The current band members said in a post on X that they were "shocked and saddened" by the death of Dixie Chicks founding member Laura Lynch.
ADVERTISEMENTLaura Lynch - a founding member of the US country music band the Dixie Chicks, now called The Chicks - has died in a car crash. She was 65.
The Texas Department of Public Safety said Lynch died after being involved in a collision between two vehicles near the city of El Paso on Friday (22 December).
The driver of the other vehicle was taken to hospital with "non-life-threatening injuries" and there is an ongoing investigation into the collision, according to the report from the department.
Reacting to the news, the current band members said in a post on X that they were "shocked and saddened".
"Laura was a bright light...her infectious energy and humour gave a spark to the early days of our band. Laura had a gift for design, a love of all things Texas and was instrumental in the early success of the band.”
The statement continued: "Her undeniable talents helped propel us beyond busking on street corners to stages all across Texas and the mid-West. Our thoughts are with her family and loved ones at this sad time".
Bassist Lynch formed the American country group along with Emily Erwin and Martie Erwin, and Robin Lynn Macy in 1989.
Before Lynch decided to leave in 1995, the Dixie Chicks released three albums: 'Thank Heavens for Dale Evans', 'Little Ol' Cowgirl' and 'Shouldn't a Told You That'. She was later replaced by Natalie Maines.
The band's commercial success would come in 1998 with their album 'Wide Open Spaces'.
The band was renamed to The Chicks in 2020. The decision to drop "Dixie" followed the Black Lives Matter protests in the wake of George Floyd’s murder, as well as criticism that the word had connotations to American slavery.
The Chicks supported Bruce Springsteen at BST Hyde Park in London in July.
