(Credits: Far Out / Alamy / Paul Einerhand)
Country music, at its most traditional and stereotypical, embodies the familiar image of southern American male singers crooning about lost loves and whiskey-soaked nights. Initially, it served as a refuge for the downtrodden, offering a platform to express and explore their woes. Yet, as time progressed, the genre ventured into new realms, delving into diverse themes and narratives. Even still, despite its evolution, country music often struggles to resonate beyond the borders of the Land of the Free.
The birth of modern country music found its roots as the quintessential representation of American culture and heritage. Early iterations occurred at the intersection of post-war America and the civil rights movement, resulting in a sound that often sounded unsettling and less smooth than the versions that came after. Artists like Hank Williams, Lefty Frizzell, and Kitty Wells brought a raw, honky-tonk sound to the forefront, characterised by twangy guitars, steel pedals, and lyrics that reflected the hardships of working-class Americans.
While this era saw the emergence of timeless classics, the 1950s and 1960s saw country music begin to embrace a smoother, more polished sound known as the ‘Nashville sound’. Spearheaded by producers like Chet Atkins and Owen Bradley, this subgenre incorporated lush orchestration and sophisticated arrangements, appealing to a broader audience beyond rural America. Artists like Patsy Cline, Jim Reeves, and Eddy Arnold achieved widespread success with their crossover hits, bridging the gap between country and pop music.
The following decade welcomed a rebellious streak with the emergence of outlaw country. Artists like Willie Nelson, Waylon Jennings, and Merle Haggard rejected the polished sound of Nashville in favour of a grittier, more authentic approach. Their music spoke to a countercultural movement, embracing themes of freedom, individuality, and rebellion. Meanwhile, artists like Dolly Parton introduced a new generation to the genre, providing the freshness of a unique perspective to the genre’s lyricism.
While contemporary artists continue to forge new paths within the genre, its deep roots in American patriotism and ideology remain steadfast. This connection is hardly surprising when considering the underlying principles: American values emphasise unity for the common good. True Americans deeply respect their country and remain tethered to its foundational principles.
In this context, country music serves as a powerful channel for connecting with American heritage. It provides a means to resonate with the country’s shared history and values. Whether expressing feelings of melancholy or singing about personal struggles, country music offers a comforting embrace, a reminder that America stands beside its citizens through it all. As history professor Eric Stein once explained, “While folk, rock, and soul came to symbolise the anti-establishment politics of the New Left, the counterculture, and American blacks, respectively, country music produced artists who defended traditional American values.”
While acknowledging that a lot of country music transcends such narrow confines, it doesn’t take away from the fact that the predominant association remains deeply rooted in a collective spirit of national unity. Despite the presence of country artists beyond American borders, such as Lucie Silvas, and the genre’s ongoing thematic evolution spearheaded by artists like Orville Peck, the overarching perception remains undeniably linked to American culture.
For instance, in 2001, Toby Keith’s ‘Courtesy of the Red, White and Blue’ arrived at a pivotal moment for Keith personally and in American culture, after the singer lost his father and America was grappling with the aftermath of the 9/11 attacks. “It’s your job as an entertainer to lift the morale of the troops,” Commandant of the Marine Corps James L. Jones told Keith at the time. “If you want to serve, that is what you can do,” he said, evidently recognising the power of one of the country’s most important country artists to rally the nation and provide comfort.
The song effectively served as a heartfelt ode to the United States, reassuring its citizens that they were always strong, even amid moments of perceived threat. Its lyrics embodied a direct, unforgiving, and straightforward sentiment: “Justice will be served and the battle will rage / This big dog will fight when you rattle his cage / And you’ll be sorry that you messed with / The U.S. of A.”
Keith was among a multitude of artists who conveyed such messages, whether overt or subtle. The discourse surrounding various waves of country music and its capacity to connect with international audiences remains complex, often circumscribed to traditional realms associated with genre innovators. Nonetheless, the factors contributing to its challenge in resonating with broader audiences can be pinpointed.
While artists like Parton, Johnny Cash, and Nelson succeed in garnering global acclaim, potential audiences may have limited access to new country music and may be less familiar with its artists and repertoire. Other reasons for its lack of resonance outside America may be linked to its visual aesthetic – the cowboy hats and boots, pickup trucks, and rural landscapes may not translate to people from other cultural backgrounds, resulting in dissociation or general lack of interest.
Simultaneously, country music entrenched itself as an American mainstay amid the nation’s most uncertain and tumultuous epochs. It could be posited that during periods when the nation’s core principles felt jeopardised or societal cohesion became paramount, country music serves as a refuge for one nation alone, reassuring the populace that their homeland would endure even amid its most fractured eras. While other nations find solace in their own culturally relevant music, America flourishes with its enduring backdrop of country music.
