Editing Country music (section)

==History==

===First generation (1920s)===
[[File:Vernon Dalhart 01.jpg|thumb|left|upright|[[Vernon Dalhart]] was the first country star to have a major hit record]]

The first commercial recordings of what was considered instrumental music in the traditional country style were "[[The Arkansas Traveler (song)|Arkansas Traveler]]" and "[[Turkey in the Straw]]" by fiddlers Henry Gilliland & [[Eck Robertson|A.C. (Eck) Robertson]] on June 30, 1922, for Victor Records and released in April 1923.<ref>{{cite book| last = Russell| first = Tony| title = Country Music Records: A Discography, 1921–1942| date = October 7, 2004| publisher = Oxford University Press on Demand| isbn = 978-0-19-513989-1| url = https://archive.org/details/countrymusicreco00tony}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://victor.library.ucsb.edu/index.php |title=Encyclopedic Dictionary of Victor Recordings |publisher=Victor.library.ucsb.edu |access-date=May 13, 2014}}</ref> [[Columbia Records]] began issuing records with "hillbilly" music (series 15000D "Old Familiar Tunes") as early as 1924.<ref name="78discography.com"/>
[[File:Carter Family 1927.jpg|thumb|upright|The Carter Family are a dynasty of country music and began with (left to right) [[A.P. Carter]], wife [[Sara Carter]] and [[Maybelle Carter]]]]
The first commercial recording of what is widely considered to be the first country song featuring vocals and lyrics was [[Fiddlin' John Carson]] with "[[The Little Old Log Cabin in the Lane|Little Log Cabin in the Lane]]" for [[Okeh Records]] on June 14, 1923.<ref>{{cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=MYMQl9dsKJEC&q=first+country+song+carson+cabin&pg=PA12|title=The First Generation of Country Music Stars: Biographies of 50 Artists Born Before 1940|first=David|last=Dicaire|date=July 5, 2007|publisher=McFarland|via=Google Books|isbn=9780786485581}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=http://ourgeorgiahistory.com/chronpop/215 |title=Our Georgia History |publisher=Our Georgia History |access-date=February 1, 2011 |archive-date=November 21, 2008 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081121232820/http://www.ourgeorgiahistory.com/chronpop/215 |url-status=dead }}</ref>

[[Vernon Dalhart]] was the first country singer to have a nationwide hit in May 1924 with "[[Wreck of the Old 97]]".<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.blueridgeinstitute.org/ballads/old97song.html |title=Blue Ridge Institute & Museum |publisher=Blueridgeinstitute.org |access-date=February 1, 2011 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101206151824/http://blueridgeinstitute.org/ballads/old97song.html |archive-date=December 6, 2010 }}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.blueridgeinstitute.org/ballads/old97.html |title=Blue Ridge Institute & Museum |publisher=Blueridgeinstitute.org |date=September 27, 1903 |access-date=February 1, 2011 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101209090006/http://www.blueridgeinstitute.org/ballads/old97.html |archive-date=December 9, 2010 }}</ref> The flip side of the record was "Lonesome Road Blues", which also became very popular.<ref name="cohn">{{cite book| last=Cohn| first=Lawrence| title=Nothing but the Blues: The Music and the Musicians| date=September 1993| author2=Aldin, Mary Katherine| author3=Bastin, Bruce| publisher=Abbeville Press| isbn=978-1-55859-271-1| page=[https://archive.org/details/nothingbutbluesm00cohn/page/238 238]| url=https://archive.org/details/nothingbutbluesm00cohn/page/238}}</ref> In April 1924, "Aunt" [[Samantha Bumgarner]] and Eva Davis became the first female musicians to record and release country songs.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.thesylvaherald.com/history/article_9fe40004-6c2f-11e9-b7b3-7b2963f81bf0.html|archive-url=https://archive.today/20060509040132/http://www.thesylvaherald.com/B-Full-Sam-workout022201.htm|title=Samantha Bumgarner was a musical pioneer|work=The Sylva Herald|date=May 9, 2006|archive-date=May 9, 2006|access-date=February 15, 2022|url-status=live}}</ref> The record 129-D produced by Columbia features Samantha playing fiddle and singing Big-Eyed Rabbit while Eva Davis plays banjo. The other side features Eva Davis playing banjo while singing Wild Bill Jones. Many of the early country musicians, such as the [[yodel]]er [[Cliff Carlisle]], recorded blues songs into the 1930s.<ref name="Russell 163, 165, 167">{{cite book| last = Russell| first = Tony| title = Country Music Originals: The Legends and the Lost| date = November 15, 2007| publisher = Oxford University Press, USA| isbn = 978-0-19-532509-6| pages = [https://archive.org/details/countrymusicorig00russ/page/163, 165, 167, 225]| url = https://archive.org/details/countrymusicorig00russ/page/162}}</ref> Other important early recording artists were [[Riley Puckett]], [[Don Richardson (musician)|Don Richardson]], [[Fiddlin' John Carson]], [[Uncle Dave Macon]], [[Al Hopkins]], [[Ernest Stoneman|Ernest V. Stoneman]], [[Blind Alfred Reed]], [[Charlie Poole and the North Carolina Ramblers]] and [[the Skillet Lickers]].<ref>{{cite web| first=Billy | last=Abbott |url=http://www.southernmusic.net/gidtanner.htm |title=Southernmusic.net |publisher=Southernmusic.net |date=March 7, 1924 |access-date=February 1, 2011}}</ref> The [[steel guitar]] entered country music as early as 1922, when Jimmie Tarlton met famed Hawaiian guitarist [[Frank Ferera]] on the West Coast.<ref>Cohn, Lawrence: "Nothing But the Blues" chapter titles "A Lighter Shade of Blue – White Country Blues" by Charles Wolfe page 247, 1993</ref>

[[Jimmie Rodgers (country singer)|Jimmie Rodgers]] and the [[Carter Family]] are widely considered to be important early country musicians. From [[Scott County, Virginia]], the Carters had learned [[sight reading]] of hymnals and sheet music using [[solfege]].<ref>{{Cite web |title=Carter Family |url=https://www.countrymusichalloffame.org/hall-of-fame/carter-family |access-date=2025-05-03 |website=Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum |language=en}}</ref> Their songs were first captured at a [[Bristol sessions|historic recording session]] in [[Bristol, Tennessee]], on August 1, 1927, where [[Ralph Peer]] was the talent scout and sound recordist.<ref>{{cite book| last = Russell| first = Tony| title = Country Music Originals: The Legends and the Lost| date = November 15, 2007| publisher = Oxford University Press, USA| isbn = 978-0-19-532509-6| page = [https://archive.org/details/countrymusicorig00russ/page/68 68]| url = https://archive.org/details/countrymusicorig00russ/page/68}}</ref><ref name="Sanjek">{{cite book| last = Weisbard| first = Eric| title = This is Pop: In Search of the Elusive at Experience Music Project| year = 2004| publisher = Harvard University Press| isbn = 978-0-674-01321-6| pages = [https://archive.org/details/thisispopinsearc00weis/page/155 155–172]| url = https://archive.org/details/thisispopinsearc00weis/page/155}}</ref> A scene in the movie ''[[O Brother, Where Art Thou?]]'' depicts a similar occurrence in the same timeframe.

Rodgers fused hillbilly country, gospel, jazz, blues, pop, cowboy, and folk, and many of his best songs were his compositions, including "[[Blue yodel|Blue Yodel]]",<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.lpdiscography.com/r/Rodgers/jimmie-sp.htm |title=JIMMIE RODGERS SINGLES |publisher=LPdiscography.com |access-date=February 1, 2011 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100125153442/http://www.lpdiscography.com/r/Rodgers/jimmie-sp.htm |archive-date=January 25, 2010 }}</ref> which sold over a million records and established Rodgers as the premier singer of early country music.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.alamhof.org/rodgersj.htm|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080523161403/http://www.alamhof.org/rodgersj.htm|url-status=dead|title=Alamhof.org|archive-date=May 23, 2008}}</ref><ref>Nothing But the Blues 1993, White Country Blues by Charles Wolfe page 233</ref> Beginning in 1927, and for the next 17 years, the Carters recorded some 300 old-time ballads, traditional tunes, country songs and gospel hymns, all representative of America's southeastern folklore and heritage.<ref>[http://www.southernmusic.net/carterfamily.htm Southernmusic.net] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100207060837/http://www.southernmusic.net/carterfamily.htm |date=February 7, 2010 }}, the Carter Family.</ref> Maybelle Carter went on to continue the family tradition with her daughters as [[The Carter Sisters]]; her daughter [[June Carter Cash|June]] would marry (in succession) [[Carl Smith (musician)|Carl Smith]], Rip Nix and [[Johnny Cash]], having children with each who would also become country singers.

===Second generation (1930s–1940s)===
{{see also|1940s in music#Country music|l1=1940s in music § Country}}
[[File:Roy Acuff 1950.JPG|thumb|upright|[[Roy Acuff]]]]
Record sales declined during the [[Great Depression]]. However, radio became a popular source of entertainment, and "barn dance" shows featuring country music were started by radio stations all over the South, as far north as Chicago, and as far west as California.

The most important was the ''[[Grand Ole Opry]]'', aired starting in 1925 by [[WSM (AM)|WSM]] in [[Nashville, Tennessee|Nashville]] and continuing to the present day.<ref>{{cite web |last1=Smith |first1=David |title=The Grand Ole Opry history started on the 28th of November 1925, with George D. Hay, who was its first director |url=https://www.cheapoticketing.com/tn/nashville/grand-ole-opry-history |website=Grand Ole Opry |access-date=July 27, 2019}}</ref> Some of the early stars on the ''Opry'' were [[Uncle Dave Macon]], [[Roy Acuff]] and African American harmonica player [[DeFord Bailey]]. WSM's 50,000-watt signal (in 1934) could often be heard across the country.<ref>{{cite web| author=code:v_farquharson@kshira_interactive and j_nowicki@kshira_interactive design:k_wilson@framewerk |url=https://www.pbs.org/americanrootsmusic/pbs_arm_episode_summaries.html |title=American Roots Music: Episode Summaries |publisher=PBS |access-date=February 1, 2011}}</ref> Many musicians performed and recorded songs in any number of styles. [[Moon Mullican]], for example, played [[western swing]] but also recorded songs that can be called [[rockabilly]]. Between 1947 and 1949, country crooner [[Eddy Arnold]] placed eight songs in the top 10.<ref>[https://web.archive.org/web/20060903144110/http://www.billboard.com/bbcom/charts/yearend_chart_index.jsp Billboard.com] ''Billboard.com''</ref> From 1945 to 1955 [[Jenny Lou Carson]] was one of the most prolific songwriters in country music.<ref>{{cite book |last1=Langley |first1=Jerry|last2=Rogers |first2=Arnold |title=Many Tears Ago: The Life and Times of Jenny Lou Carson |url=http://www.hillbilly-music.com/library/books/index.php?id=3964 |publisher=Nova Books |isbn=0-9628452-4-8 |access-date=July 10, 2015|year=2005}}</ref>

====Singing cowboys and western swing====
[[File:Roy Rogers and Gail Davis 1948.jpg|thumb|upright|Publicity photo of [[Roy Rogers]] and [[Gail Davis]], 1948]]

In the 1930s and 1940s, cowboy songs, or western music, which had been recorded since the 1920s, were popularized by films made in Hollywood. Some of the popular [[singing cowboy]]s from the era were [[Gene Autry]], the [[Sons of the Pioneers]], and [[Roy Rogers]].<ref>{{cite web |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20040216083920/http://www.roughstock.com/history/cowboy.html |archive-date=February 16, 2004 |url=http://www.roughstock.com/history/cowboy.html |title=Roughstock's History of Country Music – Cowboy Music |publisher=Roughstock.com |access-date=February 1, 2011}}</ref> Country music and western music were frequently played together on the same radio stations, hence the term ''country and western'' music, despite country and western being two distinct genres.

Cowgirls contributed to the sound in various family groups. [[Patsy Montana]] opened the door for female artists with her history-making song "I Want To Be a Cowboy's Sweetheart". This would begin a movement toward opportunities for women to have successful solo careers. [[Bob Wills]] was another country musician from the Lower [[Great Plains]] who had become very popular as the leader of a "[[Dixieland|hot]] [[string band]]," and who also appeared in [[Western (genre)|Hollywood westerns]]. His mix of country and [[jazz]], which started out as dance hall music, would become known as [[western swing]]. [[Cliff Bruner]], [[Moon Mullican]], [[Milton Brown]] and [[Adolph Hofner]] were other early western swing pioneers. [[Spade Cooley]] and [[Tex Williams]] also had very popular bands and appeared in films. At its height, western swing rivaled the popularity of [[big band]] swing music.

