Elizabeth McGovern has been active in the music and acting world for years now, but her turn as the aristocratic heiress Cora Crawley on runaway hit Downton Abbey has brought her talent to the spotlight for several generations of fans. Now, many of those fans are surprised to learn that she heads up a folk rock band which is about to go on tour.

Sadie And The Hotheads will begin a 10-date tour in December, their first in the States. McGovern says that now, the band has a bit of experience under their belts, which will help when it comes time to take the stage.

“I think it’s coming at the right time since we slowly built experience with each other. I feel like we’re more ready than we’ve ever been … I go there with more confidence than I would have in the past,” she said.

The music is a bit on the eclectic side, according to the actress, and surprises fans of the show when they hear it for the first time. However, they might be pleased to know that Michelle Dockery, who plays Lady Mary, has supplied guest vocals for the band in the past on their album How Not To Lose Things.

McGovern recently dropped a hint about things to come on the show for her character, saying that the changing times put a strain on her relationship with her husband.

“We continue with the theme established early on that this is a changing world. All the characters deal with that in different ways. And in some ways that creates a wedge between Cora and her husband Robert. He’s invested in the world staying the same and she gets annoyed by that. There are times in the marriage when Cora feels overlooked, and it creates tension. It makes her open to the charms of someone else,” she told What’s On TV.