These Chicks are ‘done caring what people think,’ Boise. Their concert ‘should be huge’

Remember The Dixie Chicks, Boise?

The trio that won 13 Grammys?

The three women who were blacklisted from country radio in the early 2000s after singer Natalie Maines criticized President George W. Bush on stage?

The group who wrote “outspoken” (their word) songs such as “Goodbye, Earl” and “Not Ready To Make Nice”?

The biggest-selling female band of all time in the United States?

They’re coming to the Ford Idaho Center Amphitheater in Nampa for an outdoor concert Saturday, Aug. 6. And “it should be huge,” according to Creston Thornton, president of promoter Live Nation’s mountain region. The group’s last tour in 2016, he said, averaged about 13,000 tickets per concert.

The top-notch opening act won’t hurt, either: Patty Griffin.

Incidentally, The Chicks are still doing things their own way. For one thing, they’re no longer The Dixie Chicks.

In case you hadn’t heard, they’re now The Chicks. No “Dixie,” a reference to the South in the Civil War era. The group “stealthily” shortened its name in 2020 “as nationwide protests over police violence against black people have put a renewed spotlight on racial inequalities of all kinds,” The New York Times noted in an article about the name change.

A second Times article published shortly thereafter noted that The Chicks are “done caring what people think.”

Undoubtedly, the trio’s die-hard fans love it. They just want to hear the songs. The Chicks haven’t been to the Boise area in, like, forever. (In 1999, they performed with Tim McGraw at Memorial Stadium. Then they returned a year later to headline for 9,300 fans at the Idaho Center.) And they’ve sold more than $100 million worth of concert tickets during their career.

Tickets go on sale at 10 a.m. Friday, March 4, at fordidahocenter.com, for $35 to $169.50.

The Chicks released “Gaslighter,” their first album in almost 15 years, in 2020.

More concerts

▪ Rock band 311 is returning to the Boise area for a show Saturday, May 21, at the Revolution Concert and Event Center in Garden City. Special guests will be announced in the future.

Tickets go on sale at 10 a.m. Friday, March 4, at Ticketmaster for $39.50 advance, $45 day of show, $79.50 upstairs VIP.

▪ Dizzy Wright is coming to the Revolution Center on Saturday, April 16 Special guests will be announced. Tickets go on sale at 10 a.m. Friday, March 4, at Ticketmaster for $20 (first 100) then $25 or $45 upstairs VIP.