Chapel Hart

Chapel Hart, originally known as Hyperphlyy, is an American country music vocal group from Poplarville, Mississippi. The group consists of sisters Danica Hart and Devynn Hart, and their cousin Trea Swindle, all three of whom are vocalists. Chapel Hart has independently released three studio albums and eleven singles. In July 2022, they competed in the seventeenth season of America's Got Talent, where they finished fifth. The group's music is defined by their vocal harmony and influence from other female country acts. The group's most popular song is "You Can Have Him Jolene", an answer song to Dolly Parton's "Jolene".

Music career
Sisters Danica and Devynn Hart began singing together in 2014 with their cousin Trea Swindle. The three started busking by performing cover songs on the streets of New Orleans, and eventually writing original songs as well. Danica Hart and Swindle recorded an extended play titled Made for Me in 2016 under the name Hyperphlyy. Then in 2019, they and Devynn released an album titled Out the Mud also under the name Hyperphlyy. The trio also performed at music festivals around Louisiana, and in Innsbruck, Austria. They renamed themselves Chapel Hart, taking the name from a church in their hometown.

In 2020, they were discovered by record producer Jeff Glixman, who also began serving as their manager and producer. This was followed by a standalone single titled "Jesus & Alcohol" in 2020, which featured ZZ Top member Billy Gibbons on guitar. They also shot a music video for the song, in which Gibbons plays the role of a pastor. T. Graham Brown and Deborah Allen also make cameos in the video, which aired on CMT after its release. Additionally, they sang background vocals on LeRoux's album One of Those Days in 2020.

CMT selected Chapel Hart as one of several artists for their 2021 "Next Women of Country" campaign, which promotes new and upcoming female country music artists. This was followed in 2021 by the group's second single, "I Will Follow". A music video was produced for the song, which aired on CMT, with Jackyl frontman Jesse James Dupree making a cameo appearance in it. Jennifer Hanson wrote the song with Savannah Keyes and Nick Brophy, the latter of whom co-produced it with Glixman. The corresponding music video began airing on CMT on February 5, 2021. Kevin John Coyne of Country Universe rated the song "A", praising the group members' singing voices while comparing the arrangement favorably to the works of SHeDAISY and the Chicks. A third single and video, "You Can Have Him Jolene", followed in March 2021. The song is an answer song to Dolly Parton's "Jolene".

In July 2021, the group announced a second studio album, titled The Girls Are Back in Town. "I Will Follow" and "You Can Have Him Jolene" both appeared on the album. Glixman also produced this album. Lorie Hollabaugh of MusicRow stated of the album that "Every song on the 12-track project centers around the universal theme of celebrating and empowering women in country music while reminding listeners that love, harmony, diversity, and unity can co-exist in our present world." Another single and video, "Made for Me", followed in 2022.

America's Got Talent appearance
Chapel Hart had planned to tour with the Indigo Girls in mid-2022, but canceled this tour when that duo's member Emily Saliers was diagnosed with COVID-19. During this time, agents for the NBC talent show America's Got Talent contacted members of the group. Danica told the blog Taste of Country that Chapel Hart initially turned down the offer, but ultimately agreed to appear on the show after being contacted by the same agent a number of times. On the audition episode airing July 19 (during the show's 17th season), they performed "You Can Have Him Jolene". For the second time in the show's history, a group Golden Buzzer was granted to them by the four judges and host. This allowed Chapel Hart to advance immediately to the next round of competition,  eventually earning a spot in the finals after performing their original song "The Girls Are Back in Town". Chapel Hart advanced to the finals, where they performed a cover of Bonnie Raitt's "Something to Talk About" with Darius Rucker. They were eliminated from the fifth-place position.

2022–present
Chapel Hart received an invitation to make their debut on the Grand Ole Opry on September 17, 2022. They are also featured on Darius Rucker's late-2022 single "Ol' Church Hymn". In late October 2022, Danica Hart underwent vocal cord surgery, requiring a period of vocal rest.

Once Danica recovered, the trio released a new single titled "Glory Days" in January 2023. They also released another song titled "Welcome to Fist City", an answer song to Loretta Lynn's 1968 single "Fist City". Prior to her death in 2022, Lynn had asked the trio to write the song after seeing them on America's Got Talent. Chapel Hart also announced a series of tour dates for 2023. "Welcome to Fist City" appears on the group's third studio album Glory Days, released in May 2023. The trio promoted the album through a concert tour which included a performance at the CMA Music Festival.

Musical influences and style
In 2020, Danica told the Houston Chronicle that she was influenced by albums from George Strait and Kenny Rogers. She and Devynn have also cited Gretchen Wilson as a primary musical influence. Joey Guerra of the Houston Chronicle noted that Chapel Hart's sound is heavily reliant on their use of vocal harmony. He also found Danica's voice comparable to that of Etta James, while also finding influences of a "classic girl group" sound on other songs. Later in 2020, Swindle told American Songwriter that she was aware of the unusual choice for an African American act to record country music, telling the publication: "You don't really choose [country music]. It was how we grew up and who we are." Jessica Nicholson of Billboard wrote of the group's style that it "blends tightly-woven, family harmonies with straight-from-the-heart lyrics". Devynn also said that the positive reception from their America's Got Talent performance of "You Can Have Him Jolene", which all three members of the trio wrote, inspired the trio to write more songs on Glory Days. AllMusic writer Stephen Thomas Erlewine describes Chapel Hart as "a spirited country music harmony group" and "steeped in tradition but ha[ving] a smart, knowing modern sensibility".