====Changing instrumentation====
Drums were looked down on by early country musicians as being "too loud" and "not pure", but by 1935 western swing big band leader Bob Wills had added drums to the [[Texas Playboys]]. In the mid-1940s, the Grand Ole Opry did not want the Playboys' drummer to appear on stage. Although drums were commonly used by rockabilly groups by 1955, the less-conservative-than-the-Grand-Ole-Opry ''[[Louisiana Hayride]]'' kept its infrequently used drummer backstage as late as 1956. By the early 1960s, however, it was rare for a country band not to have a drummer.<ref name="autogenerated1">{{Cite web|url=http://www.countrymusichalloffame.com/site/experience-museum-programs-school-instruments.aspx|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080723204246/http://www.countrymusichalloffame.com/site/experience-museum-programs-school-instruments.aspx|url-status=dead|title=Instruments &#124; Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum&#124;Nashville, Tennessee|archive-date=July 23, 2008}}</ref> Bob Wills was one of the first country musicians known to have added an [[electric guitar]] to his band, in 1938.<ref name="Takecountryback.com"/> A decade later (1948) [[Arthur "Guitar Boogie" Smith|Arthur Smith]] achieved top 10 US country chart success with his MGM Records recording of "[[Guitar Boogie (song)|Guitar Boogie]]", which crossed over to the US pop chart, introducing many people to the potential of the electric guitar. For several decades Nashville session players preferred the warm tones of the [[Gibson Guitar Corporation|Gibson]] and [[Gretsch]] archtop electrics, but a "hot" [[Fender Musical Instruments Corporation|Fender]] style, using guitars which became available beginning in the early 1950s, eventually prevailed as the signature guitar sound of country.<ref name="autogenerated1" /><ref>[http://www.empsfm.org/exhibitions/index.asp?categoryID=129&ccID=132 Empsfm.org ], exhibitions – online features {{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101203052822/http://www.empsfm.org/exhibitions/index.asp?categoryID=129&ccID=132 |date=December 3, 2010 }}</ref>

====Hillbilly boogie====
Country musicians began recording [[boogie-woogie|boogie]] in 1939, shortly after it had been played at [[Carnegie Hall]], when [[Johnny Barfield]] recorded "Boogie Woogie". The trickle of what was initially called hillbilly boogie, or okie boogie (later to be renamed country boogie), became a flood beginning in late 1945. One notable release from this period was [[the Delmore Brothers]]' "Freight Train Boogie", considered to be part of the combined evolution of country music and blues towards [[rockabilly]]. In 1948, [[Arthur "Guitar Boogie" Smith]] achieved top ten US country chart success with his MGM Records recordings of "[[Guitar Boogie (song)|Guitar Boogie]]" and "Banjo Boogie", with the former crossing over to the US pop charts.<ref>[http://www.oldies.com/artist-biography/Arthur-Smith.html Oldies.com] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110217152558/http://www.oldies.com/artist-biography/Arthur-Smith.html |date=February 17, 2011 }}, Arthur Smith Biography.</ref> Other country boogie artists included [[Moon Mullican]], [[Merrill Moore (musician)|Merrill Moore]] and [[Tennessee Ernie Ford]]. The hillbilly boogie period lasted into the 1950s and remains one of many subgenres of country into the 21st century.

====Bluegrass, folk and gospel====
{{Main|Bluegrass music}}
[[File:MonroeBrothers.jpg|thumb|right|Bill and Charlie Monroe (1936). Bill Monroe (1911–1996) and the Blue Grass Boys created the bluegrass by the end of World War II.]]
By the end of [[World War II]], "mountaineer" string band music known as [[Bluegrass music|bluegrass]] had emerged when [[Bill Monroe]] joined with [[Lester Flatt]] and [[Earl Scruggs]], introduced by Roy Acuff at the Grand Ole Opry. That was the ordination of bluegrass music and how [[Bill Monroe]] came to be known as the "Father of Bluegrass." [[Gospel music]], too, remained a popular component of bluegrass and other sorts of country music. [[Red Foley]], one of the biggest country star following World War II, had one of the first million-selling gospel hits ("[[Peace in the Valley]]") and also sang boogie, blues and rockabilly. In the post-war period, country music was called "folk" in the trades, and "hillbilly" within the industry.<ref>{{cite book| first = Charles K.| last = Wolfe|author2=James Edward Akenson| title = Country Music Goes to War| url = https://books.google.com/books?id=Hj9r6l_OZoEC&pg=PA55| year = 2005| publisher = University Press of Kentucky| isbn = 978-0-8131-7188-3| page = 55 }}</ref> In 1944, ''[[Billboard (magazine)|Billboard]]'' replaced the term "hillbilly" with "folk songs and blues," and switched to "country and western" in 1949.<ref>{{cite book| last = Cohen| first = Norm| title = Long Steel Rail: The Railroad in American Folksong (2d ed.)| date = April 17, 2000| publisher = University of Illinois Press| isbn = 978-0-252-06881-2| page = 31 }}</ref><ref>{{cite book| last = Cohen| first = Norm| title = Long Steel Rail: The Railroad in American Folksong| url = https://books.google.com/books?id=AY7St4-8x10C&pg=PA30| access-date = February 1, 2011| year = 2000| publisher = University of Illinois Press| isbn = 978-0-252-06881-2 }}</ref>

====Honky tonk====
[[File:Hank Williams MGM Records - cropped.jpg|thumb|left|upright=.8|[[Hank Williams]]]]
Another type of stripped-down and raw music with a variety of moods and a basic ensemble of guitar, bass, [[dobro]] or steel guitar (and later) drums became popular, especially among rural residents in the three states of [[Texhomex]], those being [[Texas|''Tex''as]], [[Oklahoma|Okla''ho''ma]], and [[New Mexico|New ''Mex''ico]].<ref name="Country Music Magazine (Périodique) 1994">{{cite book | author=Country Music Magazine (Périodique) | title=The Comprehensive Country Music Encyclopedia | publisher=Times Books | series=A country music magazine press book | year=1994 | page=39 | isbn=978-0-8129-2247-9 | url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Bi_aAAAAMAAJ | access-date=June 16, 2021}}</ref> It became known as [[Honky tonk music|honky tonk]] and had its roots in western swing and the [[ranchera]] music of Mexico and the border states, particularly New Mexico and Texas,<ref name="Ingman 1997 p.">{{cite book | last=Ingman | first=J. | title=A.O.K.: Record Labels of West Texas & New Mexico | publisher=Ingman Music Research | year=1997 | url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Ing5AQAAIAAJ | access-date=June 16, 2021 | page=}}</ref> together with the blues of the American South. [[Bob Wills]] and His Texas Playboys personified this music which has been described as "a little bit of this, and a little bit of that, a little bit of black and a little bit of white... just loud enough to keep you from thinking too much and to go right on ordering the whiskey."<ref name="Workin 1999. page 135">{{cite book| first1 = Gerald W.| last1 = Haslam| first2 = Alexandra Russell| last2 = Haslam| first3 = Richard| last3 = Chon| title = Workin' Man Blues: Country Music in California| date = April 1, 1999| publisher = [[University of California Press]]| isbn = 978-0-520-21800-0| page = [https://archive.org/details/workinmanbluesco00hasl/page/135 135]| url = https://archive.org/details/workinmanbluesco00hasl/page/135}}</ref> East Texan [[Al Dexter]] had a hit with "Honky Tonk Blues", and seven years later "[[Pistol Packin' Mama]]".<ref>{{cite book| last1 = Perkins| first1 = Carl| last2 = McGee| first2 = David| title = Go, Cat, Go!: The Life and Times of Carl Perkins, the King of Rockabilly| year = 1996| publisher = Hyperion Books| isbn = 978-0-7868-6073-9| pages = 23–24 }}</ref> These "honky tonk" songs were associated with barrooms, and was performed by the likes of [[Ernest Tubb]], [[Kitty Wells]] (the first major female country solo singer), [[Ted Daffan]], [[Floyd Tillman]], the [[Maddox Brothers and Rose]], [[Lefty Frizzell]] and [[Hank Williams]]; the music of these artists would later be called "traditional" country. Williams' influence in particular would prove to be enormous, inspiring many of the pioneers of rock and roll,{{sfn |Gilliland |1969 |loc=show 9}} such as [[Elvis Presley]], [[Jerry Lee Lewis]], [[Chuck Berry]] and [[Ike Turner]], while providing a framework for emerging honky tonk talents like [[George Jones]]. [[Webb Pierce]] was the top-charting country artist of the 1950s, with 13 of his singles spending 113 weeks at number one. He charted 48 singles during the decade; 31 reached the top ten and 26 reached the top four.

===Third generation (1950s–1960s)===
{{See also|1950s in music|1960s in music}}
[[File:Loretta_Lynn_LCCN2021643178_(cropped).jpg|thumb|left|upright=.8|[[Loretta Lynn]]]]
By the early 1950s, a blend of western swing, country boogie, and honky tonk was played by most country bands, a mixture which followed in the footsteps of [[Gene Autry]], [[Lydia Mendoza]], [[Roy Rogers]], and [[Patsy Montana]]. Western music, influenced by the cowboy ballads, [[New Mexico music|New Mexico]], [[Texas country music|Texas country]] and [[Tejano music]] rhythms of the [[Southwestern United States]] and [[Northern Mexico]], reached its peak in popularity in the late 1950s, most notably with the song "[[El Paso (song)|El Paso]]", first recorded by [[Marty Robbins]] in September 1959. Western music's influence would continue to grow within the country music sphere, western musicians like [[Michael Martin Murphey]], [[New Mexico music]] artists [[Al Hurricane]] and [[Antonia Apodaca]], [[Tejano music]] performer [[Little Joe (singer)|Little Joe]], and even folk revivalist [[John Denver]], all first rose to prominence during this time. This western music influence largely kept the music of the [[American folk music revival|folk revival]] and [[folk rock]] from influencing the country music genre much, despite the similarity in instrumentation and origins (see, for instance, [[the Byrds]]' negative reception during their appearance on the ''Grand Ole Opry''). The main concern was largely political: most folk revival was largely driven by progressive activists, a stark contrast to the culturally conservative audiences of country music. John Denver was perhaps the only musician to have major success in both the country and folk revival genres throughout his career, later only a handful of artists like [[Burl Ives]] and Canadian musician [[Gordon Lightfoot]] successfully made the crossover to country after folk revival fell out of fashion. During the mid-1950s a new style of country music became popular, eventually to be referred to as rockabilly.<ref>{{cite book| last = Morrison| first = Craig| title = Go Cat Go!: Rockabilly Music and Its Makers| date = September 1, 1996| publisher = University of Illinois Press| isbn = 978-0-252-02207-4| page = 28 }}</ref>
[[File:Elvis Presley in 1958.jpg|thumb|[[Elvis Presley]] in 1958 ]]
In 1953, the first all-country radio station was established in [[Lubbock, Texas]].<ref name=hamilton>{{Cite book| publisher = Princeton University Press| last = Hamilton| first=Shane |title = Trucking Country: The Road to America's Wal-Mart Economy| pages = 187–232| chapter = Agrarian Trucking Culture and Deregulatory Capitalism, 1960–80| date = 2008| jstor = j.ctt7t2vg.12| isbn = 9780691135823}}</ref> The music of the 1960s and 1970s targeted the American working class, and [[History of the trucking industry in the United States|truckers]] in particular. As country radio became more popular, trucking songs like the 1963 hit song ''Six Days on the Road'' by [[Dave Dudley]] began to make up their own subgenre of country. These revamped songs sought to portray American truckers as a "new folk hero", marking a significant shift in sound from earlier country music. The song was written by actual truckers and contained numerous references to the trucker culture of the time like "ICC" for [[Interstate Commerce Commission]] and "little white pills" as a reference to [[amphetamines]]. [[Starday Records]] in Nashville followed up on Dudley's initial success with the release of ''Give Me 40 Acres'' by the [[Willis Brothers]].<ref name=hamilton />

====Rockabilly====
{{Main|Rockabilly}}
[[File:Johnny Cash Promotional Photo.jpg|thumb|left|upright|[[Johnny Cash]]]]
Rockabilly was most popular with country fans in the 1950s; one of the first rock and roll superstars was former western yodeler [[Bill Haley]], who repurposed his Four Aces of Western Swing into a rock and roll band in the early 1950s and renamed it the [[Bill Haley & His Comets|Comets]]. Bill Haley & His Comets are credited with two of the first successful rock and roll records, "[[Crazy Man, Crazy]]" of 1953 and "[[Rock Around the Clock]]" in 1954.<ref>[http://www.rockabillyhall.com/BillHaley.html Bill Haley's biography] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100527231722/http://www.rockabillyhall.com/BillHaley.html |date=May 27, 2010 }} at the Rockabilly Hall of Fame. Retrieved June 20, 2020.</ref>

1956 could be called the year of [[rockabilly]] in country music. Rockabilly was an early form of [[rock and roll]], an upbeat combination of [[blues]] and country music.{{sfn |Gilliland |1969 |loc=shows 7–8}} The number two, three and four songs on ''[[Billboard (magazine)|Billboard's]]'' charts for that year were [[Elvis Presley]], "[[Heartbreak Hotel]]"; [[Johnny Cash]], "[[I Walk the Line]]"; and [[Carl Perkins]], "[[Blue Suede Shoes]]". Reflecting this success, George Jones released a rockabilly record that year under the pseudonym "Thumper Jones", wanting to capitalize on the popularity of rockabilly without alienating his traditional country base.<ref>{{cite magazine|url=http://www.billboard.com/bbcom/charts/yearend_chart_display.jsp?f=Hot+Country+Songs&g=Year-end+Singles&year=1956 |title=Hot Country Songs 1956 |magazine=Billboard |access-date=February 1, 2011 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20061020160136/http://www.billboard.com/bbcom/charts/yearend_chart_display.jsp?f=Hot%2BCountry%2BSongs&g=Year-end%2BSingles&year=1956 |archive-date=October 20, 2006 }}</ref> Cash and Presley placed songs in the top 5 in 1958 with No. 3 "Guess Things Happen That Way/Come In, Stranger" by Cash, and No. 5 by Presley "Don't/I Beg of You."<ref>[https://web.archive.org/web/20061020154153/http://www.billboard.com/bbcom/charts/yearend_chart_display.jsp?f=Hot+Country+Songs&g=Year-end+Singles&year=1958 Billboard.com] ''Billboard.com''</ref> Presley acknowledged the influence of [[rhythm and blues]] artists and his style, saying "The colored folk been singin' and playin' it just the way I'm doin' it now, man for more years than I know." Within a few years, many rockabilly musicians returned to a more mainstream style or had defined their own unique style.

