Kristian Bush Talks Sugarland’s Reunion: ‘We Weren’t Finished Telling Our Story’
Kristian Bush knew it wasn't over. When he and Sugarland's Jennifer Nettles parted ways in 2012 to work on solo projects, both personally and professionally, it was only a matter of time before they picked up where they left off.
"I’ve always thought that we hadn’t finished saying the things we needed to say," Bush says in an interview with Taste of Country.
So, what took so long? The timing of Sugarland's reunion is based on the solo albums that both artists released. Nettles dropped That Girl in 2014 and Playing With Fire in 2016, while Bush unveiled Southern Gravity in 2015.
"I think the timing just worked out for Jennifer," Bush notes. "She just reached out, and I was like, ‘Alright, let’s see if we’ve still got it from a writing perspective.' So we sat down and wrote, and the first single, ["Still the Same"], was the first song that we wrote in, like, 45 minutes. I was like, 'Okay, that’s gonna work just fine.'"
Bush says that during their six-year hiatus, he and Nettles set professional boundaries so that they could each focus on their solo projects without the influence of Sugarland. Their decision to reunite musically, though, is timed just right for the story that the duo has to tell.
"We get to continue our conversation from where we last left it. But we’re doing it at a time where we’re sitting in this — we’re a band that empowers women, and we’re having a real discussion about that as a culture, whereas we weren’t having one as a culture five or 10 years ago," Bush notes. "That’s like double-bouncing on the trampoline. It just seems like suddenly we fit in."
Nettles and Bush have begun rehearsals for their 2018 Still the Same Tour, which launches in May. They are continuing to work on their upcoming album.
Sugarland Through the Years