From Checklist to Bro-Country: The Subversion of Country Music
So here we are. It’s the summer of 2014, and the headlines that dominate the country music world have to do with mounds of trash and numerous arrests in Pittsburgh, a man found dead in a dumpster in Cleveland, a “mass casualty” event called by the local fire chief in Mansfield, Mass. at a Keith Urban concert, and then an alleged rape. Where exactly did mainstream country music go so wrong to where it is the new home for irresponsible behavior at concerts? How did a genre seen for over half a century as the bastion for family values and down home fun become one of the worst-behaved crowds in music?
First some perspective might be needed. Though the racy headlines might allude otherwise, how widespread this trend has become is somewhat inconclusive. As some have pointed out, the biggest stories of country concert problems have happened north of the Mason-Dixon Line for whatever reason. Also, numerous arrests for underage drinking, fights, and ambulance rides for numerous ailments are not out of the ordinary for music events by any stretch. The concern is how out of the ordinary they are for country music, at least historically, and how they’re clearly on the rise.
Part of this is simply a symptom of country music becoming the biggest, most dominant genre of American music. The crowds are bigger, younger, and the lowest common denominator is represented en masse. Country music is no longer a community, it is mass marketing. And like rock music of previous eras, it is attracting the most attention, and the most problems. However the idea that all the headlines of problems at country concerts is simply the media making hay upon a problem that has already existed for years is not fair either. Country music is changing, and a deeper discussion should be broached about how to manage those changes, and what the long-term effects those changes could have on the genre as a whole.
If you wanted to point to one single event where the current downward spiral started, you might consider the country concert in Mansfield, Mass. in late July. No, I’m not talking about Keith Urban’s concert on Saturday, July 26th, I’m talking about a Tim McGraw’s show on July 24th, 2011 at the same Mansfield venue.

During the middle of the concert, a 19-year-old attendee named Michael Skehill was jumped from behind by four men who proceeded to beat Skehill to within an inch of his life. The four men were heavily intoxicated, and though the dispute was said by some to be over a woman, the assault came completely out-of-the-blue to Skehill.The 19-year-old was a big man—a football player at Catholic University in Washington D.C.—but was blindsided in the lawn section and never had a chance to defend himself. If it wasn’t for a security guard and ENT responding to the assault as quickly as they did, doctors believe the assault would have resulted in murder.
“He would have died,” Skehill’s mother told a Boston news station at the time. “He had lost two liters of blood and, basically, he would have died.”
Michael Skehill was airlifted to the Boston Medical Center where he immediately underwent surgery. To save the young man, doctors had to remove his spleen. Skehill also suffered a severe concussion and other internal injuries. The four men were arrested and arraigned the next day, and eventually all four plead guilty to assault. It also came out in the investigation that in the lawn section of the venue that is now called Xfinity Center (and was then called Comcast Center), there is a section where young people from Mansfield congregate, and if you try to come into the area, you could be assaulted. In this area, underage drinking and other illicit activities are common. Whether this culture was still in place when the alleged rape of a 17-year-old girl happened at this year’s Keith Urban show—sheltering the incident from outsiders and allowing it to occur longer than necessary—has yet to be revealed in the investigation.
The good news is Michael Skehill was able to recover, and besides a missing spleen, is getting along just fine. But the brutal incident went to symbolize the rise of violence, excessive drinking, and other embarrassing behavior for country music’s summer concerts that was trending upwards all across the country. The Mansfield Police Chief Arthur M. O’Neill after the Michael Skehill incident said at the time:
Country used to be an easy night for us. Now it’s anything but. Country’s just changed. I’m a country fan, but the music and the singers have a party motif about them now. It’s all about drinking … These kids, especially the girls, are getting drunker and sicker faster.
Just appreciate, this isn’t the Mansfield Police Chief circa 2014. This is in 2011. At the time, CMT’s Alison Bonaguro asked, “Is ‘Drunk and Disorderly’ the New Rule at Concerts?” in a story that looks eerily similar to ones running over the last few weeks amidst all of the high-profile incidents at mainstream country concerts.
