Rascal Flatts Talk Farewell Tour: ‘We Are Taking It Day by Day’

In January, Rascal Flatts announced that they would be embarking on their Farewell: Life Is a Highway Tour, but the coronavirus pandemic effectively put a halt on the trek, which was scheduled to begin this month. Speaking to PopCulture.com and other media this week, the trio shared that they aren’t yet sure when they will be able to return to the road, an uncertainty a number of other artists are currently facing.

“Like everybody else, no one saw this coming and we were all thrown for a loop,” Jay DeMarcus said. “We are taking it day by day. It’s a moving target. There is not really a timeline for how and when venues are going to open back up and what the social distancing measures are going to look like, so we’re playing the wait-and-see game right now. We don’t want to leave people hanging and just go away. We certainly want to go out and celebrate with them.” The group had planned the tour to celebrate 20 years as a band with fans, and DeMarcus explained that the trek could be one of the last chances for fans to see Rascal Flatts live.

“As to when and how that’s going to happen, we simply don’t know yet, but we’re really, really focused right now on what the next steps are going to be as far as getting back on the road and getting in front of the fans and not only celebrating 20 years, incredible 20 years with them, but also giving them a chance to see us for what may be one of the last times we’re around,” he said. Gary LeVox shared that the group was “gearing up for an emotional year” ahead of their 20th anniversary” and they knew that every show would “matter just so much more,” but the pandemic has essentially cut the band’s legs “out from under.”

“This has definitely changed all those emotions and all those feelings we thought we’d be feeling,” he explained. “Because it’s also a celebration of 20 years, which is just an incredible milestone for anything to be doing it for 20 years is really special. And so we had so much that we were looking forward to with this whole year and this has just completely wiped all that out, so it’s almost like a clean slate of emotions going, ‘Well, when, if ever again, can we maybe take what this year was going to be and apply it to the year ahead, whenever that might be?’ And we just don’t know. We’re completely clueless for what that might be.”

Though they aren’t on the road, the band is still sharing new music, having released their new single, “How They Remember You,” last week. The single will appear on an upcoming seven-song EP of the same name to be released on July 31.