Country music gained national television exposure through ''[[Ozark Jubilee]]'' on ABC-TV and radio from 1955 to 1960 from [[Springfield, Missouri]]. The program showcased top stars including several rockabilly artists, some from the [[Ozarks]]. As Webb Pierce put it in 1956, "Once upon a time, it was almost impossible to sell country music in a place like New York City. Nowadays, television takes us everywhere, and country music records and sheet music sell as well in large cities as anywhere else."<ref>Shulman, Art "Dynamo – Country Style" (1956), ''TV Guide'', p, 28</ref>
 
The [[Country Music Association]] was founded in 1958, in part because numerous country musicians were appalled by the increased influence of rock and roll on country music.<ref name="RollingstoneDeath">{{cite news |last=Moore |first=Bobby |title=Mac Wiseman, Bluegrass Icon, Dead at 93 |url=https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC-xB7o4kknsiGkHegNeyZ-Q/ |access-date=February 25, 2019 |magazine=Rolling Stone |date=February 25, 2019}}</ref>

====The Nashville and countrypolitan sounds====
{{Main|Nashville sound}}
[[File:Patsy_Cline_1960_publicity_portrait_-_cropped.jpg|thumb|upright=.7|[[Patsy Cline]]]]
Beginning in the mid-1950s, and reaching its peak during the early 1960s, the Nashville sound turned country music into a multimillion-dollar industry centered in [[Nashville, Tennessee]]. Under the direction of producers such as [[Chet Atkins]], [[Bill Porter (sound engineer)|Bill Porter]], [[Paul Cohen (record producer)|Paul Cohen]], [[Owen Bradley]], [[Bob Ferguson (music)|Bob Ferguson]], and later [[Billy Sherrill]], the sound brought country music to a diverse audience and helped revive country as it emerged from a commercially fallow period. This subgenre was notable for borrowing from 1950s pop stylings: a prominent and smooth vocal, backed by a [[string section]] (violins and other orchestral strings) and vocal chorus. Instrumental soloing was de-emphasized in favor of trademark "licks". Leading artists in this genre included [[Jim Reeves]], [[Skeeter Davis]], [[Connie Smith]], [[the Browns]],{{sfn |Gilliland |1969 |loc=shows 10–11}} [[Patsy Cline]], and [[Eddy Arnold]]. The "slip note" piano style of session musician [[Floyd Cramer]] was an important component of this style.<ref>{{cite web| url=http://www.rockhall.com/inductees/floyd-cramer |title=Rockhall.com |publisher=Rockhall.com |access-date=February 1, 2011}}</ref> The Nashville Sound collapsed in mainstream popularity in 1964, a victim of both the [[British Invasion]] and the deaths of Reeves and Cline in separate airplane crashes. By the mid-1960s, the genre had developed into [[countrypolitan]]. Countrypolitan was aimed straight at mainstream markets, and it sold well throughout the later 1960s into the early 1970s. Top artists included [[Tammy Wynette]], [[Lynn Anderson]] and [[Charlie Rich]], as well as such former "hard country" artists as [[Ray Price (musician)|Ray Price]] and [[Marty Robbins]]. Despite the appeal of the Nashville sound, many traditional country artists emerged during this period and dominated the genre: [[Loretta Lynn]], [[Merle Haggard]], [[Buck Owens]], [[Porter Wagoner]], [[George Jones]], and [[Sonny James]] among them.

====Country-soul crossover====
{{Main|Country soul}}
In 1962, [[Ray Charles]] surprised the pop world by turning his attention to country and western music, topping the charts and rating number three for the year on ''Billboard's'' pop chart<ref>{{cite magazine|url=http://www.billboard.com/bbcom/charts/yearend_chart_display.jsp?f=The+Billboard+Hot+100&g=Year-end+Singles&year=1962 |title=Billboard Hot 100 1962 |magazine=Billboard |access-date=February 1, 2011 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100109172855/http://www.billboard.com/bbcom/charts/yearend_chart_display.jsp?f=The%2BBillboard%2BHot%2B100&g=Year-end%2BSingles&year=1962 |archive-date=January 9, 2010 }}</ref> with the "[[I Can't Stop Loving You]]" single, and recording the landmark album ''[[Modern Sounds in Country and Western Music]]''.{{sfn |Gilliland |1969 |loc=show 16}}

====Bakersfield sound====
[[File:Merle Haggard 1975 - cropped.jpg|thumb|upright|[[Merle Haggard]] in a 1975 publicity photo for Capitol Records]]

Another subgenre of country music grew out of hardcore honky tonk with elements of [[western swing]] and originated {{convert|112|mi|km|0}} north-northwest of Los Angeles in [[Bakersfield, California]], where many "[[Okie]]s" and other [[Dust Bowl]] migrants had settled. Influenced by one-time West Coast residents [[Bob Wills]] and [[Lefty Frizzell]], by 1966 it was known as the [[Bakersfield sound]]. It relied on electric instruments and amplification, in particular the [[Telecaster]] electric guitar, more than other subgenres of the country music of the era, and it can be described as having a sharp, hard, driving, no-frills, edgy flavor—hard guitars and honky-tonk harmonies.<ref name = hamilton /> Leading practitioners of this style were [[Buck Owens]], [[Merle Haggard]], [[Tommy Collins (country music)|Tommy Collins]], [[Dwight Yoakam]], [[Gary Allan]], and [[Wynn Stewart]], each of whom had his own style.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.cmt.com/artists/az/haggard_merle/bio.jhtml |title=Merle Haggard: Biography |publisher=CMT |date=April 6, 1937 |access-date=February 1, 2011 |archive-date=April 6, 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100406035328/http://www.cmt.com/artists/az/haggard_merle/bio.jhtml |url-status=dead }}</ref><ref>[http://www.buckowens.com/aboutbuck18.html Buckowens.com], Buck Owen's Crystal Palace: About Buck {{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131213024906/http://www.buckowens.com/aboutbuck18.html |date=December 13, 2013 }}</ref>

[[Ken Nelson (United States record producer)|Ken Nelson]], who had produced Owens and Haggard and [[Rose Maddox]] became interested in the trucking song subgenre following the success of ''Six Days on the Road'' and asked [[Red Simpson]] to record an album of trucking songs. Haggard's ''White Line Fever'' was also part of the trucking subgenre.<ref name=hamilton />

===Western music merges with country===
{{see also|Western music (North America)}}
The country music scene of the 1940s until the 1970s was largely dominated by western music influences, so much so that the genre began to be called "country and western".<ref name="June-Friesen 2011">{{cite web | last=June-Friesen | first=Katy | title=The Cowboy in Country Music | website=Smithsonian Magazine | date=September 7, 2011 | url=https://www.smithsonianmag.com/arts-culture/the-cowboy-in-country-music-71339427/ | access-date=February 5, 2020}}</ref> Even today, cowboy and frontier values continue to play a role in the larger country music, with [[western wear]], [[cowboy boot]]s, and [[cowboy hat]]s continues to be in fashion for country artists.<ref name="Wide Open Country 2018">{{cite web | title=The Best and Worst Country Fashion Trends in History | website=Wide Open Country | date=August 9, 2018 | url=https://www.wideopencountry.com/country-fashion-trends/ | access-date=February 5, 2020}}</ref>

West of the [[Mississippi River]], many of these western genres continue to flourish, including the [[Red dirt (music)|Red Dirt]] of [[Oklahoma]],<ref name="Radio Texas, LIVE! 2018">{{cite web | title=What is Red Dirt? | website=Radio Texas, LIVE! | date=April 11, 2018 | url=https://radiotexaslive.com/what-is-red-dirt-music/ | access-date=February 5, 2020}}</ref> [[New Mexico music]] of [[New Mexico]],<ref name="Latino USA 2017">{{cite web | title=The 10 Best Songs of New Mexico Music, America's Forgotten Folk Genre | website=Latino USA | date=November 8, 2017 | url=https://www.latinousa.org/2017/11/08/10-best-songs-new-mexico-music-americas-forgotten-folk-genre/ | access-date=February 5, 2020}}</ref> and both [[Texas country music]] and [[Tejano music]] of [[Texas]].<ref name="Dansby 2006">{{cite web | last=Dansby | first=Andrew | title=Freddy Fender, 'giant of Texas music,' dies at 69 | website=Houston Chronicle | date=October 15, 2006 | url=https://www.chron.com/news/houston-texas/article/Freddy-Fender-giant-of-Texas-music-dies-at-69-1492844.php | access-date=February 5, 2020}}</ref><ref name="Texas Highways 2016">{{cite web | title=Little Joe's Big Life | website=Texas Highways | date=December 16, 2016 | url=https://texashighways.com/culture/people/little-joe-hernandez-big-life/ | access-date=February 5, 2020}}</ref> During the 1950s until the early 1970s, the latter part of the western heyday in country music, many of these genres featured popular artists that continue to influence both their distinctive genres and larger country music. Red Dirt featured [[Bob Childers]] and [[Steve Ripley]]; for New Mexico music [[Al Hurricane]], [[Al Hurricane Jr.]], and [[Antonia Apodaca]]; and within the Texas scenes [[Willie Nelson]], [[Freddie Fender]], [[Johnny Rodriguez]], and [[Little Joe (singer)|Little Joe]].

As Outlaw country music emerged as subgenre in its own right, Red Dirt, New Mexico, Texas country, and Tejano grew in popularity as a part of the Outlaw country movement. Originating in the bars, fiestas, and honky-tonks of Oklahoma, New Mexico, and Texas, their music supplemented outlaw country's singer-songwriter tradition as well as 21st-century [[rock music|rock]]-inspired [[alternative country]] and [[hip-hop music|hip hop]]-inspired [[country rap]] artists.<ref name="Beaujohn 2018">{{cite news |last1=Beaujohn |first1=Andrew |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2007/11/18/arts/music/18beau.html |title=Alt-Country Finds Red Dirt Under Its Nails |access-date=September 5, 2018 |work=The New York Times |date=November 18, 2007}}</ref>

<gallery mode="packed" heights="175">
File:Cowboy-Boots-And-Hat.png|Example of [[cowboy hat]] and [[cowboy boots]], two prominent components of country music fashion
File:Atypicalwesternshirt.svg|[[Western wear]] shirt design, with [[snap fastener]]s
File:Eakins, Cowboy Singing 1890.jpg|Painting of a [[cowboy]] singing by [[Thomas Eakins]] (1890)
File:Freddy Fender singing in 1977.jpg|[[Freddy Fender]] performing [[Tejano music]] after ''[[The Johnny Cash Show]]'' in [[Nashville, Tennessee]] (1977)
File:Bob&RDR07.jpg|[[Bob Childers]] performing [[Red dirt (music)|Red dirt]] in [[Okemah, Oklahoma]] (2001)
File:Al Hurricane and Al Hurricane, Jr. performing at the San Felipe De Neri 2014 fiestas.jpg|[[Al Hurricane]] and [[Al Hurricane Jr.]] performing [[New Mexico music]] at a fiesta in [[Old Town Albuquerque]] (2014)
</gallery>

===Fourth generation (1970s–1980s)===
{{See also|1970s in music#Country|l1=1970s in music § Country|1980s_in_music#Country_music|l2=1980s in music § Country}}

====Outlaw movement====
{{Main|Outlaw country}}
[[File:Willie Nelson Promotional Photo - cropped.jpg|thumb|left|upright=.8|[[Willie Nelson]] (1974)]]
Outlaw country was derived from the traditional western, including [[Red dirt (music)|Red Dirt]], [[New Mexico music|New Mexico]], [[Texas country music|Texas country]], [[Tejano music|Tejano]], and [[honky-tonk]] musical styles of the late 1950s and 1960s. Songs such as the 1963 [[Johnny Cash]] popularized "[[Ring of Fire (song)|Ring of Fire]]" show clear influences from the likes of [[Al Hurricane]] and [[Little Joe (singer)|Little Joe]], this influence just happened to culminate with artists such as [[Ray Price (musician)|Ray Price]] (whose band, the "Cherokee Cowboys", included [[Willie Nelson]] and [[Roger Miller]]) and mixed with the anger of an alienated subculture of the nation during the period, a collection of musicians that came to be known as the [[outlaw country|outlaw movement]] revolutionized the genre of country music in the early 1970s.<ref name="Billboard 1974 TX">{{cite magazine | magazine=Billboard | date= September 7, 1974 | title= Giley, Rodriguez, Spread Fame Of Texas Country Music Heritage | publisher=[[Nielsen Business Media]], Inc. }}</ref><ref name="Billboard 1974 NM">{{cite magazine | magazine=Billboard | date= September 7, 1974 | title= Hurricane Enterprises in New Mexico | publisher= }}</ref> "After I left Nashville (the early 70s), I wanted to relax and play the music that I wanted to play, and just stay around Texas, maybe Oklahoma. Waylon and I had that outlaw image going, and when it caught on at colleges and we started selling records, we were O.K. The whole outlaw thing, it had nothing to do with the music, it was something that got written in an article, and the young people said, 'Well, that's pretty cool.' And started listening." (Willie Nelson)<ref>"The Roots of Country Music" Collectors Edition by ''Life'', September 1, 1994, page 72</ref> The term ''outlaw country'' is traditionally associated with [[Willie Nelson]], [[Jerry Jeff Walker]],<ref>[http://www.axs.com/jerry-jeff-walker-bringing-outlaw-country-to-bi]{{dead link|date=February 2017}}</ref> [[Hank Williams, Jr.]], Merle Haggard, [[Waylon Jennings]] and [[Joe Ely]].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.outlawcountrycruise.com/lineup/view/76/|title=Joe Ely Band|last=Sixthman}}</ref> It was encapsulated in the 1976 album ''[[Wanted! The Outlaws]]''.