One of the other significant events in country music in 2011 was the rise of the “Country Checklist” song. Though the term “Checklist” never stuck like its later replacement “Bro-Country”, the music the terms describe had been around years before “Bro-Country” was adopted at large. The music style was already monopolizing mainstream country music by 2011, and forcing women into minor roles in the format like never before. As pointed out by the late Chet Flippo in August of 2011, country music found itself for the first time in recent memory with no women in the Top 30 of the songs charts. Many of the trends that would dominate country music headlines in 2013 and 2014 were already in place in 2011, there just wasn’t a universally-recognized name for it, country media was mostly complicit about it, and the backlash was simmering, but not striking out in earnest.
And what was the biggest song of 2011? Jason Aldean’s landmark “Dirt Road Anthem”. The breakthrough country rap song glorified many of the elements that have gone into much of the lewd behavior seen on the rise at mainstream country music concerts. On August 7th of 2011, Saving Country Music asked if “Country Music Checklist Songs Were Causing an Erosion of Values,” citing the Michael Skehill case and songs like Aldean’s “Dirt Road Anthem” specifically.
Yeah, I’m chillin’ on a dirt road, Laid back swervin’ like I’m George Jones.
Smoke rollin’ out the window, An’ ice cold beer sittin’ in the console.Where ya learned how to kiss and cuss and fight too, Better watch out for the boys in blue.
Ya better mind your business, man, watch your mouth, Before I have to knock that loud mouth out.
But words and actions are two different things, right? They’re just songs.
Well, not really when it came to the culture that was becoming the norm at some of the country music concerts that featured artists that sang these checklist songs. In 2011, “Dirt Road Anthem” co-writer Brantley Gilbert was on the Country Throwdown tour with many other medium and up-and-coming performers. When interviewing another Thowdown Tour artist named Ausin Lucas, he explained how the checklist culture and fighting were beginning to coincide in the live country music experience.
He [Brantley Gilbert] is one of the most popular people on this tour. He’s really doing well for himself, but the thing is, his fans, they cause, they have a lot of fights. And this is nothing against Brantley Gilbert, who I think is a really nice guy. All the guys in his band are amazing people, and a lot of his fans are really cool. But there’s also this element, that country pissing contest, that checklist of things that make you more country, and one of them is fighting.
Fighting, excessive drinking, and other such behavior that were essentials on country’s checklist was beginning to show up in country crowds. Interesting that when the new country female duo Maddie & Tae sat down to write what is considered mainstream country’s preeminent Anti Bro-Country tune “Girl In A Country Song”, they said they made a checklist of all the things stereotypical country songs have. “I think it had trucks, tailgates, cutoffs, tan lines and tan legs, dirt road, and the most important one, the girls. The smokin’ hot girl.”
Maddie & Tae also spoke about how the current male-dominated country trend sets subservient roles for young women that they feel they must follow to be considered pretty or popular by men. In the police report of the alleged rape of the 17-year-old girl at the Keith Urban show in Mansfield, Mass., the alleged victim told police that she went with the man because “she was afraid of what would happen” if she didn’t, speaking to the subordinate role many women are taking in corporate country’s current culture.
But are women really emulating the girls in country songs, and are the men really fighting and drinking to excess because they hear about it in the music they listen to? This seems to be an eternal debate, a chicken and the egg argument in music, that there’s probably not an easy answer for beyond pointing out that in the past, country music sang about drinking, fighting, and killing in a cautionary context, where now it is glorified to the point of being used for marketing specifically.
In the June 2013 issue of Playboy Magazine, writer Rob Tannenbaum wrote an extended feature on Eric Church called simply “The Badass.” In the piece, Eric Church and his manager John Peets reference the “Country Checklist” style of writing by name.
For his second album, Church wrote a song he knew was dumb. It’s in the same mold as other predictable rural-pride songs that work well on radio because they celebrate the consumer goods that are iconic in Southern life call it a Country Checklist song. In this subpar effort, Church lays it on heavy: He mentions beer, barbecue, Jack Daniel’s, college football, fishing, trucks, chewing tobacco, NASCAR and cowboy boots. The only thing missing is something about hunting or tractors.
Church wrote it “almost out of anger or spite,” says his manager, John Peets. Church had seen similar songs amass a lot of airplay, according to Peets, “and he said, ‘If this is the shit that works, let’s just write one.’?”
