‘Not rock ‘n’ roll’s little sister': Inside country music’s new golden era — and what comes next
Associated PressLOS ANGELES — It was an unexpected musical success story last year, one that has only continued to snowball: Country music, with its loyal listenership on the margins of pop’s mainstream, had a crossover moment. In July, country acts held the top three spots on the Billboard Hot 100 for the first time in the chart’s 65-year history: Controversy hoisted Jason Aldean’s “Try That In a Small Town” to No. Beyond Wallen and those other chart-toppers, newer country talent has begun experiencing some crossover success, like the hip-hop head Jelly Roll, Lainey Wilson’s Deana Carter-referencing “Watermelon Moonshine,” and Bailey Zimmerman’s hard rock rasp on “Rock and A Hard Place.” If pop has begun embracing a “genreless” approach to music, it seems like that unconventionality is opening doors for country as well — and it is accounting for the music’s popularity. “If you’re in country music,” he says, “They’re going to try and fix your music if they take it outside of the United States — which usually means steel and fiddles get taken off.
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