Gary Allan: “We Used to Influence Pop. Now We’re Being Influenced by Pop”
Following the career of Gary Allan over the last few years has been like riding a roller coaster, and now he is back to criticizing all of the pop influences in country after being partially a party to them with some of his recent singles. While preparing for some shows in Las Vegas recently, Allan spoke candidly to the Review-Journal about what he feels is wrong with today’s country music, while also admitting he’s dabbled himself in some mainstream sounds over the years.
“ ‘Organic’ is a good word,” Gary told the newspaper. “I feel like somebody needs to stick out and turn this thing back toward something more organic. Country music used to be the most organic stuff out there, and now it’s become super pop-influenced. We used to influence pop. Now I feel like we’re being influenced by pop.”
Allan continued, “I’ve always found myself on the edge of Americana and the mainstream. When I get too far in the Americana side, I put one right down the pike and get back over into the mainstream. Then when you get too far into the mainstream, you try to pull those other guys. That’s been a dance my whole career.”
Since Gary Allan’s early 2013 album Set You Free, he’s been struggling to release new music after a series of failed singles. 2015’s R&B-styled “Hangover Tonight,” 2016’s “Do You Wish It Was Me?” and 2017’s “Mess Me Up” all failed to reach the Top 40 at radio, stifling Allan’s opportunities to release a new album. Allan moved label imprints from MCA Nashville to EMI Nashville in 2016, hoping this may help to restart his career, but to no avail so far. Rumors have Gary Allan recently working with producer and songwriter Shane McAnally. Presumably Allan’s had an entire album in the can for a few years. But without a successful single, mainstream labels are often leery to release new records.
Allan said in the recent interview, “I’m super proud of the stuff I just turned in. Hopefully they’ll find a single out of that, and we’ll get a launching point and go. It’s all pretty feel-good; it’s all pretty in-your-face. It’s all just really different. I kind of went the opposite of what everybody else was doing.”
This isn’t the first time Gary Allan has been outspoken about the pop direction of country. In 2013, he said artists like Taylor Swift and Carrie Underwood weren’t country when prompted by Larry King in an interview. “You used to be able to turn on the radio and you knew instantly it was the country station just by listening to it, and now you’ve got to leave it there for a second to figure it out,” Allan said, then blamed radio consolidation for the change. “They’ve kind of sliced everything up, feeding it to the public in demographics.”
Gary Allan later backtracked, saying that those comments were taken out-of-context. Some have surmised that his harsh words for radio are one of the reasons his subsequent singles have struggled. The good news for Gary Allan fans is it sounds like new music could be on the way. The only question will be if radio will play it, or if his label will release it in album form.
63Guild
December 17, 2018 @ 8:47 am
Bet he would be singing a different tune if his pop infused songs had gained traction.
Lance
December 17, 2018 @ 9:15 am
Always liked his work. Feel sorry for guys like him who have to navigate the waters of nashville & what’s popular. Easy to bash him without being in his shoes.
Jason
December 17, 2018 @ 9:20 am
I love Gary Allan, and I hate to say it, but his radio career is over. I wish he would find a label that would release the music he want to make and not chase the next big single.
Sunny
December 17, 2018 @ 9:25 am
Gare. Can I call you Gare? You’re a badass OG from the Cali Honky Tonks. Bring that shit back! Put your cowboy hat back on, get Jake back in your band, and get back to whippin some ass!
OlaR
December 17, 2018 @ 9:33 am
Big Gary Allan fan here…
But he lost me with his trend chasing singles. His radio-career is over & will not come back.
Working with Shane McAnally…well…as long as Gary Allan is not becoming Walker Hayes 2.
Kevin Smith
December 17, 2018 @ 11:06 am
OlaR, I could not agree more. My personal favorite song Gary did was “Just Got Back From Hell.” It helped me through an awful time period in my life.Smoke Rings in The Dark was also amazing. Then he tries to be a trend chaser and it just doesn’t hold up to his previous work.
He’s got a base of folks who will support him live, IMO he needs to focus on the stuff that made him great and forget those male barbie clap tracking losers.