“That was my Hail Mary,” Church says. “And the sad truth is, it works.” Although “Love Your Love the Most” became Church’s first top 10 single, it didn’t boost his career, because it was so generic. Radio play was up, but record and ticket sales were flat.
Then the Playboy feature took an even more interesting turn. In it, Church and his camp seem to glorify the excesses of his shows—how the crowd is drunk towards the point of incapacitation, fights break out everywhere, and rampant sex occurs right out in the open. “’There are some drunk motherfuckers out there,’ says Marshall Alexander, Church’s cheerful production manager,'” the piece says. Here are some further excerpts:
During tonight’s show, which I watch from the soundboard, the manager of one of the opening acts says he’s seen an average of three or four fights per night. A large part of Church’s success has come from filling a niche in the country market for a rugged, masculine singer.
While watching Church’s set that night, Moore saw a couple screwing in the audience. “A guy pulled a girl’s skirt up, and the dirty deed was going on,” Moore reports. “That was a first for me.”
It’s not a first for Church. He recounts a show last year in Battle Creek, Michigan where “half the crowd was fighting. And I saw guys who had girls bent over the rail, screwing.” His lighting designer a guy who’d toured with nearly every major metal band, including Van Halen, Metallica and Guns N’ Roses was shocked. “He said to me, ‘You should call this the Fucking and Fighting Tour.’”
Compared with Battle Creek’s, tonight’s audience doesn’t impress Church much. “There wasn’t mass bedlam, which is what I usually see.” Tomorrow will be wilder, he predicts.
So here was Church, openly bragging about how his concerts had become bedlam where “half the crowd is fighting,” bragging about open sex that from the stage could be hard to determine as consensual, and how this behavior is worse than what is normally seen at Van Halen, Metallica, and Guns N’ Roses shows, speaking deeply to the descent of the country genre compared to other genres. This was part of the Eric Church marketing—the image he wanted to portray: live experiences full of madness that people wanted to see and be a part of. And all of this is coming from one of the most commercially-successful artists in country music, and one whose album at the time had won Album of the Year from both the CMA and ACM—a true leader of the genre. After a while, whether the rowdiness of his concerts started as fact or fiction, the trend began to perpetuate itself and spread to other artists and other concerts.
But I know what some of you are thinking: “Is Eric Church really Bro-Country?”
One of the most curious aspects of the issues a Keith Urban’s recent Mansfield, Mass. concert is that Keith Urban is not one of these typical Bro-Country entertainers who constantly sing about getting drunk and fighting. Urban is from a earlier era, when soccer moms were country music’s primary demographic. His latest single “Cop Car” may veer slightly in the newer direction, but his American Idol judgeship spot notwithstanding, Keith Urban is not the type of artist that appeals to underage drinking fans or Bro-Country knuckle chuckers. So why was it his show that got so out of hand?
Because of the way the country music live experience is set up, it almost doesn’t matter what Top 15 pop country act you go to see, the same culture exists nearly at every concert. Of course there is some variation between every crowd, but not as much as one might expect. This is a symptom of the homogenization of the country format from radio consolidation and the dominance of male stars at the top of country ranks. But it is also facilitated by Live Nation’s Country Megaticket multi-concert package as pointed out by Windmills Country. The Country Megaticket is like a season pass for concert goers that covers most of the major country acts and the venues they play, including Keith Urban, and Mansfield’s Xfinity Center. Buy the ticket, and you not only have access to Luke Bryan and Jason Aldean, but Keith Urban and Lady Antebellum. This Country Megaticket culture facilitates the spreading of the undesirable elements to country music shows that they would normally not appeal to. The fans show up for the party, with the music as the backdrop. Country music is the only genre that Live Nation offers the Megaticket for, because it is the only genre that can support it. Once again, country music’s size and dominance is hindering its ability to control and define itself.
