Alabama Shakes

Alabama Shakes is a band from Athens, Alabama, whose music draws from blues rock, soul, and Southern musical traditions. Formed in 2009, the group developed a style that blends rock, blues, and soul influences, later incorporating elements of funk, garage rock, and psychedelic rock into their recordings.^1,2

Get your Alabama Shakes tickets on AXS and hear a band whose blend of rock, soul, and blues has earned widespread critical acclaim.

Alabama Shakes released their ATO Records debut, Boys & Girls, in 2012 after early attention from Alabama and the indie-rock world. The album debuted at number 1 on Billboard’s Independent Albums chart and earned the band a much larger audience.³

Hold On helped earn the band multiple Grammy nominations, including Best New Artist consideration during the Boys & Girls era.³ Sound & Color arrived in 2015 with a broader mixture of funk, soul, garage rock, and psychedelic rock.² After nearly a decade away from touring and recording as a group, Alabama Shakes reunited with core members Brittany Howard, Heath Fogg, and Zac Cockrell.⁴

Alabama Shakes earned major recognition for songs that kept their blues and soul roots while reaching across the rock and alternative aisles.

• Grammy Award - Best American Roots Performance (2018): Killer Diller Blues won after Alabama Shakes recorded the song for The American Epic Sessions.⁵
• Grammy Award - Best Rock Song (2016): Don’t Wanna Fight won Best Rock Song, with Brittany Howard, Zac Cockrell, Heath Fogg, and Steve Johnson credited as songwriters.⁵
• Grammy Award - Best Alternative Music Album (2016): Sound & Color won Best Alternative Music Album, giving the band a major honor for its second full-length album.⁵

Alabama Shakes’ biggest songs show the band’s range across two very different records. Hold On gave the band its early breakout, while Don’t Wanna Fight and Sound & Color pushed their sound into a sharper, more layered place.⁶

• Hold On (2012): From Boys & Girls, Hold On became the band’s early breakthrough and helped bring their Southern rock and soul sound to a wider audience.³ ⁶
• Don’t Wanna Fight (2015): From Sound & Color, Don’t Wanna Fight pairs a tight groove with Howard’s urgent vocals and won the Grammy Award for Best Rock Song.⁵ ⁶
• Always Alright (2012): Featured in Silver Linings Playbook, Always Alright earned a Grammy nomination and brought out the band’s harder blues-rock side.⁵

Alabama Shakes concerts lean into the parts of the band that made their records connect: Howard’s vocals, tight rhythm, and guitar-heavy rock songs. Their live performances balance tight musicianship with an organic, soulful energy.⁷

Score Alabama Shakes tickets at AXS and catch the band’s Grammy-winning songs live.