The Band of Heathens — Lead Don't Follow (Live at The Current)

Why It Matters

A spirited live session on The Current raises the band’s visibility with public-radio listeners and streaming audiences, reinforcing their brand and driving potential streams, ticket sales and broader exposure. Such radio performances remain a cost-effective promotional channel for established roots acts to deepen fan engagement and boost catalog consumption.

Summary

The Band of Heathens perform a live studio rendition of “Lead Don’t Follow” at Minnesota public radio outlet The Current, delivering an anthemic, roots-rock arrangement built around a persistent refrain urging listeners to lead rather than follow. The performance emphasizes upbeat instrumentation and tight vocal harmonies as the band alternates verses about resilience and intentional living with repeated, chant-like choruses. The live take foregrounds the song’s motivational lyrics and energetic dynamics, translating the studio track into a more immediate, communal experience. The recording highlights the group’s blend of Americana, rock and soul influences in a concise live setting.

Original Description

Watch a performance of "Lead Don't Follow" by The Band of Heathens

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Austin, Texas, act The Band of Heathens have been together for 20 years, a feat that seems all the more remarkable given their approach, which has been described as "fiercely independent" by various outlets. “I think from the beginning,” says co-founding member Gordy Quist, “there's always been a kind of, this attitude of, like, no one's going to tell us what to do, and we're going to do things on our own terms, and we're going to own it all, and we're going to own the success and the mistakes and the failures.”

It’s an attitude that has served them well, as The Band of Heathens are celebrating their 20th anniversary with a new album, Country Sides, and with a lead single, “Take the Cake,” that recently hit No. 1 in the Americana charts. “I don't know if we set out to make number one records as the objective,” co-founding member Ed Jurdi says, “but, you know, if you're going to be in the game and be on the radio, it's nice to win the game once in a while … And especially, just being amongst that kind of cadre of other artists in the top five or the top 10, it's always such great music and such incredible artists. So it's just nice to be in that company.”

While on tour in support of the album, The Band of Heathens visited The Current to record a session and an interview with host Bill DeVille. Watch and listen to a performance of "Lead Don't Follow" above.

Musicians

Gordy Quist – vocals, guitar

Ed Jurdi – vocals, guitar

Trevor Nealon – keyboards, vocals

Nick Jay – bass, vocals

Clint Simmons – drums, percussion

Credits

Guests – The @bandofheathens

Host/Producer – Bill DeVille

Audio – Josh Sauvageau

Video – Evan Clark

Camera Operators – Evan Clark, Sean Belcher

Graphics – Natalia Toledo

Digital Producer – Luke Taylor

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