Though the outlaw movement as a cultural fad had died down after the late 1970s (with Jennings noting in 1978 that it had [[Don't You Think This Outlaw Bit's Done Got Out of Hand|gotten out of hand]] and led to real-life legal scrutiny), many western and outlaw country music artists maintained their popularity during the 1980s by forming [[Supergroup (music)|supergroups]], such as [[The Highwaymen (country supergroup)|The Highwaymen]],<ref>{{cite web | last=Browne | first=David | title=Country Music's Counter-Culture 1980s Supergroup, The Highwaymen | website=AARP | date=January 30, 2018 | url=http://www.aarp.org/entertainment/music/info-2016/highwaymen-country-supergroup-documentary.html | access-date=December 23, 2020}}</ref> [[Texas Tornados]],<ref>{{cite web | title=Texas Tornados | website=TSHA | date=March 19, 2011 | url=https://www.tshaonline.org/handbook/entries/texas-tornados | access-date=December 23, 2020}}</ref> and [[Bandido (supergroup)|Bandido]].<ref>{{AllMusic | id= al-hurricane-mn0001206671 | tab= biography | title= Biography of Al Hurricane}}</ref>

====Country pop====
{{Main|Country pop}}
[[File:John Denver 1975.JPG|thumb|upright|[[John Denver]] (1975)]]
Country pop or soft pop, with roots in the [[countrypolitan]] sound, folk music, and [[soft rock]], is a subgenre that first emerged in the 1970s. Although the term first referred to country music songs and artists that crossed over to top 40 radio, country pop acts are now more likely to cross over to [[adult contemporary music]]. It started with [[pop music]] singers like [[Glen Campbell]], [[Bobbie Gentry]], [[John Denver]], [[Olivia Newton-John]], [[Anne Murray]], [[B. J. Thomas]], [[the Bellamy Brothers]], and [[Linda Ronstadt]] having hits on the country charts. Between 1972 and 1975, singer/guitarist John Denver released a series of hugely successful songs blending country and folk-rock musical styles ("[[Rocky Mountain High]]", "[[Sunshine on My Shoulders]]", "[[Annie's Song]]", "[[Thank God I'm a Country Boy]]", and "[[I'm Sorry (John Denver song)|I'm Sorry]]"), and was named Country Music Entertainer of the Year in 1975. The year before, Olivia Newton-John, an Australian pop singer, won the "Best Female Country Vocal Performance" as well as the Country Music Association's most coveted award for females, "Female Vocalist of the Year". In response George Jones, Tammy Wynette, [[Jean Shepard]] and other traditional Nashville country artists dissatisfied with the new trend formed the short-lived "Association of Country Entertainers" in 1974; the ACE soon unraveled in the wake of Jones and Wynette's bitter divorce and Shepard's realization that most others in the industry lacked her passion for the movement.
[[File:Dolly Parton, 2011.jpg|thumb|upright|left|[[Dolly Parton]]]]

During the mid-1970s, [[Dolly Parton]], a successful mainstream country artist since the late 1960s, mounted a high-profile campaign to cross over to pop music, culminating in her 1977 hit "[[Here You Come Again (song)|Here You Come Again]]", which topped the U.S. country singles chart, and also reached No. 3 on the pop singles charts. Parton's male counterpart, [[Kenny Rogers]], came from the opposite direction, aiming his music at the country charts, after a successful career in pop, rock and folk music with [[Kenny Rogers and the First Edition|the First Edition]], achieving success the same year with "[[Lucille (Kenny Rogers song)|Lucille]]", which topped the country charts and reached No. 5 on the U.S. pop singles charts, as well as reaching Number 1 on the British all-genre chart. Parton and Rogers would both continue to have success on both country and pop charts simultaneously, well into the 1980s. Country music propelled Kenny Rogers’ career, making him a three-time [[Grammy Awards|Grammy Award]] winner and six-time [[Country Music Association Awards]] winner. Having sold more than 50 million albums in the US, one of his Song "The Gambler," inspired several TV films, with Rogers as the main character.<ref>{{Cite web|author=Christina Maxouris and Alta Spells|title=Legendary country singer Kenny Rogers dies at 81|url=https://www.cnn.com/2020/03/21/entertainment/kenny-rogers-country-singer-dies/index.html|access-date=November 1, 2021|website=CNN|date=March 21, 2020 }}</ref> Artists like [[Crystal Gayle]], [[Ronnie Milsap]] and [[Barbara Mandrell]] would also find success on the pop charts with their records. In 1975, author Paul Hemphill stated in the ''Saturday Evening Post'', "Country music isn't really country anymore; it is a hybrid of nearly every form of popular music in America."<ref>{{cite journal | last1 = Hemphill | first1 = Paul | year = 1975 | title = Nashville—Where It All Started | journal = [[Saturday Evening Post]] | volume = 247 | issue = 3| pages = 44–86 }}</ref>

[[File:WIKI KENNY ROGERS.jpg|thumb|[[Kenny Rogers]] in 2004]]
During the early 1980s, country artists continued to see their records perform well on the pop charts. [[Willie Nelson]] and [[Juice Newton]] each had two songs in the top 5 of the Billboard Hot 100 in the early eighties: Nelson charted "[[Always on My Mind]]" (#5, 1982) and "[[To All the Girls I've Loved Before]]" (#5, 1984, a duet with [[Julio Iglesias]]), and Newton achieved success with "[[Queen of Hearts (Hank DeVito song)|Queen of Hearts]]" (#2, 1981) and "[[Angel of the Morning]]" (#4, 1981). Four country songs topped the ''Billboard'' Hot 100 in the 1980s: "[[Lady (Kenny Rogers song)|Lady]]" by [[Kenny Rogers]], from the late fall of 1980; "[[9 to 5 (Dolly Parton song)|9 to 5]]" by [[Dolly Parton]], "[[I Love a Rainy Night]]" by [[Eddie Rabbitt]] (these two back-to-back at the top in early 1981); and "[[Islands in the Stream (song)|Islands in the Stream]]", a duet by Dolly Parton and Kenny Rogers in 1983, a pop-country crossover hit written by Barry, Robin, and Maurice Gibb of the [[Bee Gees]]. Newton's "Queen of Hearts" almost reached No. 1, but was kept out of the spot by the pop ballad juggernaut "[[Endless Love (song)|Endless Love]]" by [[Diana Ross]] and [[Lionel Richie]].<ref>[https://web.archive.org/web/20060903144110/http://www.billboard.com/bbcom/charts/yearend_chart_index.jsp Billboard.com], Historical Music Charts Archive.</ref> The move of country music toward neotraditional styles led to a marked decline in country/pop crossovers in the late 1980s, and only one song in that period—[[Roy Orbison]]'s "[[You Got It]]", from 1989—made the top 10 of both the ''Billboard'' [[Hot Country Songs|Hot Country Singles]]" and Hot 100 charts, due largely to a revival of interest in Orbison after his sudden death.<ref>Whitburn, Joel, "Top Pop Singles: 1955–2006," 2007</ref><ref>{{Cite book |last=Whitburn |first=Joel |title=Hot Country Songs: Billboard 1944 to 2008 |publisher=Record Research |year=2008 |isbn=9780898201772}}</ref>{{Page needed|date=October 2024}} The only song with substantial country airplay to reach number one on the pop charts in the late 1980s was "[[At This Moment]]" by [[Billy Vera]] and the Beaters, an R&B song with slide guitar embellishment that appeared at number 42 on the country charts from minor crossover airplay.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://qz.com/quartzy/1592928/old-town-road-is-only-the-third-country-song-in-30-years-to-make-it-to-make-it-to-no-1/|title="Old Town Road" is only the third country song in 30 years to make it to make it to number one|first1=Dan|last1=Kopf|website=Quartzy|date=April 11, 2019 }}</ref> The record-setting, multi-platinum group [[Alabama (American band)|Alabama]] was named Artist of the Decade for the 1980s by the Academy of Country Music.

====Country rock====
{{Main|Country rock}}
{{see also|Cowpunk}}
[[File:Eagles cropped.jpg|thumb|upright=.8|A reunited [[Eagles (band)|Eagles]] in 2008]]

Country rock is a genre that started in the 1960s but became prominent in the 1970s. The late 1960s in American music produced a unique blend as a result of traditionalist backlash within separate genres. In the aftermath of the [[British Invasion]], many desired a return to the "old values" of rock n' roll. At the same time there was a lack of enthusiasm in the country sector for Nashville-produced music. What resulted was a crossbred genre known as [[country rock]]. Early innovators in this new style of music in the 1960s and 1970s included [[Bob Dylan]], who was the first to revert to country music with his 1967 album ''[[John Wesley Harding]]''{{sfn |Gilliland |1969 |loc=show 54}} (and even more so with that album's follow-up, ''[[Nashville Skyline]]''), followed by [[Gene Clark]], Clark's former band [[the Byrds]] (with [[Gram Parsons]] on ''[[Sweetheart of the Rodeo]]'') and its spin-off [[the Flying Burrito Brothers]] (also featuring Gram Parsons), guitarist [[Clarence White]], [[Michael Nesmith]] ([[the Monkees]] and the [[First National Band]]), the [[Grateful Dead]], [[Neil Young]], [[Commander Cody and His Lost Planet Airmen|Commander Cody]], [[the Allman Brothers Band]], [[Charlie Daniels]], [[the Marshall Tucker Band]], [[Poco (band)|Poco]], [[Buffalo Springfield]], [[Stephen Stills]]' band [[Manassas (band)|Manassas]] and [[Eagles (band)|Eagles]], among many, even the former folk music duo [[Ian & Sylvia]], who formed [[Great Speckled Bird (band)|Great Speckled Bird]] in 1969. The Eagles would become the most successful of these country rock acts, and their compilation album ''[[Their Greatest Hits (1971–1975)]]'' remains the second-best-selling album in the US with 29&nbsp;million copies sold.<ref>{{cite magazine |url=http://www.billboard.com/articles/columns/chart-beat/6844102/glenn-frey-eagles-biggest-billboard-hits|title= Glenn Frey & Eagles' Biggest Billboard Hits |date=January 18, 2016|first= Gary |last= Trust |magazine=Billboard }}</ref> [[The Rolling Stones]] also got into the act with songs like "[[Dead Flowers (The Rolling Stones song)|Dead Flowers]]"; the original recording of "[[Honky Tonk Women]]" was performed in a country style, but it was subsequently re-recorded in a hard rock style for the single version, and the band's preferred country version was later released on the album ''[[Let It Bleed]]'', under the title "Country Honk".

[[File:Gram_Parsons.jpg|thumb|[[Gram Parsons]] often considered one of the pioneers of country rock.]]
Described by [[AllMusic]] as the "father of country-rock",<ref>[{{AllMusic|class=artist|id=p5109|pure_url=yes}} Allmusic.com], Gram Parsons: Overview</ref> Gram Parsons' work in the early 1970s was acclaimed for its purity and for his appreciation for aspects of traditional country music.<ref>{{Cite magazine|url=https://www.rollingstone.com/artists/gramparsons|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090429081141/http://www.rollingstone.com/artists/gramparsons|url-status=dead|title=Gram Parsons|magazine=[[Rolling Stone]]|archive-date=April 29, 2009}}</ref> Though his career was cut tragically short by his 1973 death, his legacy was carried on by his protégé and duet partner [[Emmylou Harris]]; Harris would release her debut solo in 1975, an amalgamation of country, rock and roll, folk, blues and pop. Subsequent to the initial blending of the two polar opposite genres, other offspring soon resulted, including [[Southern rock]], [[heartland rock]] and in more recent years, [[alternative country]]. In the decades that followed, artists such as [[Juice Newton]], [[Alabama (American band)|Alabama]], [[Hank Williams, Jr.]] (and, to an even greater extent, [[Hank Williams III]]), [[Gary Allan]], [[Shania Twain]], [[Brooks & Dunn]], [[Faith Hill]], [[Garth Brooks]], [[Dwight Yoakam]], [[Steve Earle]], [[Dolly Parton]], [[Rosanne Cash]] and [[Linda Ronstadt]] moved country further towards rock influence.

====Neocountry====
In 1980, a style of "neocountry disco music" was popularized by the film ''[[Urban Cowboy]]''.<ref name="Workin 1999. page 259">{{cite book| first1 = Gerald W.| last1 = Haslam| first2 = Alexandra Russell| last2 = Haslam| first3 = Richard| last3 = Chon| title = Workin' Man Blues: Country Music in California| date = April 1, 1999| publisher = University of California Press| isbn = 978-0-520-21800-0| page = [https://archive.org/details/workinmanbluesco00hasl/page/259 259]| url = https://archive.org/details/workinmanbluesco00hasl/page/259}}</ref> It was during this time that a glut of pop-country crossover artists began appearing on the country charts: former pop stars [[Bill Medley]] (of [[the Righteous Brothers]]), [[Dan Seals|"England Dan" Seals]] (of [[England Dan and John Ford Coley]]), [[Tom Jones (singer)|Tom Jones]], and [[Merrill Osmond]] (both alone and with some of [[The Osmonds|his brothers]]; his younger sister [[Marie Osmond]] was already an established country star) all recorded significant country hits in the early 1980s. Sales in record stores rocketed to $250&nbsp;million in 1981; by 1984, 900 radio stations began programming country or neocountry pop full-time. As with most sudden trends, however, by 1984 sales had dropped below 1979 figures.<ref name="Workin 1999. page 259"/>

====Truck-driving country====<!-- linked from [[truck driving country music]] -->
{{Main|Truck-driving country}}
Truck-driving country music is a genre of country music<ref name="truckers-jukebox">{{cite book
| title = Trucker's Jukebox: Various Artists: Music
| url = https://www.amazon.com/Truckers-Jukebox-Various-Artists/dp/B0009A1ATG
| access-date = February 24, 2009
| quote = Trucker's Jukebox covers the Country landscape: outlaw, honkey tonk, country-rock, Bakersfield sound, country comedy, truck driving country and more.}}</ref>
and is a fusion of [[honky-tonk]], [[country rock]] and the [[Bakersfield sound]].<ref name="starpulse">{{cite web|title=Truck Driving Country Music |url=http://www.starpulse.com/Genre/MusicGenres.html?Genre=CTRY&ID=D4307&Lvl=4 |archive-url=https://archive.today/20120604195447/http://www.starpulse.com/Genre/MusicGenres.html?Genre=CTRY&ID=D4307&Lvl=4 |url-status=dead |archive-date=June 4, 2012 |publisher=All Media Guide LLC |access-date=February 24, 2009 }}</ref>
It has the [[tempo]] of country rock and the emotion of honky-tonk,<ref name="starpulse"/> and its lyrics focus on a [[truck driver]]'s lifestyle.<ref name="amazon">{{cite web
| title = Dave Dudley: Albums, Songs, Bios, Photos
| website = Amazon
| url = https://www.amazon.com/Dave-Dudley/e/B000APBUEU
| access-date = February 24, 2009
}}</ref> Truck-driving country songs often deal with the profession of trucking and love.<ref name="starpulse"/> Well-known artists who sing truck driving country include [[Dave Dudley]], [[Red Sovine]], [[Dick Curless]], [[Red Simpson]], [[Del Reeves]], [[the Willis Brothers]] and [[Jerry Reed]], with [[C. W. McCall]] and [[Cledus Maggard]] (pseudonyms of Bill Fries and Jay Huguely, respectively) being more humorous entries in the subgenre.<ref name="starpulse"/> Dudley is known as the father of truck driving country.<ref name="amazon"/><ref name="mp3com">{{cite web|title=Dave Dudley |url=http://www.mp3.com/genre/193/subgenre.html |access-date=February 24, 2009 |publisher=CBS Interactive |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090305202416/http://www.mp3.com/genre/193/subgenre.html |archive-date=March 5, 2009 }}</ref>

