Q&A with Lady Antebellum’s Hillary Scott

3/12/2012

MINNEAPOLIS — It was a quarter after 3, and I needed Lady Antebellum’s Hillary Scott to call me now.

But this was her day off, and, the newlywed got tied up running errands in Nashville before her best-selling country-pop trio returns to the road for a month. Still, Scott, 25, squeezed in time for a phone conversation about her new husband, her bandmates, and all their Grammys.

Q. Lady A won five Grammys in 2011 (including song and record of the year for “Need You Now”) and one this year, for best country album. Compare those experiences.

A. Last year, we were shocked beyond belief. Our lives and careers changed forever because of that. This year, we were so excited to be invited and to have that nomination, but we didn’t expect to win. We thought Taylor (Swift) or Jason Aldean, for sure. When they called our name, those surprised looks on our faces were 100 percent true.

Q. Did winning all those Grammys help or hurt when it came to creating the new album “Own the Night”?

A. It definitely added pressure but it also added an excitement and another level of confidence. It really lit a fire under us.

Q. That single, “Just a Kiss,” ended up No. 1 on the country charts. What is it like to sing it every night with Charles Kelley, knowing your husband (Chris Tyrrell) is sitting behind you on the drum kit?

A. Honestly, I don’t ever really think about it. We’re acting. I look at Charles like the big brother I never had.

Q. How does Lady A’s decision-making process work?

A. We have discussions in the front lounge on the bus, traveling to the next city. It’s really informal. The big decisions that we’ve had big conversations about, they’re pretty unanimous. We put the band’s interests before our own when it comes to professional, creative decisions. We don’t ever really bump heads on anything.

Q. What’s the story about the group-dynamics coach you brought in three years ago?

A. We went to a communications specialist. It was amazing. The three of us have been raised to communicate very differently. So when you’re dealing with your passion and your dream, you have to learn how to communicate your feelings, to fight for them and to compromise, learn to find a happy medium.

Q. Which of the three of you was the person making that 1:15 a.m. drunken booty call that sparked you all to write “Need You Now”?

A. You know what? We could all relate to it. It wasn’t specifically about one person.

Q. Who was the last person you called at 1:15 in the morning?

A. Probably my husband because he rides in the band bus. So I called him to tell him goodnight. I ride the bus with Charles and Dave, and he rides the band bus. Honestly, we kind of like it that way because we’re home together all the time.

Q. You’ll turn 26 on April 1. What was the craziest thing you’ve done on your birthday?

A. My 23rd birthday was in Las Vegas, and I probably stayed out too late and I wore the wrong shoes and ended up, like, dancing barefoot. I’m a pretty low-key girl. My birthday this year is on the day of the ACMs (Academy of Country Music Awards in Vegas). I have to take it easy. When we’re not onstage I’m, like, in bed at 10 at home. I’m pretty much a grandma already.