The Dixie Chicks drop 'Dixie' from name, thank NZ band The Chicks for letting them share name

The Dixie Chicks have removed the 'Dixie' from their name after a top U.S. journalist urged the trio to follow Lady Antebellum's example and make a change.

The country music group will now be known as simply 'The Chicks'.

In a piece for Variety last week, writer Jeremy Helligar argued the band should rethink its name, explaining: "it conjures a time and a place of bondage."

Delving into the term's history, Helligar wrote that: "Dixie, for the record, is the epitome of white America, a celebration of a Southern tradition that is indivisible from Black slaves and those grand plantations where they were forced to toil for free."

Natalie Maines, Emily Strayer, and Martie Maguire agreed and responded by ditching the 'Dixie'.

The Chicks changed their website URL and their Instagram handle to reflect the new moniker on Thursday.

"We want to meet this moment," a statement on the trio's website reads, while in a press statement, the 'Goodbye Earl' hitmakers thanked New Zealand band The Chicks, "for their gracious gesture in allowing us to share their name."

The newly denominated Chicks showed respect for the Kiwi sister double act, adding: "We are honoured to co-exist together in the world with these exceptionally talented sisters."

The name-change follows in the footsteps of another country trio, Lady Antebellum, who decided to become Lady A amid ongoing protests and conversations regarding the history of racism in the U.S.

Meanwhile, the artists formerly known as the Dixie Chicks are expected to release Gaslighter, their first album in 14 years, in July.

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