One of the reasons the adoption of the term “Bro-Country” last summer was so unfortunate is because it symbolized in many people’s minds the start of a new era when in truth it was the continuation of a trend begun in earnest in 2011, and goes back even farther than that. Saving Country music declared 2011 “The Year of the Country Checklist Song.” This was before Florida Georgia Line had even signed a publishing deal, and six months before they released their first EP. The reason this is important is because to understand what is going on in country music in 2014, you have to understand these trends go back much farther than Jody Rosen coining the term in August of 2013. “Bro-Country” was also a more palatable way to couch the trend compared to “Checklist Country” which explained what the problem with the trend was right in the term. And now Bro-Country has been adopted by the very people it was meant to criticize.
So what can be done? Do venues need to beef up security? Should the artists get involved somehow?
One of the most surprising things about all of the recent headline-grabbing country music concert fiascoes is how silent the headliners have been about them. In 2013, when Kenny Chesney’s name was at the top of the marquee for the first wave of trash that filled the parking lots of Heinz Field in Pittsburgh, the singer was curiously silent as the controversy raged. Same can be said for Luke Bryan who was the headliner at the same venue, and at the same annual event when it happened again this year, despite the media swarming the event in anticipation of problems. To Jason Aldean’s credit, he did send his heartfelt condolences out to the family and friends of the man found dead in a dumpster at his Cleveland show, but Keith Urban has said nothing about the most recent incident in Mansfield, Mass.—either about the arrests and hospitalizations, or the alleged rape. In fact Keith Urban removed a video in which he praised the Mansfield crowd, saying at one point, “Gosh, up on the lawn tonight? That was nutso.” So we know Urban’s PR team is on the case, they just simply don’t want to acknowledge what happened.
There are no easy answers here, and it is made harder because of all the money being made at these concerts. It is boom time on the country music touring circuit, and many of the tours are underwritten by the country’s major alcohol suppliers, from Budweiser to Jack Daniels. Though coolers are checked at gates, and ID’s checked at concession stands, there’s clearly a wink-and-nod culture when it comes to underage drinking at concerts, similar to how many venues have a wink-and-nod acceptance of marijuana. Teenagers are going to drink, and that’s an issue beyond country music or country music concerts. But when teenagers are in public places, it makes the situation more perilous, and results in injuries, arrests, and recently, alleged rape. The 22-year-old man who fell five stories into a dumpster at Jason Aldean’s Cleveland concert was said to be “extremely intoxicated.”
The problem can only be solved if there is an acknowledgement of its existence. But as Eric Church evidenced above in the Playboy Magazine piece, what may be bad publicity for some makes for good marketing for others. The lack of even acknowledgement of the issues from the headliners or their management seems to be almost a default approval, or at least a complicit posturing to the problem. The mentality appears to be that as long as the money is flowing and nobody gets killed, let’s keep the party going.
But now, somebody has been killed, and somebody’s daughter has been allegedly raped. Country music cannot afford to turn a blind eye any more.
July 31, 2014 @ 10:59 am
I watched the Brantley Gilbert “Bottoms Up” video a while back and it made sense to me. He acts like a total thug in that video. Then at the end of the video as the sheriff finally enters where Gilbert is located he (Gilbert) draws pistols out of his ridiculous shoulder holster and turns around rapidly toward where the Sheriff is. The video cuts out before what would presumably be a grim scene. The pop country these days tells you to drink that booze, act like a thug….and the lyrics are aimed at the younger crowds ( I don’t see many 25 year olds sneaking out of windows etc).
It is what it is, but it makes Garth Brooks singing about rodeos and wearing those ridiculous button up shirts seem a lot more tolerable.
July 31, 2014 @ 11:01 am
Great article, it’s awfully sad but true, these imposters have not only took Country music’s name and discraced the hell out of it, but now in the world’s eye “Country” music is seen as a mockery, a dangerous name/genre or whatever the fuck you want to call it and has blown up in to something absolutely outrageous.
C’mon people, this shit has to end, there is no fucking need for this behaviour, hell the pretty boys singing this crap are only portraying an image (fake as hell) but todays youth are very un-intellegent people and are influenced by anything that that media makes them believe.
July 31, 2014 @ 11:29 am
I remember my younger cousin was going on about how she “LOVES” country music but then was befuddled when I started playing some Waylon, Hank Sr., Hank III etc. I then preceeded to tell her that its not the music she likes, its the Pretty Boys that romanticizes the lifestyle that she is familiar with. Nothing wrong with that but I’ve seen some petty and ridiculous behavior come from people with that same mindset trying to”Out-Country” each other!