====Neotraditionalist movement====
{{Main|Neotraditionalist country}}
[[File:George Strait 2014 1.jpg|thumb|upright|[[George Strait]], a pioneer of the neotraditionalist movement and dubbed the "King of Country,"<ref name="martings"/> Strait is one of the best selling musicians of all time.<ref name="martings">{{cite news |last1=Martin |first1=Annie |title=George Strait debuts new single ahead of forthcoming album |url=https://www.upi.com/Entertainment_News/Music/2015/09/23/George-Strait-debuts-new-single-ahead-of-forthcoming-album/8591443038111/ |access-date=January 5, 2021 |work=[[United Press International]] |date=September 23, 2015}}</ref>]]
During the mid-1980s, a group of new artists began to emerge who rejected the more polished country-pop sound that had been prominent on radio and the charts, in favor of more, traditional, "back-to-basics" production. Many of the artists during the latter half of the 1980s drew on traditional honky-tonk, bluegrass, folk and western swing. Artists who typified this sound included [[Travis Tritt]], [[Reba McEntire]], [[George Strait]], [[Keith Whitley]], [[Alan Jackson]], [[John Anderson (musician)|John Anderson]], [[Patty Loveless]], [[Kathy Mattea]], [[Randy Travis]], [[Dwight Yoakam]], [[Clint Black]], [[Ricky Skaggs]], and [[the Judds]].

===Fifth generation (1990s)===

[[File:Garth Brooks at We Are One (edit).jpg|thumb|right|upright|[[Garth Brooks]]]]
{{See also|1990s_in_music#Country_music|l1=1990s in music § Country}}
Country music was aided by the U.S. [[Federal Communications Commission]]'s (FCC) Docket 80–90, which led to a significant expansion of [[FM radio]] in the 1980s by adding numerous higher-fidelity FM signals to rural and suburban areas. At this point, country music was mainly heard on rural [[AM radio]] stations; the expansion of FM was particularly helpful to country music, which migrated to FM from the AM band as AM became overcome by [[talk radio]] (the country music stations that stayed on AM developed the [[classic country]] format for the AM audience). At the same time, [[beautiful music]] stations already in rural areas began abandoning the format (leading to its effective demise) to adopt country music as well. This wider availability of country music led to producers seeking to polish their product for a wider audience. In 1990, ''[[Billboard (magazine)|Billboard]]'', which had published a [[Hot Country Songs|country music chart]] since the 1940s, changed the methodology it used to compile the chart: singles sales were removed from the methodology, and only airplay on [[country radio]] determined a song's place on the chart.<ref>{{cite magazine|title=R&B Enjoying Rare Dominance Over Rap|magazine=Billboard|date=April 24, 2004|page=68|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=mxAEAAAAMBAJ&q=Nielsen+Broadcast+Data+Systems+january+20+1990&pg=PA68|access-date=April 25, 2018}}</ref>

In the 1990s, country music became a worldwide phenomenon thanks to [[Garth Brooks]],<ref name="Country Worldwide">{{cite news |url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=0LYxAAAAIBAJ&pg=1510,3298161&dq=billy+ray+cyrus+country+worldwide&hl=en |title=Country is No. 1 musical style |date=August 19, 1992 |newspaper=Reading Eagle |access-date=July 26, 2010}}</ref><ref name="Country Worldwide2">{{cite web |url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=TjQfAAAAIBAJ&pg=4760,3698051&dq=billy+ray+cyrus+country+worldwide&hl=en |title=Country music reflects the time |date=September 27, 1992 |publisher=Herald-Journal |access-date=July 26, 2010}}</ref><ref name="Country Worldwide3">{{cite news |url=https://pqasb.pqarchiver.com/thestar/access/504338431.html?dids=504338431:504338431&FMT=ABS&FMTS=ABS:FT&type=current&date=Nov+25%2C+1993&author=Jack+Hurst&pub=The+Record&desc=Country+music+is+making+waves+across+the+seas&pqatl=google |title=Country music is making waves across the seas |date=November 25, 1993 |work=thestar.com |access-date=July 26, 2010 |first=Jack |last=Hurst |archive-date=May 6, 2011 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110506081606/http://pqasb.pqarchiver.com/thestar/access/504338431.html?dids=504338431:504338431&FMT=ABS&FMTS=ABS:FT&type=current&date=Nov+25%2C+1993&author=Jack+Hurst&pub=The+Record&desc=Country+music+is+making+waves+across+the+seas&pqatl=google |url-status=dead }}</ref> who enjoyed one of the most successful careers in popular music history, breaking records for both sales and concert attendance throughout the decade. The [[RIAA]] has certified his recordings at a combined (128× [[RIAA certification|platinum]]), denoting roughly 113&nbsp;million U.S. shipments.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.riaa.com/goldandplatinumdata.php?table=SEARCH_RESULTS |title=RIAA.com |publisher=RIAA.com |access-date=February 1, 2011 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070626051113/http://www.riaa.com/goldandplatinumdata.php?table=SEARCH_RESULTS |archive-date=June 26, 2007 |url-status=dead }}</ref> Other artists who experienced success during this time included [[Clint Black]], [[John Michael Montgomery]], [[Tracy Lawrence]], [[Tim McGraw]], [[Kenny Chesney]], [[Travis Tritt]], [[Alan Jackson]] and the newly formed duo of [[Brooks & Dunn]]; [[George Strait]], whose career began in the 1980s, also continued to have widespread success in this decade and beyond. [[Toby Keith]] began his career as a more pop-oriented country singer in the 1990s, evolving into an outlaw persona in the early 2000s with ''[[Pull My Chain]]'' and its follow-up, ''[[Unleashed (Toby Keith album)|Unleashed]]''.

====Success of female artists====
[[File:LindaRonstadtPerforming.jpg|thumb|left|upright=.7|[[Linda Ronstadt]]]]
Female artists such as [[Reba McEntire]], [[Patty Loveless]], [[Faith Hill]], [[Martina McBride]], [[Deana Carter]], [[LeAnn Rimes]], [[Mindy McCready]], [[Pam Tillis]], [[Lorrie Morgan]], [[Shania Twain]], and [[Mary Chapin Carpenter]] all released platinum-selling albums in the 1990s. The [[Dixie Chicks]] became one of the most popular country bands in the 1990s and early 2000s. Their 1998 debut album ''[[Wide Open Spaces (album)|Wide Open Spaces]]'' went on to become certified 12× platinum while their 1999 album ''[[Fly (Dixie Chicks album)|Fly]]'' went on to become 10× platinum. After their third album, ''[[Home (Dixie Chicks album)|Home]]'', was released in 2003, the band made political news in part because of lead singer [[Natalie Maines]]'s comments disparaging then-President [[George W. Bush]] while the band was overseas (Maines stated that she and her bandmates were ashamed to be from the same state as Bush, who had just commenced the [[Iraq War]] a few days prior). The comments caused a rift between the band and the country music scene, and the band's fourth (and most recent) album, 2006's ''[[Taking the Long Way]]'', took a more rock-oriented direction; the album was commercially successful overall among non-country audiences but largely ignored among country audiences. After ''Taking the Long Way'', the band broke up for a decade (with two of its members continuing as the [[Court Yard Hounds]]) before reuniting in 2016 and releasing new material in 2020.

[[File:ShaniaTwain3.jpg|thumb|upright|[[Shania Twain]] performing during her [[Up! Tour]] in 2004]]
Canadian artist [[Shania Twain]] became the best selling female country artist of 1990s. With the success of Her albums, ''[[The Woman in Me (album)|The Woman in Me]] (1995)'' which was certified 12× platinum sold over 20 million copies worldwide and its follow-up, 1997's ''[[Come On Over]]'', which was certified 20× platinum and sold over 40 million copies. The album became a major worldwide phenomenon and became one of the world's best selling albums for three years (1998, 1999 and 2000); it also went on to become the best selling country album of all time.

Unlike the majority of her contemporaries, Twain found large international success that had been seen by very few country artists, before or after her. Critics have noted much of her success is due to breaking free of traditional country stereotypes and for incorporating elements of rock and pop into her music. In 2002, she released her successful fourth studio album, titled ''[[Up! (album)|Up!]]'', which was certified 11× platinum and sold over 15 million copies worldwide. [[Shania Twain]] has been nominated eighteen times for [[Grammy Awards]] and won five Grammys. [<ref>{{Cite web |date=November 23, 2020 |title=Shania Twain |url=https://www.grammy.com/grammys/artists/shania-twain/7643 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200808003611/https://www.grammy.com/grammys/artists/shania-twain/7643 |archive-date=8 August 2020 |access-date=October 25, 2021 |website=Grammys}}</ref>] She was the best-paid country music star in 2016 according to Forbes, with a net worth of $27.5 million. [<ref>{{Cite web|title=9. Shania Twain ($27.5 million)|url=https://www.forbes.com/pictures/eeel45fhgfm/9-shania-twain-275-m/|access-date=October 25, 2021|website=Forbes}}</ref>]Twain has been credited with breaking international boundaries for country music, as well as inspiring many country artists to incorporate different genres into their music in order to attract a wider audience. She is also credited with changing the way in which many female country performers would market themselves, as unlike many before her she used fashion and her sex appeal to get rid of the stereotypical '[[honky-tonk]]' image the majority of country singers had in order to distinguish herself from many female country artists of the time.

====Line dancing revival====
In the early-mid-1990s, country western music was influenced by the popularity of [[line dancing]]. This influence was so great that [[Chet Atkins]] was quoted as saying, "The music has gotten pretty bad, I think. It's all that damn line dancing."<ref>The Roots of Country Music" Collectors Edition by ''Life'', September 1, 1994</ref> By the end of the decade, however, at least one line dance choreographer complained that good country line dance music was no longer being released. In contrast, artists such as [[Don Williams]] and [[George Jones]] who had more or less had consistent chart success through the 1970s and 1980s suddenly had their fortunes fall rapidly around 1991 when the new chart rules took effect.

====Alternative country====
{{Main|Alt country|cowpunk}}
Country influences combined with [[Punk rock]] and [[alternative rock]] to forge the "[[cowpunk]]" scene in Southern California during the 1980s, which included bands such as [[the Long Ryders]], [[Lone Justice]] and [[the Beat Farmers]], as well as the established punk group [[X (American band)|X]], whose music had begun to include country and rockabilly influences.<ref name="Malone2002">W. C. Malone, ''Country Music, U.S.A.'' (Austin, TX: University of Texas Press, 2nd edn., 2002), {{ISBN|0-292-75262-8}}, p. 451.</ref> Simultaneously, a generation of diverse country artists outside of California emerged that rejected the perceived cultural and musical conservatism associated with Nashville's mainstream country musicians in favor of more countercultural outlaw country and the folk singer-songwriter traditions of artists such as [[Woody Guthrie]], [[Gram Parsons]] and [[Bob Dylan]].
[[File:Steve_Earle_2.jpg|thumb|left|[[Steve Earle]] performing in Ireland in 2007]]

Artists from outside California who were associated with early alternative country included singer-songwriters such as [[Lucinda Williams]], [[Lyle Lovett]] and [[Steve Earle]], the Nashville country rock band [[Jason and the Scorchers]], the Providence "[[cowboy pop]]" band [[Rubber Rodeo]], and the British post-punk band [[the Mekons]]. Earle, in particular, was noted for his popularity with both country and [[college rock]] audiences: He promoted his 1986 debut album ''[[Guitar Town]]'' with a tour that saw him open for both country singer [[Dwight Yoakam]] and alternative rock band [[The Replacements (band)|the Replacements]].<ref>{{cite web|last1=Deming|first1=Mark|title=Guitar Town – Steve Earle|url=http://www.allmusic.com/album/guitar-town-mw0000189768|website=AllMusic|access-date=October 31, 2016}}</ref> Yoakam also cultivated a fanbase spanning multiple genres through his stripped-down [[Honky-tonk#Music|honky-tonk]] influenced sound, association with the cowpunk scene, and performances at Los Angeles punk rock clubs.<ref>{{cite web |last1=Erlewine |first1=Stephen Thomas |title=Dwight Yoakam {{!}} Biography & History |url=https://www.allmusic.com/artist/dwight-yoakam-mn0000791483/biography |website=AllMusic |access-date=August 7, 2019}}</ref>

These early styles had coalesced into a genre by the time the Illinois group [[Uncle Tupelo]] released their influential debut album ''[[No Depression (album)|No Depression]]'' in 1990.<ref name=smith2009>C. Smith, ''101 Albums That Changed Popular Music'' (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2009), {{ISBN|0-19-537371-5}}, pp. 204–9.</ref><ref name="AllmusicNoDepression">M. Deming, [{{AllMusic|class=album|id=r626894|pure_url=yes}} "No Depression Bonus Tracks"], ''Allmusic'', retrieved January 26, 2009.</ref> The album is widely credited as being the first "alternative country" album, and inspired the name of ''[[No Depression (magazine)|No Depression]]'' magazine, which exclusively covered the new genre.<ref name="smith2009"/><ref name="AllmusicNoDepression"/> Following Uncle Tupelo's disbanding in 1994, its members formed two significant bands in the genre: [[Wilco]] and [[Son Volt]]. Although Wilco's sound had moved away from country and towards [[indie rock]] by the time they released their critically acclaimed album ''[[Yankee Hotel Foxtrot]]'' in 2002, they have continued to be an influence on later alt-country artists.

