What do you do with a band that doesn’t fit well into any genre, and whose sound feels too old and elemental to American roots for most modern ears? What do you do with songs that yearn to inform, uplift, and inspire, as opposed to simply entertain? What do you do with a band that’s unwilling to play the industry game, and don’t know how to be anything other than their true authentic selves?
Conventionally, there is no place, no plan, no path for a band like this. But The Red Clay Strays defy all of these conventions to the point where they’re now one of the biggest bands in all of roots music, and are being nominated and winning mainstream industry awards while remaining decidedly outsiders.
The ranks of independent musicians are filled with oddballs and unusual cases who don’t fit the model. But the lesson and the inspiration to take from The Red Clay Strays is that if you stay true to yourself, there is no ceiling.
On June 5th, The Red Clay Strays will release their new album simply titled Grateful. Produced once again by Dave Cobb, it won’t be a Gospel album in its entirety as some had rumored. But as the debut song “Demons In Your Choir” backed by a Gospel choir illustrates, it will have a strong spiritual component.
“’Moment of Truth’ was a big album about having faith in dark times, looking to a higher power,” says frontman Brandon 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,” adds bassist Andrew Bishop. “We’re grateful for how we came out of Made By These Moments and what we have now.”
Though we don’t have a full track listing for Grateful just yet, it’s confirmed to include 11 tracks, including previously-released songs “People Hatin’” and “If I Didn’t Know You.” It’s available now for pre-order on vinyl, as well as pre-save on Spotify and Apple Music.
Along with the new album, The Red Clay Strays have also announced new tour dates for the 2nd half of 2026. Openers include Brent Cobb, Wyatt Flores, Sierra Ferrell, Muscadine Bloodline, The Revivalists, Sweet Talk, and more.
New date presales start Tuesday, 4/28, and Wednesday 4/29 via the Red Clay Strays App. General onsale starts May 1st.
Red Clay Strays 2026 Tour Dates
May 24 – Norfolk, VA – Patriotic Festival
June 5 – Nashville, TN – CMA Fest presented by SoFi †
June 13 – Columbus, OH – Buckeye Country Superfest †
June 18 – Hollywood, FL – Hard Rock Live
June 21 – Bloomington, IL – Tailgates N’ Tallboys †
June 24-28 – Rexford, MT – “The Red Clay Strays Fan Fest 2026” at Abayance Bay Marina
June 26 – Calgary, AB – Country Thunder Alberta †
July 11 – St. Paul, MN – Minnesota Country Club †
July 17 – Twin Lakes, WI – Country Thunder Wisconsin †
July 19 – Cheyenne, WY – Cheyenne Frontier Days
July 30 – Columbia, MD – Merriweather Post Pavilion *
August 1 – Boston, MA – TD Garden *
August 5 – Laval, QC – Place Bell * (NEW DATE)
August 7 – Philadelphia, PA – TD Pavilion at Highmark Mann ** (NEW DATE)
August 9 – New York, NY – Madison Square Garden **
August 15 – Des Moines, IA – Iowa State Fair
August 16 – Sioux Falls, SD – Denny Sanford PREMIER Center # (NEW DATE)
August 18 – Grand Forks, ND – Alerus Center # (NEW DATE)
August 19 – Bismarck, ND – Bismarck Event Center # (NEW DATE)
August 21 – Bozeman, MT – Brick Breeden Fieldhouse § (NEW DATE)
August 22 – Missoula, MT – Adams Center # (NEW DATE)
August 26 – Spokane, WA – Numerica Veterans Arena ## (NEW DATE)
August 27 – Seattle, WA – Climate Pledge Arena ## (NEW DATE)
August 29 – Portland, OR – Moda Center ## (NEW DATE)
August 30 – Vancouver, BC – Rogers Arena ## (NEW DATE)
September 2 – West Valley City, UT – Maverik Center # (NEW DATE)
September 4 – Stateline, NV – Lake Tahoe Amphitheatre at Caesars Republic # (NEW DATE)
September 6 – Aspen, CO – Jazz Aspen Snowmass Labor Day Experience †
September 11 – Sacramento, CA – Golden 1 Center # (NEW DATE)
September 12 – Ontario, CA – Toyota Arena # (NEW DATE)
September 16 – San Diego, CA – Pechanga Arena San Diego # (NEW DATE)
September 17 – Glendale, AZ – Desert Diamond Arena # (NEW DATE)
September 19 – Pryor, OK – Born & Raised Music Festival †
September 20 – San Antonio, TX – Frost Bank Center + (NEW DATE)
September 26 – Louisville, KY – Bourbon & Beyond †
September 30 – Toronto, ON – RBC Amphitheatre * (NEW DATE)
October 1 – Pittsburgh, PA – PPG Paints Arena * (NEW DATE)
October 3 – Grand Rapids, MI – Van Andel Arena * (NEW DATE)
October 7 – Fort Worth, TX – Dickies Arena ++ (NEW DATE)
October 14 – Orlando, FL – Kia Center * (NEW DATE)
October 15 – Savannah, GA – Enmarket Arena * (NEW DATE)
October 17 – Charleston, SC – Credit One Stadium * (NEW DATE)
October 18 – Greenville, SC – Bon Secours Wellness Arena * (NEW DATE)
October 22 – Nashville, TN – Bridgestone Arena ^
October 23 – Nashville, TN – Bridgestone Arena ^
October 28 – Knoxville, TN – Food City Center ^^ (NEW DATE)
October 31 – Birmingham, AL – Legacy Arena ++ (NEW DATE)
November 5 – Baton Rouge, LA – Raising Cane’s River Center ‡ (NEW DATE)
November 6 – Bossier City, LA – Brookshire Grocery Arena ‡ (NEW DATE)
November 8 – Jonesboro, AR – First National Bank Arena ‡ (NEW DATE)
November 13 – Atlanta, GA – State Farm 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
‘ The preceding article may include information circulated by third parties ’
‘ Some details of this article were extracted from the following source savingcountrymusic.com ’