July 31, 2014 @ 11:43 am
So true, it’s somewhat confusing to try and understand the younger generation, it’s funny in a way how people who listen to rock and metal even pop and others have at least a basic knowledge of the predecessors of 10 20 30 40+ years prior. However, for some strange reason Country’s first ever artists were Garth Brooks, George Strait, and Johnny Cash……..somewhat baffling.
July 31, 2014 @ 12:11 pm
So true, it”™s somewhat confusing to try and understand the younger generation, it”™s funny in a way how people who listen to rock and metal even pop and others have at least a basic knowledge of the predecessors of 10 20 30 40+ years prior. However, for some strange reason Country”™s first ever artists were Garth Brooks, George Strait, and Johnny Cash”¦”¦..somewhat baffling.
So I’m not the only one who noticed this. 😀 I see it a lot in the metal community; the younger fans of the newer metal sing the praises of the likes of Black Sabbath, Dio, and Judas Priest as loudly as they sing the praises of the newer acts. I’ve said before that I think that is closely related to the fact that even when you listen to the newer metal acts you can still hear the influence of the older folks ”” even if it’s not readily discernible, it still sounds like metal ”” which is something you don’t hear in mainstream country anymore.
Put a little differently, metal fans (and metal singers/bands) respect their elders in a way that country fans (and country singers/bands) don’t anymore. And comparing Chase Rice to George Jones (or even George Strait) brings that into stark relief.
July 31, 2014 @ 12:15 pm
And that would probably be better phrased as “And comparing Chase Rice to George Jones (or even comparing Rice to George Strait) brings that into stark relief.”
July 31, 2014 @ 3:13 pm
Definitely, definitely. Metal of nearly all sub genres has a huge respect for the pioneering bands, and even just older bands in general. Even the new, young black metal fans are respectful of bands like Mayhem, Burzum (well, that one can be iffy, but it’s more because of things Varg has said and done, rather than the music), Darkthrone, and even earlier bands like Bathory, Hellhammer and Venom. Death metal fans still show respect to Death, Napalm Death (in their death metal era), Suffocation. Even after the changes Metallica and Megadeth have made in their later eras, metal fans still hold up albums like “Master of Puppets” and “Rust in Peace” as great albums.
That is something that metal and country fans used to have in common and lately it seems like country fans are just throwing that all away. Obviously not all of them, thank goodness, in fact I was sarcastically comparing Luke Bryan to George Jones a while back and I was flat out scolded for it by a 17 yr old girl I know, and I thought that was great! She may have missed my sarcasm, but she knows good music and is more than willing to stand up for it. I am glad there are still some people like that in the younger generation, because so many of them don’t want to know anything about country musics past and the legends who made it the genre that it is today, and when they do hear it, they hate it!
As much as country and metal fans may not think they have much in common, I think once you get past the surface element, they really do … or at least they used to.
July 31, 2014 @ 3:43 pm
Yup, and that even goes across sub genres, at least if some of the cover songs I’ve heard are any indication ”” i.e., Arch Enemy covering Queensryche (“Walk in the Shadows”) and Children of Bodom covering Iron Maiden (“Aces High”).
And I do think it’s still there with country, at least when it comes to those of us who like music outside of the mainstream. It isn’t like it used to be, though, and that really is a damn shame. I get wanting to forge your own path, but don’t be ashamed of your roots.
And yeah, I know. Luke Bryan says that people don’t listen to just one kind of music anymore. But like I’ve said elsewhere, if you really think there’s any Hank (Sr., Jr., OR III) or Conway on his or FGL’s mix tapes, then I have a bridge to sell you.
July 31, 2014 @ 4:42 pm
“if you really think there”™s any Hank (Sr., Jr., OR III) or Conway on his or FGL”™s mix tapes, then I have a bridge to sell you.”
How ’bout some ocean front property in Arizona?
July 31, 2014 @ 7:53 pm
That too! 😀
July 31, 2014 @ 8:31 pm
This whole metal/country conversation is quite interesting. And you are all correct. Any metal/hard rock fan/band worth their salt knows Sabbath, Priest, Zeppelin, etc. And most of them know the Kinks. And Hendrix. And Cream. To this day.