Cool Lester Smooth
December 17, 2018 @ 1:19 pm
The thing about McAnally, though, is that they could just as easily be doing a Midland/Musgraves-style rootsy/throwback jams.
Dude legitimately doesn’t have a musical style – he’s all about the money.
thebugman10
December 19, 2018 @ 2:01 pm
Songs About Rain will always be a favorite of mine.
ScottG
December 17, 2018 @ 9:47 am
For artists trying to “break” these days and don’t already have somewhat of a following, it seems like there isn’t much middle ground between being true to yourself and playing the game. Either you stay independent and slug it out doing what you want to do or you go all in on being a commerical puppet.
Brett
December 17, 2018 @ 9:53 am
I hope he eventually just says heck with radio and releases the music he wants. The guy had some classic albums in early 00’s, like Smoke Rings in the Dark, Alright Guy, and Tough All Over. He always had a good ear for material and that gravelly voice is instantly recognizable. If he would release just a good, hard country recorf i think itd go over big time.
Fesgrow
December 17, 2018 @ 10:27 am
Don’t tell mama I was drinking…
albert
December 17, 2018 @ 10:55 am
he’s mostly right about…everything , of course . he’s saying what many won’t and personally , I love that he does that .
but if radio isn’t interested in playing the music of greats with talent and track records like Chesnutt , Strait , AJ , Joe Nichols and the endless list of veteran COUNTRY singers its ignored …he shouldn’t be the least bit surprised that they aren’t interested in playing him .
its simply a very sad situation and Gary Allan is one of many victims of this pop trend-chasing by the genre .
Erik North
December 17, 2018 @ 10:58 am
I don’t want to tell Gary Allan this but, while he is right about country having influenced pop, perhaps he should be aware that the inverse–pop influencing country–has also been true, pretty much since the explosion of rock and roll back in the early 1950s. This isn’t anything new. You can argue whether or not that’s a good thing (in my opinion, it depends on how it’s being done, who’s doing it, and for what reasons), but in no way is this pop-influencing-country thing anything new. He ought to be aware of this by now; and if he isn’t, maybe he ought to read up on it. The history IS out there.
Pierre Brunelle
December 17, 2018 @ 11:24 am
I respect Gary Allen for speaking out. More artists speak out about the death of country music, the better it is. Having said that, like Joe Nichols et al., Gary Allen tried to jump on this pop country trend and it failed. His view would carry more weight should he avoid this pop trend altogether.
Without a doubt, this corporate country music industry is plain evil. Look what they have done to freaking Josh Turner!!!
He has one of the most phenomenal country voice and yet, they put him on hold for years. Why!? lol it’s a tragedy!
Brett
December 17, 2018 @ 11:38 am
Yeah, radio wont play Josh Turner anymore and what does the guy do? Release the best gospel record in years! And its been a success for him.
Trigger
December 17, 2018 @ 12:27 pm
The Josh Turner and Gary Allan stories feel very similar. Very talented guys that they try to “contemporize” for radio, singles fail, albums get shelved, and then it’s just years of a label sitting on their hands, wondering what to do with them when they could be out there releasing records. Radio is not to only road to success, especially for someone with an established fan base like Gary Allan.
DJ
December 17, 2018 @ 11:29 am
Went looking for this guy (Gary Allan) since I’d never heard of him- and ran across this
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0-EBbYKA-uU
Kevin Davis
December 17, 2018 @ 11:51 am
Shane McAnally? Huh? If it’s the Shane McAnally of Midland and Kacey Musgraves, then it could be good. If it’s the Shane McAnally of nearly every other project he’s been a part of, then damn it all to hell.
It’s a bit strange for Gary to be making these comments while working with the guy who has done more than anyone in Nashville to fundamentally change both the sound and the substance of country music.
Cool Lester Smooth
December 17, 2018 @ 1:27 pm
The fact that we can wonder “which McAnally we’ll get” pretty much gives the lie to the idea of him as some Machiavellian kingmaker ruining country.
He’s a hired gun songwriter whom the Machiavellian kingmakers ruining country like to hire…and also a songwriting partner whom people like Musgraves and Midland and Brandy Clark like to work with.
