The Band Perry’s Double Dog Dare

If you're not familiar with The Band Perry yet, it's only a matter of time. The country music trio -- who also happen to be siblings -- are poised to become the next big thing in Nashville. Not only are they nominated for a Best Country Song Grammy -- "If I Die Young" -- but they're going on tour as the opening act for Tim McGraw this spring. omg! got to chat with Kimberly, 27, Reid, 23, and Neil, 21, about their rise to fame, their big country hair, and why they have teamed up with Purina Dog Chow for the Double Dog Dare Challenge.

Congrats on your Grammy nomination!
Kimberly: Thanks! The last 12 months for us have definitely been a whirlwind. We've been working really hard on the road as a family band for 12 years, so it's really cool to see the culmination of a lot of blood, sweat, and tears that has lead us to this moment.

Are you excited about your upcoming tour with Tim McGraw?
Kimberly: We're big fans of Tim, so just to go on that stage every night before that guy will truly be an honor. We're going to work really hard and roll up our sleeves to try and woo some of his fan base and win their hearts!

Does the fact that you are family make being in a band together harder or easier?
Reid: Because we've been doing it for 12 years, it's really the only thing we've ever known. I personally feel the benefits outweigh any negatives. We know each other like the back of our hands, so we're able to have hard conversations and still love each other at the end. Personally, [Kimberly and Neil] are my best friends and being able to live a life like this is truly a dream.

Kimberly: [But while] we may know each other like the back of our hands, we can also use the back of our hands on each other, so that comes in really handy! [Laughs]

So as the big sister, do you assume a leadership role, Kimberly?
Kimberly: I am the bossy big sister.

Neil: I think we all play our stereotypical roles in the family pretty much to the tee. Like Kimberly said, she's the oldest sister, so she has her hand on the steering wheel. And Reid, being the middle child, is definitely the peace keeper. And me, being the baby, I think I'm the joker of the family. Whenever we're out 12 days on the road, I'm the one who throws a joke in to keep everyone laughing.

How did you come up with the name of your band? Why didn't you call yourself The Perrys instead of The Band Perry?
Kimberly: There are actually a couple of family Perry bands already out there, so we decided to flip flop it. We call ourselves TBP for short!

Since this is a family business, what role do your parents play in all of this?
Kimberly: My mother comes out with us all of the time. She's everything from band stylist to referee out on the road. And our dad is a pediatrician back home, so he has to hold down the fort, but he does get to come out on the road sometimes. He would secretly love to ditch the day job and come set up our gear and be our bus driver, but it might be a little while before he can do that.

So your mom and dad didn't have any qualms about you going into the music business?
Kimberly: Both of our parents have been hugely involved from the very beginning. I was the first one to make a decision whether to pursue my music career full throttle or go to college and have a backup plan. And our parents were the very first ones to say, Nuh-uh. No backup plan. Because if you have one, then you'll probably fall back on it at some point. So they definitely have always supported us in whatever way we've needed and have continued to do so.

Who are some of your biggest musical influences?
Kimberly: Our dad was rock and roll, and our mother was a country fan, so we've always sort of stood at the crossroads of the Rolling Stones and Loretta Lynn. Those are two of our pillars.

Reid: And depending on what instrument we play, that influences us differently as well. As the bass player, I'm influenced more by the rock and roll side of our palette.

Neil: And I play mandolin. We live up in the Appalachian Mountains, the birthplace of bluegrass music, so I love players like Ricky Skaggs and Sam Bush. And I'm a fan of Lady Gaga.

Kimberly: Rumor has it she wants to come to Nashville and write some country songs, so we're going to try to get on her list!

In addition to your diverse taste in music, you also have a unique sense of style. It's kind of a little bit country with an alternative rock twist.
Kimberly: I'd say we even have a bit of a British fashion flair. Our biggest accessory would be our hair. It is our super power. We like big hair in The Band Perry, but that is kind of a country tradition. Everybody from Dolly to Marty Stewart, who certainly were our forefathers in the big hair department.

So whose hair takes the longest to style? Be honest!
Kimberly: Probably Neil's, because he's slower moving than the rest of us.

Neil: Well, the thing is, I don't have nearly as much hair as Kimberly or Reid, so mine takes a lot longer to make it appear as if it's as big as theirs. [Laughs]

So how did you get involved with Purina's Double Dog Dare promotion?
Kimberly: Folks always ask us if there are just the three of us kids in the family and we always say, "No," because we actually have two Corgi dogs [Addie and Moses] at home and two Great Pyrenees [Dakota and Scout] that are kind of our extended family members. They are just as sweet as can be -- and they rule the roost! We love and miss them so much when we're out on the road. So when Purina invited us to be a part of their Double Dog Dare campaign, we absolutely wanted to be involved. The crux of what [Purina] is doing is promoting their brand new, better tasting formula for their Dog Chow, and they're daring consumers to try it out. And in return, consumers can dare them with dares as small as tricking out a dog house all the way to building the largest dog walk across the Brooklyn Bridge. It can be as big or as small as people want. They're taking submissions all the way through February 28.

How many dares will be fulfilled?
Kimberly: They're going to do one dare in March, one in April, and one in May. And people can submit their dares at www.daredogchow.com. We dared Purina to donate some chow to a local shelter, but we're just challenging everybody to think big, think out of the box!

To find out more info on Purina's Double Dog Dare Challenge -- and how you could win $5K -- visit www.longliveyourdog.com.

And check out The Band Perry's video for their Grammy-nominated song, "If I Die Young":

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