[[File:Lucinda_Williams_November_8_2006.jpg|thumb|[[Lucinda Williams]] played a pivotal role in defining the early alt-country genre with her unique blend of country and rock.]]

Other acts who became prominent in the alt-country genre during the 1990s and 2000s included [[the Bottle Rockets]], [[the Handsome Family]], [[Blue Mountain (band)|Blue Mountain]], [[Robbie Fulks]], [[Blood Oranges (band)|Blood Oranges]], [[Bright Eyes (band)|Bright Eyes]], [[Drive-By Truckers]], [[Old 97's]], [[Old Crow Medicine Show]], [[Nickel Creek]], [[Neko Case]], and [[Whiskeytown]], whose lead singer [[Ryan Adams]] later had a successful solo-career.<ref name=WolfandDuanep549-92>K. Wolff and O. Duane, eds, ''Country Music: the Rough Guide'' (London: Rough Guides, 2000), {{ISBN|1-85828-534-8}}, pp. 549–92.</ref> Alt-country, in various iterations overlapped with other genres, including [[Red dirt (music)|Red Dirt country music]] ([[Cross Canadian Ragweed]]), [[jam band]]s ([[My Morning Jacket]] and [[the String Cheese Incident]]), and [[indie folk]] ([[the Avett Brothers]]).

Despite the genre's growing popularity in the 1980s, 1990s and 2000s, alternative country and neo-traditionalist artists saw minimal support from country radio in those decades, despite strong sales and critical acclaim for albums such as the soundtrack to the 2000 film ''[[O Brother, Where Art Thou? (soundtrack)|O Brother, Where Art Thou?]]''.<ref>{{cite web |last1=Strauss |first1=Neil |title=MUSIC; The Country Music Country Radio Ignores |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2002/03/24/movies/music-the-country-music-country-radio-ignores.html |website=The New York Times |access-date=April 13, 2019 |date=March 24, 2002}}</ref> In 1987, the Beat Farmers gained airplay on country music stations with their song "Make It Last", but the single was pulled from the format when station programmers decreed the band's music was too rock-oriented for their audience.<ref>{{cite web |title=Beat Farmers {{!}} Biography & History |url=https://www.allmusic.com/artist/beat-farmers-mn0000038661/biography |website=AllMusic |access-date=April 13, 2019}}</ref> However, some alt-country songs have been [[Crossover music|crossover hits]] to mainstream country radio in cover versions by established artists on the format; Lucinda Williams' "[[Passionate Kisses]]" was a hit for [[Mary Chapin Carpenter]] in 1993, Ryan Adams' "[[When the Stars Go Blue]]" was a hit for [[Tim McGraw]] in 2007, and Old Crow Medicine Show's "[[Wagon Wheel (song)|Wagon Wheel]]" was a hit for [[Darius Rucker]] (member of [[Hootie & The Blowfish]]) in 2013.

In the 2010s, the alt-country genre saw an increase in its critical and commercial popularity, owing to the success of artists such as [[the Civil Wars]], [[Chris Stapleton]], [[Sturgill Simpson]], [[Jason Isbell]], [[Lydia Loveless]] and [[Margo Price]]. In 2019, [[Kacey Musgraves]] – a country artist who had gained a following with [[indie rock]] fans and music critics despite minimal airplay on country radio – won the [[Grammy Award for Album of the Year]] for her album ''[[Golden Hour (Kacey Musgraves album)|Golden Hour]]''.<ref>{{cite magazine |last1=Moss |first1=Marissa R. |title=How Kacey Musgraves' Grammy Wins Give Country Radio a Choice to Make |url=https://www.rollingstone.com/music/music-country/kacey-musgraves-grammy-golden-hour-country-radio-793796/ |magazine=Rolling Stone |access-date=April 22, 2019 |date=February 12, 2019}}</ref>

===Sixth generation (2000s–present)===
{{more citations needed section|date=March 2017}}
{{See also|2000s in music#Country|l1=2000s in music § Country|2010s in music#Country|l2=2010s in music § Country|2020s in music#Country|13=2020s in music § Country}}
[[File:Luke_Bryan_in_2008.JPG|thumb|left|[[Luke Bryan]]]]

The sixth generation of country music continued to be influenced by other genres such as pop, rock, and R&B. [[Richard Marx]] crossed over with his ''[[Days in Avalon]]'' album, which features five country songs and several singers and musicians. [[Alison Krauss]] sang background vocals to Marx's single "Straight from My Heart." Also, [[Bon Jovi]] had a hit single, "[[Who Says You Can't Go Home]]", with [[Jennifer Nettles]] of [[Sugarland]]. [[Kid Rock]]'s collaboration with [[Sheryl Crow]], "[[Picture (song)|Picture]]," was a major crossover hit in 2001 and began Kid Rock's transition from hard rock to a country-rock hybrid that would later produce another major crossover hit, 2008's "[[All Summer Long (Kid Rock song)|All Summer Long]]." (Crow, whose music had often incorporated country elements, would also officially cross over into country with her hit "[[Easy (Sheryl Crow song)|Easy]]" from her debut country album ''[[Feels like Home (Sheryl Crow album)|Feels like Home]]''). [[Darius Rucker]], frontman for the 1990s pop-rock band [[Hootie & the Blowfish]], began a country solo career in the late 2000s, one that to date has produced five albums and several hits on both the country charts and the Billboard Hot 100. Singer-songwriter [[Unknown Hinson]] became famous for his appearance in the [[Charlotte, North Carolina|Charlotte]] television show ''Wild, Wild, South'', after which Hinson started his own band and toured in southern states. Other rock stars who featured a country song on their albums were [[Don Henley]] (who released ''[[Cass County (album)|Cass County]]'' in 2015, an album which featured collaborations with numerous country artists) and [[Poison (American band)|Poison]].

The back half of the 2010–2020 decade saw an increasing number of mainstream country acts collaborate with pop and R&B acts; many of these songs achieved commercial success by appealing to fans across multiple genres; examples include collaborations between [[Kane Brown]] and [[Marshmello]]<ref>{{cite web|url= https://musicrow.com/2020/09/kane-brown-joins-taylor-swift-luke-bryan-with-latest-riaa-milestone/|title= Kane Brown Joins Taylor Swift, Luke Bryan With Latest RIAA Milestone|date=September 29, 2020|archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20201030113542/https://musicrow.com/2020/09/kane-brown-joins-taylor-swift-luke-bryan-with-latest-riaa-milestone/|access-date=April 3, 2021|archive-date= October 30, 2020}}</ref> and [[Maren Morris]] and [[Zedd]].<ref>{{cite magazine|url=https://www.billboard.com/music/music-news/zedd-grey-maren-morris-the-middle-songs-that-defined-the-decade-8544258/|title= Songs That Defined the Decade: Zedd, Grey and Maren Morris' 'The Middle'|magazine= [[Billboard (magazine)|Billboard]]|date=November 21, 2019|access-date=February 15, 2022}}</ref> There has also been interest from pop singers in country music, including [[Beyoncé]], [[Lady Gaga]], [[Alicia Keys]], [[Gwen Stefani]], [[Justin Timberlake]], [[Justin Bieber]] and [[Pink (singer)|Pink]].<ref>{{Cite web|last=Garcia|first=Patricia|title=Why Are So Many Pop Stars Going Country?|url=https://www.vogue.com/article/pop-music-goes-country|access-date=April 21, 2021|website=Vogue|date=May 15, 2016}}</ref> Supporting this movement is the new generation of contemporary pop-country, including [[Taylor Swift]], [[Miranda Lambert]], [[Carrie Underwood]], [[Kacey Musgraves]], [[Miley Cyrus]], [[Billy Ray Cyrus]], [[Sam Hunt]], [[Chris Young (singer)|Chris Young]],<ref name=":0" /> who introduced new themes in their works, touching on fundamental rights, feminism, and controversies about racism and religion of the older generations.<ref name=":1" />

====Popular culture====
[[File:191125 Carrie Underwood at the 2019 American Music Awards.png|thumb|upright=.7|[[Carrie Underwood]] at the [[American Music Awards of 2019|2019 American Music Awards]]]]
In 2005, country singer [[Carrie Underwood]] rose to fame as the winner of the fourth season of ''[[American Idol]];'' she has since become one of the most prominent recording artists in the genre, with worldwide sales of more than 65 million records and seven [[Grammy Awards]].<ref>{{cite magazine|url=https://www.rollingstone.com/music/music-country-lists/readers-poll-10-best-carrie-underwood-songs-177887/ |title=Readers' Poll: 10 Best Carrie Underwood Songs |magazine=[[Rolling Stone]] |date=March 10, 2015|access-date=February 15, 2022}}</ref> With her first single, "[[Inside Your Heaven]]", Underwood became the only solo country artist to have a number 1 hit on the [[Billboard Hot 100|''Billboard'' Hot 100]] chart in the 2000–2009 decade and also broke ''Billboard'' chart history as the first country music artist ever to debut at No. 1 on the Hot 100. Underwood's debut album, ''[[Some Hearts (Carrie Underwood album)|Some Hearts]]'', became the best-selling solo female debut album in country music history, the fastest-selling debut country album in the history of the SoundScan era and the best-selling country album of the last 10 years, being ranked by ''[[Billboard (magazine)|Billboard]]'' as the number 1 Country Album of the 2000–2009 decade. She has also become the female country artist with the most number one hits on the ''Billboard'' [[Hot Country Songs]] chart in the Nielsen SoundScan era (1991–present), having 14 #1s and breaking her own ''[[Guinness Book]]'' record of ten. In 2007, Underwood won the [[Grammy Award for Best New Artist]], becoming only the second Country artist in history (and the first in a decade) to win it. She also made history by becoming the seventh woman to win Entertainer of the Year at the [[Academy of Country Music Awards]], and the first woman in history to win the award twice, as well as twice consecutively. ''[[Time (magazine)|Time]]'' has listed Underwood as one of the [[Time 100|100 most influential people in the world]].
In 2016, Underwood topped the [[Country Airplay]] chart for the 15th time, becoming the female artist with the most number ones on that chart.
[[File:Miranda-Lambert-Bandwagon-Tour-2019.jpg|thumb|upright=.7|[[Miranda Lambert]] in 2019]]
Carrie Underwood was only one of several country stars produced by a television series in the 2000s. In addition to Underwood, ''American Idol'' launched the careers of [[Kellie Pickler]], [[Josh Gracin]], [[Bucky Covington]], [[Kristy Lee Cook]], [[Danny Gokey]], [[Lauren Alaina]] and [[Scotty McCreery]] (as well as that of occasional country singer [[Kelly Clarkson]]<ref name=":2">{{Cite web|title=Kelly Clarkson goes country with 'Kellyoke' cover of the Chicks' 'Sin Wagon'|url=https://www.today.com/popculture/kelly-clarkson-goes-country-kellyoke-cover-chicks-sin-wagon-t205837|access-date=April 21, 2021|website=TODAY.com|date=January 14, 2021 }}</ref>) in the decade, and would continue to launch country careers in the 2010s. The series ''[[Nashville Star]]'', while not nearly as successful as ''Idol'', did manage to bring [[Miranda Lambert]], [[Kacey Musgraves]] and [[Chris Young (singer)|Chris Young]] to mainstream success, also launching the careers of lower-profile musicians such as [[Buddy Jewell]], [[Sean Patrick McGraw]], and Canadian musician [[George Canyon]]. ''[[Can You Duet]]?'' produced the duos [[Steel Magnolia]] and [[Joey + Rory]]. Teen sitcoms also have influenced modern country music; in 2008, actress [[Jennette McCurdy]] (best known as the sidekick Sam on the teen sitcom ''[[iCarly]]'') released her first single, "So Close", following that with the single "[[Generation Love]]" in 2011. Another teen sitcom star, [[Miley Cyrus]] (of Disney Channel's ''[[Hannah Montana]]''), also had a crossover hit in the late 2000s with "[[The Climb (Miley Cyrus song)|The Climb]]" and another with a duet with her father, [[Billy Ray Cyrus]], with "[[Ready, Set, Don't Go]]." [[Jana Kramer]], an actress in the teen drama ''[[One Tree Hill (TV series)|One Tree Hill]]'', released a country album in 2012 that has produced two hit singles as of 2013. Actresses [[Hayden Panettiere]] and [[Connie Britton]] began recording country songs as part of their roles in the TV shows ''[[Nashville (2012 TV series)|Nashville]]'' and ''[[Pretty Little Liars]]'' star [[Lucy Hale]] released her debut album ''[[Road Between]]'' in 2014.

In 2010, the group [[Lady A]]ntebellum won five Grammys, including the coveted [[Grammy Award for Song of the Year|Song of the Year]] and [[Record of the Year]] for "[[Need You Now (Lady Antebellum song)|Need You Now]]".<ref>{{cite news| url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2011/02/13/AR2011021303447.html?hpid=top |title=Esperanza Spalding, Arcade Fire top a night of upsets at 2011 Grammys |first=Chris |last=Richards |newspaper=[[The Washington Post]] |date=February 14, 2011 |access-date=March 13, 2011}}</ref> A large number of duos and vocal groups emerged on the charts in the 2010s, many of which feature [[close harmony]] in the lead vocals. In addition to Lady A, groups such as [[Little Big Town]], [[the Band Perry]], [[Gloriana (band)|Gloriana]], [[Thompson Square]], [[Eli Young Band]], [[Zac Brown Band]] and British duo [[The Shires (duo)|the Shires]] have emerged to occupy a large share of mainstream success alongside solo singers such as [[Kacey Musgraves]] and [[Miranda Lambert]].

