Rascal Flatts is an American country pop/country rock music group formed in Columbus, Ohio in 1999. The band is composed of Gary LeVox (lead vocals), Jay DeMarcus (bass guitar, keyboards, background vocals), and Joe Don Rooney (electric guitar, background vocals). LeVox and DeMarcus are second cousins, and DeMarcus is a brother-in-law of country singer James Otto.
From 2000–2010, they recorded for Disney Music Group's Lyric Street Records. While on that label, they released seven albums, all of which have been certified platinum or higher by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA). In order of release, these albums are
Rascal Flatts (2000),
Melt (2002),
Feels Like Today (2004),
Me and My Gang (2006),
Still Feels Good (2007),
Greatest Hits Volume 1 (2008) and
Unstoppable (2009). After Lyric Street closed in 2010, they moved to the independent Big Machine Records, releasing
Nothing Like This in November 2010 and
Changed in April 2012. Their ninth studio album,
Rewind, was released in May 2014.
Their studio albums have accounted for 26 singles, all of which charted Top 20 or higher on the
Billboard Hot Country Songs chart, including 12 which reached number 1. Their longest-lasting number 1 single, a cover of Marcus Hummon's "Bless the Broken Road", spent five weeks in that position in 2005. In 2005-06 "What Hurts The Most" was a number 1 on both the country and adult contemporary charts, and peaked at number 6 on the
Billboard Hot 100.