muscadine Bloodline, Shane Smith and The Saints, Sierra Ferrell, Travis Tritt, Haley Reinhart, Brent Cobb, and Australia’s own Sweet Talk.

Following the band’s acclaimed appearance at Indio, CA’s Stagecoach earlier this spring, tonight sees The Red Clay Strays perform at Nashville, TN’s annual CMA Fest presented by SoFi. Earlier this week, the band hosted the “Grateful Album Release Concert” at The Pinnacle in Nashville. All proceeds from the show benefited Thistle Farms, a renowned nonprofit social enterprise in Nashville dedicated to helping women survivors heal from trafficking, prostitution, and addiction. Fans at the show were treated to a surprise cameo from Zach Top who joined the band for a cover of Waylon Jennings’ “Where Corn Don’t Grow.”

In addition, The Red Clay Strays will perform at Bloomington, IL’s Tailgates N’ Tallboys on June 21, St. Paul, MN’s Minnesota Country Club on July 11, Pryor, OK’s Born & Raised Music Festival on September 19, and Louisville, KY’s Bourbon & Beyond on September 26. The band will also host “The Red Clay Strays Fan Fest 2026,” the first-ever RCS fan festival set to take place at Rexford, MT’s Abayance Bay Marina on June 24-28. The five-night event will feature a headline show from The Red Clay Strays, the very special “Strays with Stories – Intimate Performances and Stories with The Red Clay Strays,” headline shows by Lukas Nelson and St. Paul & the Broken Bones, and much more. Tickets for “The Red Clay Strays Fan Fest 2026” are extremely limited; complete details are available HERE and via The Red Clay Strays App.

THE RED CLAY STRAYS – GRATEFUL TOUR ’26

JUNE
5 – Nashville, TN – CMA Fest presented by SoFi †
13 – Columbus, OH – Buckeye Country Superfest †
18 – Hollywood, FL – Hard Rock Live
21 – Bloomington, IL – Tailgates N’ Tallboys †
24-28 – Rexford, MT – “The Red Clay Strays Fan Fest 2026” at Abayance Bay Marina
26 – Calgary, AB – Country Thunder Alberta †

JULY
11 – St. Paul, MN – Minnesota Country Club †
17 – Twin Lakes, WI – Country Thunder Wisconsin †
19 – Cheyenne, WY – Cheyenne Frontier Days
30 – Columbia, MD - Merriweather Post Pavilion *

AUGUST
1 – Boston, MA – TD Garden *
7 – Philadelphia, PA – TD Pavilion at Highmark Mann **
9 – New York, NY – Madison Square Garden **
15 – Des Moines, IA – Iowa State Fair
16 – Sioux Falls, SD – Denny Sanford PREMIER Center #
18 – Grand Forks, ND – Alerus Center #
19 – Bismarck, ND – Bismarck Event Center #
21 – Bozeman, MT – Brick Breeden Fieldhouse §
22 – Missoula, MT – Adams Center #
26 – Spokane, WA – Numerica Veterans Arena ##
27 – Seattle, WA – Climate Pledge Arena ##
29 – Portland, OR – Moda Center ##
30 – Vancouver, BC – Rogers Arena ##

SEPTEMBER
2 – West Valley City, UT – Maverik Center #
4 – Stateline, NV – Lake Tahoe Amphitheatre at Caesars Republic #
6 – Aspen, CO – Jazz Aspen Snowmass Labor Day Experience †
11 – Sacramento, CA – Golden 1 Center #
12 – Ontario, CA – Toyota Arena #
16 – San Diego, CA – Pechanga Arena San Diego #
17 – Glendale, AZ – Desert Diamond Arena #
19 – Pryor, OK – Born & Raised Music Festival †
20 – San Antonio, TX – Frost Bank Center +
26 – Louisville, KY – Bourbon & Beyond †
30 – Toronto, ON – RBC Amphitheatre *

OCTOBER
1 – Pittsburgh, PA – PPG Paints Arena *
3 – Grand Rapids, MI – Van Andel Arena *
7 – Fort Worth, TX – Dickies Arena ++
14 – Orlando, FL – Kia Center *
15 – Savannah, GA – Enmarket Arena *
17 – Charleston, SC – Credit One Stadium *
18 – Greenville, SC – Bon Secours Wellness Arena *
22 – Nashville, TN – Bridgestone Arena ^
23 – Nashville, TN – Bridgestone Arena ^
28 – Knoxville, TN – Food City Center ^^
31 – Birmingham, AL – Legacy Arena ++

NOVEMBER
5 – Baton Rouge, LA – Raising Cane’s River Center ‡
6 – Bossier City, LA – Brookshire Grocery Arena ‡
8 – Jonesboro, AR – First National Bank Arena ‡
13 – Atlanta, GA – State Farm Arena ||

DECEMBER
5 – Las Vegas, NV – MGM Grand Garden Arena ‡

† Festival Appearance
* w/ Special Guests The Revivalists & Haley Reinhart
** w/ Special Guests The Revivalists & Brent Cobb
# w/ Special Guests Dylan Gossett & Sweet Talk
§ w/ Special Guests TBA & Sweet Talk
## w/ Special Guests Wyatt Flores & Sweet Talk
+ w/ Special Guests Muscadine Bloodline & Sweet Talk
++ w/ Special Guests Shane Smith and The Saints & Brent Cobb
^ w/ Special Guests Sierra Ferrell & Brent Cobb
^^ w/ Special Guests Wyatt Flores & Brent Cobb
‡ w/ Special Guests Muscadine Bloodline & Brent Cobb
|| w/ Special Guests Travis Tritt & Brent Cobb