[[File:191125 Taylor Swift at the 2019 American Music Awards.png|alt=|left|thumb|upright=.7|[[Taylor Swift]] at the [[American Music Awards of 2019|2019 American Music Awards]]]]
One of the most commercially successful country artists of the late 2000s and early 2010s has been singer-songwriter [[Taylor Swift]]. Swift first became widely known in 2006 when her debut single, "[[Tim McGraw (song)|Tim McGraw]]", was released when Swift was only 16 years old. In 2006, Swift released her [[Taylor Swift (album)|self-titled debut studio album]], which spent 275 weeks on [[Billboard 200|''Billboard'' 200]], one of the longest runs of any album on that chart. In 2008, Taylor Swift released her second studio album, ''[[Fearless (Taylor Swift album)|Fearless]]'', which made her the second longest number-one charted on ''Billboard'' 200 and the second best-selling album (just behind [[Adele]]'s ''[[21 (Adele album)|21]]'') within the past 5 years. At the [[52nd Annual Grammy Awards|2010 Grammys]], Taylor Swift was 20 and won Album of the Year for ''Fearless'', which made her the youngest artist to win this award. Swift has received fourteen [[Grammy Award|Grammys]] already.

Buoyed by her [[teen idol]] status among girls and a change in the methodology of compiling the ''[[Billboard (magazine)|Billboard]]'' charts to favor pop-crossover songs, Swift's 2012 single "[[We Are Never Ever Getting Back Together]]" spent the most weeks at the top of Billboard's [[Billboard Hot 100|Hot 100]] chart and [[Hot Country Songs]] chart of any song in nearly five decades. The song's long run at the top of the chart was somewhat controversial, as the song is largely a pop song without much country influence and its success on the charts was driven by a change to the chart's criteria to include airplay on non-country radio stations, prompting disputes over what constitutes a country song; many of Swift's later releases, such as album ''[[1989 (Taylor Swift album)|1989]]'' (2014), ''[[Reputation (Taylor Swift album)|Reputation]]'' (2017), and ''[[Lover (album)|Lover]]'' (2019) were released solely to [[Pop music|pop]] audiences.<ref>{{cite magazine |url=https://www.billboard.com/music/music-news/taylor-swift-country-music-split-6228999/ |title=Are Taylor Swift and Country Splitting Up for Good? |first= Jem |last= Aswad |date= August 22, 2014 |magazine=Billboard|access-date=February 15, 2022}}</ref><ref>{{cite magazine |url=https://www.rollingstone.com/music/music-country-lists/trace-taylor-swifts-country-to-pop-transformation-in-5-songs-165118/|title=Trace Taylor Swift's Country-to-Pop Transformation in 5 Song |first= Keith |last= Harris |date=September 9, 2014 |magazine=Rolling Stone|access-date=February 15, 2022}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.usatoday.com/story/life/music/2014/08/18/taylor-swift-shakes-off-country-with-first-pop-album-1989/14256849/ |title=Taylor Swift shakes off country with first pop album |first1=Patrick|last1=Ryan|first2=Brian|last2=Mansfield|work= USA TODAY |date= August 18, 2014 }}</ref> Swift returned to country music in her recent folk-inspired releases, ''[[Folklore (Taylor Swift album)|Folklore]]'' (2020) and ''[[Evermore (Taylor Swift album)|Evermore]]'' (2020), with songs like "[[Betty (Taylor Swift song)|Betty]]" and "[[No Body, No Crime]]".

==== Modern variations ====
[[File:Brad Paisley performing at Caesars Windsor, 2022-05-29 02.jpg|thumb|With his distinctive voice, exceptional guitar skills, and witty songwriting, [[Brad Paisley]] became one of the most successful male artists.]]

In the mid to late 2010s, country music began to increasingly sound more like the style of modern-day [[Pop music]],<ref name=":0">{{Cite magazine|title=As Gen Z Matures, Country Music Moves Into a New Age With Huge Potential|url=https://www.billboard.com/pro/generation-z-country-music-future-tegan-marie-emisunshine/|access-date=February 15, 2022|magazine=Billboard}}</ref> with more simple and repetitive lyrics, more electronic-based instrumentation, and experimentation with "talk-singing" and rap, pop-country pulled farther away from the traditional sounds of country music and received criticisms from country music purists while gaining in popularity with mainstream audiences.<ref>{{Cite magazine|last1=Moss|first1=Marissa R.|date=December 18, 2019|title=20 Country Songs by Women That Should Have Been Hits|url=https://www.rollingstone.com/music/music-country-lists/20-country-songs-by-women-that-should-have-been-hits-928385/|access-date=April 21, 2021|magazine=Rolling Stone}}</ref> The topics addressed have also changed, turning controversial such as acceptance of the [[LGBT community]], safe sex, recreational marijuana use, and questioning religious sentiment.<ref name=":1">{{Cite web|last=Nugent|first=Addison|title=The story of queer country music – and its message of hope|url=https://www.bbc.com/culture/article/20200611-the-story-of-queer-country-music-and-its-message-of-hope|access-date=April 21, 2021|website=BBC}}</ref> Influences also come from some pop artists' interest in the country genre, including [[Justin Timberlake]] with the album ''[[Man of the Woods]],''<ref>{{Cite magazine|last1=Blistein|first1=Jon|date=January 16, 2018|title=Watch Justin Timberlake Tease New Album in Behind-the-Scenes Doc|url=https://www.rollingstone.com/music/music-news/watch-justin-timberlake-tease-new-album-in-behind-the-scenes-doc-202639/|access-date=April 21, 2021|magazine=Rolling Stone}}</ref> [[Beyoncé]]'s song "[[Daddy Lessons]]" from [[Lemonade (Beyoncé album)|''Lemonade'']],<ref>{{Cite magazine|title=Beyonce's 'Daddy Lessons': 10 Fun Facts|url=https://www.billboard.com/music/pop/cma-awards-beyonce-daddy-lessons-fun-facts-7564872/|access-date=February 15, 2022|magazine=Billboard}}</ref> [[Kelly Clarkson]],<ref name=":2" /> [[Gwen Stefani]] with "[[Nobody but You (Blake Shelton and Gwen Stefani song)|Nobody but You]]",<ref>{{Cite web|date=October 20, 2020|first1=Billy |last1=Dukes|title=Watch: Gwen Stefani Turns 'Don't Speak,' 'Spiderwebs' Into Country Songs|url=https://tasteofcountry.com/gwen-stefani-spiderwebs-dont-speak-country-songs-fallon/|access-date=April 21, 2021|website=Taste of Country}}</ref> [[Bruno Mars]],<ref>{{Cite web|last1=Willman|first1=Chris|date=August 26, 2017|title=How a Country Music Bassist Made 'Magic' With Bruno Mars and Nabbed Four VMA Nominations|url=https://variety.com/2017/music/news/midland-bassist-video-director-vmas-bruno-mars-1202539414/|access-date=April 21, 2021|website=Variety}}</ref> [[Lady Gaga]],<ref>{{Cite magazine|last1=Spanos|first1=Brittany|date=October 18, 2016|title=Hear Lady Gaga's Catchy New Country-Pop Song 'A-Yo'|url=https://www.rollingstone.com/music/music-news/hear-lady-gagas-catchy-new-country-pop-song-a-yo-187124/|access-date=April 21, 2021|magazine=Rolling Stone}}</ref> [[Alicia Keys]],<ref>{{Cite web|date=August 18, 2016|first1=Laura|last1=Hostelley|title=Maren Morris to Meet Alicia Keys at the 'Crossroads'|url=https://tasteofcountry.com/maren-morris-alicia-keys-cmt-crossroads/|access-date=April 21, 2021|website=Taste of Country}}</ref> and [[Pink (singer)|Pink]].<ref>{{Cite magazine|last1=Hudak|first1=Joseph|date=September 16, 2020|title=Keith Urban and Pink Duet on New 'One Too Many'|url=https://www.rollingstone.com/music/music-country/keith-urban-pink-duet-one-too-many-1060886/|access-date=April 21, 2021|magazine=Rolling Stone}}</ref>

The influence of [[rock music]] in country has become more overt during the late 2000s and early 2010s as artists like [[Eric Church]], [[Jason Aldean]], and [[Brantley Gilbert]] have had success; [[Aaron Lewis (musician)|Aaron Lewis]], former frontman for the rock group [[Staind]], had a moderately successful entry into country music in 2011 and 2012, as did [[Dallas Smith]], former frontman of the band [[Default (band)|Default]]. By the early 2020s, artists like [[Treaty Oak Revival]] and [[Koe Wetzel]] saw success with a blending of rock elements with country sounds.

[[Maren Morris]] success collaboration "[[The Middle (Zedd, Maren Morris and Grey song)|The Middle]]" with [[Electronic music|EDM]] producer [[Zedd]] is considered one of the representations of the fusion of electro-pop with country music.<ref>{{Cite magazine|last1=McKenna|first1=Brittney|date=January 23, 2018|title=Hear Maren Morris Sing on Vibrant New Zedd Song 'The Middle'|url=https://www.rollingstone.com/music/music-country/hear-maren-morris-sing-on-vibrant-new-zedd-song-the-middle-125082/|access-date=April 21, 2021|magazine=Rolling Stone}}</ref>

[[Lil Nas X]] song "[[Old Town Road]]" [[List of Billboard Hot 100 chart achievements and milestones|spent 19 weeks]] atop the US [[Billboard Hot 100|''Billboard'' Hot 100]] chart, becoming the longest-running number-one song since the chart debuted in 1958, winning [[Billboard Music Awards]], [[MTV Video Music Awards]] and Grammy Award.<ref>{{Cite web|date=August 13, 2019|title=Lil Nas X hit 'Old Town Road' makes Billboard charts history|url=https://www.foxnews.com/entertainment/lil-nas-x-old-town-road-billboard-charts-history|access-date=April 21, 2021|website=Associated Press}}</ref> [[Sam Hunt]] "[[Leave the Night On]]" peaked concurrently on the Hot Country Songs and Country Airplay charts, making Hunt the first country artist in 22 years, since [[Billy Ray Cyrus]], to reach the top of three country charts simultaneously in the [[Nielsen SoundScan]]-era.<ref>{{Cite magazine|title=Sam Hunt Scores Country Charts Feat Last Achieved 22 Years Ago|url=https://www.billboard.com/pro/sam-hunt-scores-country-charts-feat-last-achieved-22-years-ago/|access-date=February 15, 2022|magazine=Billboard}}</ref> With the fusion genre of "country [[trap music|trap]]"—a fusion of country/western themes to a [[hip hop music|hip hop]] beat, but usually with fully sung lyrics—emerging in the late 2010s, line dancing country had a minor revival, examples of the phenomenon include "[[The Git Up]]" by [[Blanco Brown]].<ref name="Chow 2019">{{cite magazine | last=Chow | first=Andrew R. | title=Blanco Brown Talks 'The Git Up' and the Fusion of Country and Rap | magazine=Time | date=July 27, 2019 | url=https://time.com/5634271/blanco-brown-the-git-up-interview/ | access-date=December 11, 2022}}</ref> Blanco Brown has gone on to make more traditional country soul songs such as "I Need Love" and a rendition of "[[Don't Take the Girl]]" with [[Tim McGraw]], and collaborations like "[[Just the Way]]" with [[Parmalee]].<ref name="MusicRow.com 2021">{{cite web | title=Industry Ink: Parmalee & Blanco Brown, Visionary Media Group, PLA Media | website=MusicRow.com | date=June 22, 2021 | url=https://musicrow.com/2021/06/industry-ink-parmalee-blanco-brown-visionary-media-group-pla-media/ | access-date=December 11, 2022}}</ref> Another country trap artist known as [[Breland (musician)|Breland]] has seen success with "[[My Truck]], "[[Throw It Back (Breland song)|Throw It Back]]" with [[Keith Urban]], and "[[Praise the Lord (Breland song)|Praise the Lord]]" featuring [[Thomas Rhett]].<ref name="Zisman 2022">{{cite web | last=Zisman | first=Erica | title=Who Is Breland? The Story Behind His Journey to Country Music | website=CS | date=March 8, 2022 | url=https://countryswag.com/who-is-breland-the-story-behind-his-journey-to-country-music/ | access-date=December 11, 2022}}</ref>

[[Emo rap]] musician [[Sueco]], released a [[cowpunk]] song in collaboration is country musician [[Warren Zeiders]] titled "Ride It Hard".<ref name="MusicRow.com 2022">{{cite web | title=DISClaimer Single Reviews: Jordan Davis Gives 'The Sound Of A Superstar In Training' | website=MusicRow.com | date=November 17, 2022 | url=https://musicrow.com/2022/11/disclaimer-single-reviews-jordan-davis-gives-the-sound-of-a-superstar-in-training/ | access-date=December 11, 2022}}</ref>

