Brooks & Dunn, popular American country music duo who became a fixture in the genre in the early 1990s. The band members are:
By age six Brooks was playing the ukulele; by the time he was a student at Louisiana State University, he was performing regularly in nightclubs. He moved around the United States, working on the Alaska oil pipeline and at an advertising job in Maine. Finally he went to Nashville, where he took a position on the staff of Tree Publishing, writing hit songs for acts such as Sawyer Brown and the Oak Ridge Boys. He also recorded a self-titled solo album before teaming with Dunn in 1990.
Dunn’s father was a musician who also worked on oil rigs; his father’s musicianship and his mother’s devout Baptist faith were strong influences on him. When he was a student at Abilene (Texas) Christian College, planning to be a preacher, a dean gave him an ultimatum: quit playing music in bars or leave school. Dunn chose music. After winning the Marlboro Country Music Talent Search, he moved to Nashville and signed with Tree Publishing.
Arista Records executive Tim DuBois was familiar with the songwriting talents of both men and introduced them in 1990, suggesting that they write songs together. Both artists had set their sights on solo careers but agreed to give the partnership a try. Their first effort became the title track of the album Brand New Man (1991), which also included the hit single “Boot Scootin’ Boogie.” Their second full-length recording, Hard Workin’ Man (1993), confirmed their popularity, debuting at number three on the Billboard country album chart. Brooks & Dunn continued to satisfy country music audiences with such releases as Waitin’ on Sundown (1994), If You See Her (1998), Steers & Stripes (2001), and Red Dirt Road (2003). With the laid-back Dunn singing and the wildly energetic Brooks playing guitar, the duo also had strong appeal in concert.
During their career together, Brooks & Dunn won several entertainer of the year awards—one from the Country Music Association (CMA) and three from the Academy of Country Music (ACM). From the string of good-time honky-tonk hits of their early years to the slick musicianship of Cowboy Town (2007), they parlayed their partnership into extraordinarily consistent success. By 2007, with two Grammy Awards and a host of CMA and ACM awards to their credit, Brooks & Dunn had expanded their musical repertoire, incorporating some straight-ahead rock and roll, covering the occasional classic country hit, and even composing a few somber ballads.
Brooks & Dunn disbanded after their 2010 concert tour; Dunn released his debut solo album, Ronnie Dunn, in 2011, and Brooks resumed his own solo career a year later. In 2015, however, the duo and Reba McEntire performed in a residency show at Caesars Palace in Las Vegas. Brooks & Dunn continued to appear together, and in 2019 they released Reboot, on which they rerecorded their hits with younger country musicians. That year the duo also was inducted into the Country Music Hall of Fame. In 2024 they released Reboot II and picked up the CMA Award for vocal duo of the year.