On December 18th after Zach Bryan had three of his songs featured on Season 5, Episode 7 of the Paramount series Yellowstone, singer and songwriter Rich O’Toole took to social media to say that Zach’s song “Motorcycle Drive By” had borrowed/stolen the guitar/melody part from his song “Take My Heart” released in 2014.
Susan Lucci is the name people love to cite when it comes to someone who’s accrued a long string of nominations for a certain award without ever actually winning it. But legendary country music steel guitarist Paul Franklin actually has Susan Lucci beat, and by more than a decade.
Ever since video leaked of Morgan Wallen using the ‘N’ word on camera on January 31st, 2021, the situation has been broadly mischaracterized by the media and others looking to exploit the situation as opposed to giving it the accurate portrayal such an important incident deserves.
Though the film means well, and is generally well-made with superb cinematography and high production value, the approach and information conveyed in the film is problematic to say the least, actively participating in erasing the legacy of Black country artists in a film that purports to be championing them.
Country music is country music, and the best definition of what country music is, is that you know it when you hear it. It’s self-evident. But the genre has birthed many subgenres, many stylistic movements over the years, and at times has seen a splintering and Balkanization.
Chapel Hart have been around for a while now, originally forming in 2014 and releasing their first of two LPs in 2019. They are also one of the most egregious victims of discrimination in country music. No, not just because they are Black, because they are country.
It’s a cool program the Bank of New Hampshire Pavilion has put together, with local bands opening for big-named acts all summer. But apparently when the team for Maren Morris caught wind that there would be a local act playing on the Hazy Little Stage, they cited a “no local openers” clause.
If Kane Brown loves his woman like he loves country music as he says in his new song, that means he’s sleeping with her sister and gave them both a case of chlamydia that he contracted from some floozie he picked up in a bar. “Toxic” to say the least.
Many independent country music fans and Americana nerds will never admit to it, but the simple fact is that mainstream country music has been on a painfully slow, but palpable improvement track since about 2015 when Bro-Country hit its peak.
I know what you’re going to say. “NeW yOrK CiTY!” like that guy in the old Pace Picante Sauce commercial. Or if you pride yourself in having any sort of semblance of taste, maybe you’re wondering why anyone in 2021 would still be listening to mainstream country radio at all.
So often identity-based media coverage and awards are not about the artists themselves. These media members, outlets, and awards institutions use these artists as tokens and sometimes unwitting pawns to signal their virtue to the public and their peers in the industry.
Breland is back, and collaborating closely with Keith Urban in the hopes of giving him some credibility in country’s mainstream. Jokes on him though, because Keith Urban has no credibility to lend. Don’t believe me, just recall when he accidentally won Entertainer of the Year in 2018.
Unfortunately, the COVID-19 pandemic will not have a hard and fast end date. It’s not just the risk to the public, but the potential concern for a public relations issue surrounding the polarizing subject of COVID-19 that has the prospects for live music later in 2021 still looking like a mixed bag.
The Grand Ole Opry is celebrating its 95th Anniversary with a big primetime special on Sunday, February 14th on NBC. Called ‘Grand Ole Opry: 95 Years of Country Music,’ it comes as the Opry is enjoying arguably one of its biggest resurgences in interest in the institution’s history.
Kane Brown took center field at AT&T Stadium on Thanksgiving Day to perform a medley of his hit during the halftime of the Dallas Cowboys and Washington Football Team game, and no, it wasn’t the expired cream cheese in the pumpkin pie that had folks hurling up giblets, it was the prancing wanker lip syncing.
The Dallas Cowboys NFL football team has suffered yet another devastating setback in a season beset with them after it was revealed that Kane Brown will be this year’s halftime performer at the franchise’s annual Thanksgiving Day game.
To help in the COVID-19 recovery effort, the Hall of Fame is planning a special live streaming event that will match up many of the iconic instruments in the “Precious Jewels” collection and other displays with many of the best artists and players of today.
Also as part of the reopening, the Hall of Fame is planning a special live streaming event on October 28th, and one they hope will be one of their biggest fundraisers ever, called “Big Night (At The Museum)”. It will match legendary instruments with many of the legendary artists of today.
Florida Georgia Line has the #1 song on country radio this week with their latest single “I Love My Country.” But buried deep in the songwriting credits and the history of this song is one of the most uncovered scandals in country music in 2020.
It appears like Kane Brown is as apt to get lost in the scary landscape of country music as he is his own 30 acres. Sure, navigating through some of country’s subgenres can be a little confounding for the musical civilian. But this is a guy that’s made millions off of being a supposed “country” star.
Kane Brown got lost on his own property for seven hours, and had to call the police to be rescued. This was one of the revelations that came from the 26-year-old pop country star’s recent interview with fellow country star Jana Kramer, who apparently now works for the junk food entertainment show, ‘Extra!’
Re-integrating important black voices into that living tapestry should be a priority for the genre moving forward. But performing this important re-integration as either a commercial enterprise, or via hip-hop appropriations will only be effective at eroding what makes country music so vital.
It turns out Saving Country Music wasn’t the only one that thought the chorus of the recent new single from Florida Georgia Line called “I Love My Country” sounded eerily similar to the chorus of a Kane Brown song called “Short Skirt Weather.” Now Kane Brown and his co-writers have officially been added as songwriters.
And we’re not talking close approximations here that come up commonly in music. Whether it’s the latest symptom of the sameness permeating much of mainstream country at the moment, or a straight up ripoff is a matter for audio experts and the courts. But the similarities are patently obvious.