What has happened to country music

jhwilli2

Eight Pointer
It just goes from bad to worse... Embarrassing... Raleigh radio stations are horrendous...Glad we have XM...
 

aya28ga

Old Mossy Horns
Contributor
What they play today can't really be called "country" music, and in my opinion, has been steadily going downhill over the past decade. There's some good stuff being written / sang, but it's not being played on the radio.

I'm like you, I find myself listening to XM more. XM channels like "Willie's Roadhouse," "Outlaw Country," and "Prime Country" are what I'm usually tuned to. Guess I'm older, but I like to hear Merle Haggard, Willie Nelson, Johnny Cash and George Jones. George Strait is about as modern as I get.....
 
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Briargoat

Ten Pointer
It's awful. There's only a few modern "country" singers I'd listen to. It might as well be pop music that panders to the south. A real shame.
 

wcjones

Twelve Pointer
Contributor
It just goes from bad to worse... Embarrassing... Raleigh radio stations are horrendous...Glad we have XM...

Same down here. There is one station that plays older country music. It's either that, talk radio or pandora.....no xm in the work truck....
 

Soilman

Old Mossy Horns
Contributor
What I can't understand is, with as many of us that detest what country music has become, and extrapolating that to the rest of the population, why the heck aren't there some radio stations out that play REAL country? The only one I know of is here in New Bern, 97.9 "The Bear". I suspect those stations would do VERY well.
 

double

Twelve Pointer
Not a fan of a lot of the new stuff but this conversation has been had for decades. The music in the 60's was to much pop for the 50's the 70's for the 80's and so on and so on
 

josh

Old Mossy Horns
Contributor
Huge country music fan and know almost any song from 50's hank Williams to 90's Alan Jackson word for word.

It has died and I actually shifted to listening to completely different genres of music, heavy rock, most of the bands No one would know but the instrumentals and vocals are really talented unlike the mainstream garbage
 

Boojum

Ten Pointer
The music industry is run by the buying habits of teenage girls. They don't like real country music. They like pop music written about tractors and tailgates.
 

Weekender

Twelve Pointer
I got Waylon's autobiography after Christmas. Made me pull out all his old stuff. He still rules imo. Rest in peace, Mr. Jennings.
 

23mako

Ten Pointer
I like Whiskey Meyers and Turnpike Troubadours as well.

Yeah 94.7 in Raleigh is unbearable to listen to. Can't hardly listen to their radio personalities either.
 

appmtnhntr

Twelve Pointer
Thank goodness we have 98.1 WBRF here. Although they dabble in some early 90's stuff, most is 50's-80's

Oh, and bluegrass every day from 6-9 pm!!

Only listen to that and talk radio...
 

Zach's Grandpa

Old Mossy Horns
One of my wife's closest friends was executive secretary to the president of Sony Music for like forty years. She was there before Sony bought it and knew the industry better than anyone I've ever spoken with. When Taylor Swift came on the scene she told us that the beginning of the end of country music was upon us. She liked Taylor Swift [got her autographed photo with a personal message for Zach] as a person and always noted how smart she was but knew that her and others were going to change the sound. Why you might ask? Money, money, and more money.
 

thandy

Ten Pointer
The only thing i listen to is Pandora...Willie, Waylen, Merle, Charlie, DAC...you can't beat it.
 

dirtburn

Four Pointer
Get the TuneIn app, great music. I find myself listening to KKYX 680 AM regularly. Alot of other great one too.
 

skydog

Guest
There is some great modern country music out there, just got to dig for it. Jamie Johnson, Jason Isbell, Sturgill Simpson, etc.

These guys are talented and all but they don't quite do it for me when I'm looking for country music. Isbell is a raging D/socialist...talented yes, but not exactly the kind of red blooded country that I wish we still had.
 

Dolfan21

Ten Pointer
Younger generations define the direction of music, its been that way since the beetles, elvis, led zeppelin, etc. Young kids like the pop format, so that is what is being produced. Simple as that IMO.
 

Firedog

Old Mossy Horns
Contributor
Country music changed from the 50s to the 60s to the 70s to the 80s to now.. and with every change the artist made more money and they got more and more popular. The artist are in the business of making music that the most people want to hear.
 

Firefly

Old Mossy Horns
Murder on music row by Alan Jackson and George Strait just about sums it up...But I still listen to the old country especially on youtube..
 

bshobbs

Old Mossy Horns
I listen to IHeart also, some good music there. But some of this so called country, just isn't what its cracked up to be, but that's just me. Not into all this tractor rap ah dap style music.
 

Wood Duck Hunter

Six Pointer
I like Whiskey Meyers and Turnpike Troubadours as well.

Yeah 94.7 in Raleigh is unbearable to listen to. Can't hardly listen to their radio personalities either.

This is spot on. You guys should try this. Black Berry Smoke raio on pandora might renew your faith.
 
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