King Honky Of Crackershire
December 17, 2018 @ 11:52 am
Gary was an interloper from the beginning, but despite that, he put out some good songs in the late 90’s.
Now, he’s just another hypocrite with a mouth.
Sharon Bradtke
December 17, 2018 @ 1:57 pm
Gary just keep on being REAL. LOVE YOU !
Greg
December 17, 2018 @ 4:19 pm
I got to meet Gary once in Cincinnati Ohio.A real nice guy.And he put on a great concert.
Batterycap
December 17, 2018 @ 4:30 pm
https://youtu.be/aT9iox7jH1g
The truth.
eisenhorn1009
December 17, 2018 @ 6:34 pm
Back in the day before streaming, I wore out “Alright Guy”, “Tough All Over”, “See If I care”, and “Smoke Rings in the Dark” on CD and knew pretty much all of the songs on them. After those, I can maybe name two songs of his. He was one of my favorites. Whatever his past transgressions with the move away from those first albums, I’d love to see him get back to what made him one of my favorites. Just stop trying to play what the radio wants to play and get back to what makes you good. The radio route is obviously not working for you anyway.
Eva Gonzalez
December 17, 2018 @ 6:43 pm
I don’t care what anybody says, look at your venues & fan pages on the net full of supporters that love you. A true fan will be beside you no matter what you put out there. Look at the multitude of fans that travel from afar just to spend a couple hours in your presence. Keep on being you, keep your face towards the sun & the people that are not important will fade away.
Donna sorg
December 17, 2018 @ 7:51 pm
I don’t know who’s feathers he ruffled but hes never been treated well by country music. He has a beautiful voice that draws you in when he sings, hes a sweet heart and a humble man. Sell your cd’s at your concerts, let the ppl Decide. Your fate. Country music went through a rap era 🤮 glad that’s in the past. Keep being you Gary we love you as you are.
Orgirl1
December 17, 2018 @ 9:13 pm
Started a petition to Billboard to separate Pop Country from Country.
https://www.change.org/p/billboard-inc-separate-country-music-into-pop-country-and-country-in-the-charts?recruiter=924018142&utm_source=share_petition&utm_medium=copylink&utm_campaign=tap_basic_share&utm_term=Search%3ESAP%3EUS%3EBrand%3EProper%3EExact
liza
December 18, 2018 @ 2:05 am
He meant to say “now we are pop”.
Paul
December 18, 2018 @ 6:57 am
This bit right here is symptomatic of the problem –
“Allan continued, “I’ve always found myself on the edge of Americana and the mainstream. When I get too far in the Americana side, I put one right down the pike and get back over into the mainstream. Then when you get too far into the mainstream, you try to pull those other guys. That’s been a dance my whole career.””
Trying to appeal to mass markets in order to make more money instead of writing songs and playing the music that you want to play. Someone like Allan who has flirted with the mainstream needs to lead the way in less of the former, more of the latter. That is the only way to get back to a more organic sound
Zues
December 19, 2018 @ 7:09 pm
I was a pretty big fan of his first 3 albums. In fact, the first time I heard Steeldrivers “Drinkin’ Dark Whisky”, I thought it was an Allan cover. Always loved this song…
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0txLj2VJlag
Kaleb
December 21, 2018 @ 8:29 am
As a pop-country convert who didn’t grow fed up with the mainstream till 2012, I can say that Gary Allen has always been one of my favorite artists on mainstream country radio. Life Ain’t Always Beautiful and Songs About Rain will always be two of my favorite songs of all time. If he released an Americana album, with maybe some of those beautiful melodies he included in his early 2000’s work, I would be all over that.
Gary’s radio career may be over, but if he embraces a new direction, he can reach new levels of success and be bigger than he ever was on the radio. Why go after Billboard streaming charts when you can go after the Grammy’s? I’d buy it.
Diamond Girl
December 21, 2018 @ 7:26 pm
This is Good news for Gary, working with McAnally. Gary has that rough edge, remarkable voice. He can perform and sing the most tender song to the most heartbreaking and soul searching. He rides the musical (and life) ups and downs like the tough cowboys ride the bulls. A lot of depth to him as an artist. Looking forward to hearing the new songs.