===== Bro country =====
{{Main|Bro-country}}
[[File:Florida Georgia Line Night Train Tour 2014.jpg|thumb|upright|[[Florida Georgia Line]] whose hit song "[[Cruise (song)|Cruise]]" drew attention to the [[bro-country]] genre]]
In the early 2010s, "[[bro-country]]", a genre noted primarily for its themes on drinking and partying, girls, and pickup trucks became particularly popular.<ref>{{cite magazine |url=http://www.newyorker.com/culture/culture-desk/clever-response-bro-country-songs |title=Taking Country Music back from the Bros |first=Ian |last=Crouch |magazine=The New Yorker |date=July 24, 2014 }}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.huffpost.com/entry/country-music-and-the-rise-of-the-binge_b_5697278 |title=Country Music and the Rise of the Binge-Drinking Bro |first=Patrick R. |last=Krill |work=HuffPost |date=August 21, 2014|access-date=February 15, 2022}}</ref><ref name="kanuch">{{cite web |last1=Kanuch |first1=Nathan |title=Re-visiting Bro-Country |url=https://medium.com/shore2shore-country/re-visiting-bro-country-dd85fe7fe93d |website=[[Medium (website)|Medium]] |access-date=June 12, 2022 |date=March 5, 2018}}</ref> Notable artists associated with this genre are [[Luke Bryan]], [[Jason Aldean]], [[Blake Shelton]], [[Jake Owen]] and [[Florida Georgia Line]] whose song "[[Cruise (song)|Cruise]]" became the best-selling country song of all time.<ref name="best-selling">{{cite news |url=https://www.billboard.com/pro/florida-georgia-line-cruise-sets-all-time-country-sales-record/ |title=Florida Georgia Line's 'Cruise' Sets All-Time Country Sales Record |first= Wade |last= Jessen |date =January 6, 2014 |magazine=Billboard|access-date=February 15, 2022}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |url=http://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2014/jan/6/country-times-bro-country-vs-traditional-bring-on-/?page=all |title=COUNTRY TIMES: 'Bro-country' vs. traditional: Bring on the fight|first = David |last = Eldridge |work=The Washington Times |date= January 6, 2014 }}</ref> Research in the mid-2010s suggested that about 45 percent of country's best-selling songs could be considered bro-country, with the top two artists being Luke Bryan and Florida Georgia Line.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.cmt.com/news/1750831/bro-country-mashup-guy-confronts-radio-programmers/ |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150227071822/http://www.cmt.com/news/1750831/bro-country-mashup-guy-confronts-radio-programmers/ |url-status=dead |archive-date=February 27, 2015 |title=Bro Country Mashup Guy Confronts Radio Programmers: What Does the Future of Country Radio Hold?|first =Chris |last =Parton |date=February 26, 2015 |work=CMT}}</ref> Albums by bro-country singers also sold very well—in 2013, Luke Bryan's ''[[Crash My Party]]'' was the third best-selling of all albums in the United States, with Florida Georgia Line's ''[[Here's to the Good Times]]'' at sixth, and Blake Shelton's ''[[Based on a True Story...|Based on a True Story]]'' at ninth.<ref name="fox">{{cite news |url=https://www.foxnews.com/opinion/country-music-is-not-dead-give-bro-country-a-chance |title=Country music is not dead: Give bro' country a chance|first= Sasha |last= Bogursky |date= June 12, 2014 |work=Fox News|access-date=February 15, 2022}}</ref> It is also thought that the popularity of bro-country helped country music to surpass classic rock as the most popular genre in the American country in 2012.<ref name="fox"/> The genre however is controversial as it has been criticized by other country musicians and commentators over its themes and depiction of women,<ref name="smith">{{cite magazine|url=https://ew.com/article/2013/10/01/country-music-identity-crisis/|title=How country music went crazy: A comprehensive timeline of the genre's identity crisis|last=Smith|first=Grady|date=October 1, 2013|magazine=Entertainment Weekly|access-date=February 15, 2022}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|last1=McCarthy|first1=Amy|title=Bro Country's Sexism Is Ruining Country Music|url=https://www.dallasobserver.com/music/bro-countrys-sexism-is-ruining-country-music-7070740|website=Dallas Observer|access-date=February 15, 2022|date=June 18, 2014|archive-date=February 14, 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150214012201/http://blogs.dallasobserver.com/dc9/2014/06/bro_country_sexism_ruining_country_music.php}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |url=http://tasteofcountry.com/kenny-chesney-billboard-bro-country/ |title=Kenny Chesney Covers Billboard, Speaks Out on Country Songs That 'Objectify' Women|first= Sterling |last= Whitaker |work=Taste of Country|date=November 15, 2014 }}</ref> opening up a divide between the older generation of country singers and the younger bro country singers that was described as "civil war" by musicians, critics, and journalists."<ref name=time>{{cite news |url=https://time.com/3502546/florida-georgia-line-bro-country/ |title='Bro Country' Is Still Thriving, Even If Everyone Hates It |first=Adam|last=Carlson|date= October 14, 2014 |magazine=Time }}</ref> In 2014, [[Maddie & Tae]]'s "[[Girl in a Country Song]]", addressing many of the controversial bro-country themes, peaked at number one on the ''[[Billboard (magazine)|Billboard]]'' [[Country Airplay]] chart.

===== Bluegrass and Americana =====
{{Main|Americana (music)|Bluegrass music}}
[[File:Emmylou Harris 2008 The Woodland Park Zootunes.jpg|thumb|[[Emmylou Harris]] in 2008]]

Bluegrass is a genre that contain songs about going through hard times, country loving, and telling stories. Its history can be traced back to the 1600s. During this time, many people were coming to America from Ireland, Scotland and England.<ref>{{Cite web |date=February 1, 2014 |title=Bluegrass, Roots, Americana, and Folk Music {{!}} San Diego Troubadour |url=https://sandiegotroubadour.com/bluegrass-roots-americana-and-folk-music/ |access-date=March 4, 2024 |website=sandiegotroubadour.com |language=en-US}}</ref> Those people brought the first version of Bluegrass to the Americas. After several years of bluegrass' development, Bill Monroe became the "father" of bluegrass.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Rosenberg |first=Neil V. |url=http://dx.doi.org/10.1093/gmo/9781561592630.article.03309 |title=Bluegrass music |date=2001 |publisher=Oxford University Press |series=Oxford Music Online|doi=10.1093/gmo/9781561592630.article.03309 }}</ref> Other sources argue that The Monroe Brothers were the first stars of bluegrass.<ref>{{Cite web |date=June 7, 2021 |title=Bluegrass Music Guide |url=https://www.masterclass.com/articles/bluegrass-music-guide |access-date=March 4, 2024 |website=Masterclass}}</ref>  Newer artists like [[Billy Strings]], [[the Grascals]], [[Molly Tuttle]], [[Tyler Childers]] and [[the Infamous Stringdusters]] have been increasing the popularity of this genre, alongside some of the genres more established stars who still remain popular including [[Rhonda Vincent]], [[Alison Krauss]] and [[Union Station (band)|Union Station]], [[Ricky Skaggs]] and [[Del McCoury]]. The genre has developed in the [[Northern Kentucky]] and [[Cincinnati]] area. Other artists include [[New South (band)]], [[Doc Watson]], [[Osborne Brothers]], and many others.

In an effort to combat the over-reliance of mainstream country music on pop-infused artists, the sister genre of [[Americana (music)|Americana]] began to gain popularity and increase in prominence, receiving eight [[Grammy]] categories of its own in 2009. Though Americana music gained popularity in 2009, the first Americana singer was likely Hank Williams in the 1950s.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Chilton |first=Martin |date=May 2, 2023 |title=Americana: How Country And Roots Music Found A "Brand New Dance" |url=https://www.udiscovermusic.com/in-depth-features/americana-music-country-roots-history/ |access-date=March 4, 2024 |website=uDiscover Music |language=en-US}}</ref> Americana music incorporates elements of country music, bluegrass, folk, blues, gospel, rhythm and blues, roots rock and southern soul and is overseen by the [[Americana Music Association]] and the [[Americana Music Honors & Awards]].<ref>{{cite web |title=About the Awards |url=http://americanamusic.org/about-awards |access-date=December 18, 2012 |archive-date=April 20, 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150420081843/http://americanamusic.org/about-awards |url-status=dead }}</ref> As a result of an increasingly pop-leaning mainstream, many more traditional-sounding artists such as [[Tyler Childers]], [[Zach Bryan]] and [[Old Crow Medicine Show]] began to associate themselves more with Americana and the [[alternative country]] scene where their sound was more celebrated. Similarly, many established country acts who no longer received commercial airplay, including [[Emmylou Harris]] and [[Lyle Lovett]], began to flourish again.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.grammy.com/grammys/artists/lyle-lovett| title=Lyle Lovett| access-date=June 4, 2019 |website=Grammys}}</ref>

===== Contemporary country and western revival =====
[[File:Kacey Musgraves 2019 by Glenn Francis.jpg|thumb|upright=.8|[[Kacey Musgraves]] became one of the most controversial figures in contemporary country music.<ref>{{Cite web|date=April 20, 2019|title=Kacey Musgraves: from liberal misfit to country's biggest star|url=http://www.theguardian.com/music/2019/apr/20/kacey-musgraves-liberal-misfit-country-star-nashville-horse-microdosing-lsd|access-date=April 21, 2021|website=The Guardian}}</ref>]]

During the mid-1980s, a group of new artists began to emerge who rejected the more polished country-pop sound that had been prominent on radio and the charts, in favor of more, traditional, "back-to-basics" production. Many of the artists during the latter half of the 1980s drew on traditional honky-tonk, bluegrass, folk and western swing. Artists who typified this sound included [[Travis Tritt]], [[Reba McEntire]], [[George Strait]], [[Keith Whitley]], [[Alan Jackson]], [[John Anderson (musician)|John Anderson]], [[Patty Loveless]], [[Kathy Mattea]], [[Randy Travis]], [[Dwight Yoakam]], [[Clint Black]], [[Ricky Skaggs]], and [[the Judds]].

Beginning in 1989, a confluence of events brought an unprecedented commercial boom to country music. New marketing strategies were used to engage fans, powered by technology that more accurately tracked the popularity of country music, and boosted by a political and economic climate that focused attention on the genre. [[Garth Brooks]] ("Friends in Low Places") in particular attracted fans with his fusion of neotraditionalist country and [[arena rock|stadium rock]]. Other artists such as [[Brooks and Dunn]] ("Boot Scootin' Boogie") also combined conventional country with slick, rock elements, while [[Lorrie Morgan]], [[Mary Chapin Carpenter]], and [[Kathy Mattea]] updated neotraditionalist styles.<ref name="Country Music">{{cite web|last1=Neal|first1=Jocelyn R.|title=Country Music|url=http://www.oxfordmusiconline.com/subscriber/article/grove/music/A2224075|website=Oxford music online}}</ref>

[[File:Midland in concert - NYS Fair.jpg|thumb|left|[[Midland (band)|Midland]], one of the most popular neotraditional honky-tonk bands]]
Roots of conservative country was Lee Greenwood's "God Bless the USA".<ref name="Mendez 2020">{{cite web | last=Mendez | first=Katy | title=Lee Greenwood, 'God Bless the USA' singer, to perform at Trump rally in Central Texas | website=www.kwtx.com | date=October 15, 2020 | url=https://www.kwtx.com/2020/10/15/lee-greenwood-god-bless-the-usa-singer-to-perform-at-trump-rally-in-central-texas/ | access-date=October 13, 2022}}</ref> The [[September 11 attacks]] of 2001 and the economic recession helped move country music back into the spotlight. Many country artists, such as Alan Jackson with his ballad on terrorist attacks, "[[Where Were You (When the World Stopped Turning)]]", wrote songs that celebrated the military, highlighted the gospel, and emphasized home and family values over wealth. Alt-Country singer Ryan Adams song "[[New York, New York (Ryan Adams song)|New York, New York]]" pays tribute to New York City, and its popular music video (which was shot 4 days before the attacks) shows Adams playing in front of the Manhattan skyline, Along with several shots of the city. In contrast, more rock-oriented country singers took more direct aim at the attacks' perpetrators; Toby Keith's "[[Courtesy of the Red, White and Blue (The Angry American)]]" threatened to "a boot in" the posterior of the enemy, while Charlie Daniels's "[[This Ain't No Rag, It's a Flag]]" promised to "hunt" the perpetrators "down like a mad dog hound." These songs gained such recognition that it put country music back into popular culture.<ref>{{cite web|last1=Neal|first1=Jocelyn|title=Country Music|url=http://www.oxfordmusiconline.com/subscriber/article/grove/music/A2224075|website=Oxford Music Online|publisher=Oxford University Press|access-date=February 21, 2015}}</ref> Darryl Worley recorded "Have You Forgotten" also. There have been numerous patriotic country songs throughout the years.<ref name="Country Thang Daily 2021">{{cite web | title=10 America Songs You Should Be Listening Right Now | website=Country Thang Daily | date=January 28, 2021 | url=https://www.countrythangdaily.com/top-10-america-songs/ | access-date=October 13, 2022}}</ref><ref name="Moore 2022">{{cite web | last=Moore | first=Bobby | title=20 Most Patriotic Country Songs | website=Wide Open Country | date=July 4, 2022 | url=https://www.wideopencountry.com/patriotic-country-songs/ | access-date=October 13, 2022}}</ref>

[[File:Maddie_&_Tae_in_2014.jpg|thumb|right|[[Maddie & Tae]] country duo known for their empowering songs and witty commentary on the gender stereotypes in country music.]]
Some modern artists that primarily or entirely produce [[country pop]] music include [[Kacey Musgraves]], [[Maren Morris]], [[Kelsea Ballerini]], [[Sam Hunt]], [[Kane Brown]], [[Chris Lane]], and [[Dan + Shay]].<ref>{{Cite news|title=How The Sound Of Country Music Changed|url=https://www.npr.org/sections/therecord/2018/03/20/594037569/how-the-sound-of-country-music-changed|access-date=April 21, 2021|newspaper=NPR|date=March 20, 2021|last=Hight|first=Jewly}}</ref> The singers who are part of this country movement are also defined as "Nashville's new generation of country".<ref>{{Cite web|last=Hight|first=Jewly|date=August 9, 2018|title=In the Write: The Evolution of Country Music in Nashville|url=https://www.vulture.com/2018/08/the-evolution-of-country-music-in-nashville.html|access-date=April 21, 2021|website=Vulture}}</ref>

Although the changes made by the new generation, it has been recognized by major music awards associations and successes in [[Billboard charts|Billboard]] and international charts. [[Golden Hour (Kacey Musgraves album)|''Golden Hour'']] by Kacey Musgraves won album of the year at [[61st Annual Grammy Awards]], [[Academy of Country Music Awards]], [[Country Music Association Awards]],<ref>{{Cite web|last=Mercuri|first=Monica|title=Kacey Musgraves Reclaims Top Country Albums No. 1 Following Grammy Success|url=https://www.forbes.com/sites/monicamercuri/2019/02/20/kacey-musgraves-reclaims-top-country-albums-no-1-following-grammy-success/|access-date=April 21, 2021|website=Forbes}}</ref> although it has received criticism from some traditional country music fans.<ref>{{Cite magazine|title=Kacey Musgraves' Golden Year: After dominating the year with her own brand of cosmic country, the singer looks ahead to 2019 and the Grammys|url=https://www.rollingstone.com/music/music-country/kacey-musgraves-golden-hour-album-grammy-771594/|magazine=[[Rolling Stone]]|date=December 21, 2018}}</ref>