Rascal Flatts was formed in 1999 in Columbus, Ohio. Two band members, Jay DeMarcus and Gary LeVox, who are cousins, started their performances in the nightclub in Nashville. Jay moved to Nashville in 1992 and signed a contract with a Christian group, East To West. However, he soon decided to change the genre.
In 1997, DeMarcus called LeVox and invited him to Nashville to record an album, Gospel, for a Christian singer Michael English. After the album’s release, the musicians stayed with English and assisted him with other recordings. DeMarcus joined the band Chely Wright and met a guitar player Joe Rooney. For some time, Jay and Gary were working in a nightclub. One day, the guitar player called in sick and DeMarcus invited Rooney to replace them. That’s when the group was formed.
A popular country singer, Mila Mason recommended the group to ask for the assistance of Lyric Street Record. The band sent its demo album to the label. Producers were impressed with Rascal Flatt’s talent and invited the musicians to their office to hear them perform. At the end of 1999, the group signed a contract with Lyric Street.
At the beginning of 2000, the band released a debut single, "Prayin 'for Daylight". It was one of the singles from the demo album. The song reached the third place on Billboard Hot Country Songs Chart and became the lead single of the debut album, Rascal Flatts. Three more songs from the LP made it into the charts. They were "While You Loved Me", "This Everyday Love", and "I'm Movin' On". The album sold over 2 million copies. Many organizers wanted to book Rascal Flatts for private events.