I don’t think the current country music fan has a clue. The current state of country music has been compared to the hair metal oversaturation of the late 80’s/early 90’s. While that has its correlations, even when it got really bad, the crappy bands playing cheesy hair metal still had a sense of history. They just weren’t that good.
I mean, just look at all the current bands clamoring to get a spot on the Ronnie James Dio tribute album (proceeds going to cancer research). I don’t know if that would happen in country music right now. They’re too busy trying to get a spot on a Motley Crue tribute album with all proceeds going into their bank accounts.
I don’t know if the fight to save country music is worth it. I’m lucky. I live in Texas and can tune into my local Red Dirt station when I want to. Sure, some of it ain’t country, but it’s a damn sight better than what’s being pumped out of Nashville.
Overkill, Mastadon, Judas Priest and Night Ranger have all put out some good records lately. That’s where I’m at. I still come to SCM to find the good, obscure stuff, but mainstream country has lost me.
August 1, 2014 @ 10:13 am
Overkill, Mastadon, Judas Priest and Night Ranger have all put out some good records lately. That”™s where I”™m at.
Yup. Same for Accept and Queensryche. (The next Accept album comes out in a couple of weeks, but their last two were absolute classics, and the latest QR album was damn good too. Listening to it right now, AAMOF.) But I think the last mainstream country album I bought was Alan Jackson’s latest, and before that the Kacey Musgraves disc. George Strait is still a first-day buy for me as well, but beyond that I don’t remember the last time I bothered with mainstream country. I pretty much turned off the radio after I came to San Antonio in mid-2010. We’ve gotten a shit-ton of Texas and red dirt stuff though ”” Boland, Reckless Kelly, Turnpike Troubadours, that sort of thing. Lately we’ve been delving into Rodney Crowell’s older stuff and I scored Asleep at the Wheel’s 10 album last week on Amazon.
I like to think the Texas scene would be immune to any kind of wholesale country music implosion a la metal in the mid-1990s, given that the vitality of said scene is in large part due to the dissatisfaction with what’s going on in the mainstream scene, but sometimes I wonder how that would go. I mean, I don’t think Reckless Kelly’s and Florida-Georgia Line’s respective fan bases overlap that much…
August 1, 2014 @ 3:32 pm
It is interesting (at least to me) that many of the commenters on a site called “Saving County Music” are hard rock/metal fans as well. It’s not surprising to me that fans of metal/hard rock would have a kinship with country music, however, it is a bit surprising the number of us that would actually seek out this website and be active commmenters.
I grew up with it. I’ve said as much on this site before. Small town in Texas. In high school we were listening to George Strait, Hank Jr. AND Billy Squier, AC/DC. No one blinked an eye. Def Leppard/Garth Brooks. All good. We didn’t have to go out on a limb with Conway and T-Pain. It was all organic.
August 2, 2014 @ 2:54 pm
Funny you mention that. I was driving to the vet to take one of my dogs in for a checkup today, and I turned on the radio, and it was playing the usual pop country stuff, so I turned on my ipod and some how it got me thinking how a lot of the newer country fans don’t even have any idea who any older country singers are.
Even when they hear a song mention Conway twitty, or that song with the “joe diffy” chorus, none of them know who these singers are…its crazy.
All my friends in the rock community, or the metal community, Blues, what ever it is…the artists know about the people that came before them..So do the fans. But I’ve been booked with bands, or ran into them at a show or whatever…Half the other bands breaking into the country circuit out here have no idea who any country singers that have been around longer than Luke Bryan and Jason Aldean are, unless you count Tim Mcgraw and Keith Urban..its Bizarre.
August 2, 2014 @ 9:07 pm
Eli Locke: Checked out your site and the music previews. Small sample, but I thought it was pretty good. Good luck, dude.
August 3, 2014 @ 6:52 pm
To me, the problem is never one artist or one song. To me, it’s a general overall mindset about country music.
Somewhere around the mid 2000s is when country music started adopting an “all-inclusive” mindset. Anyone who wanted to could put out a country album, because that was what was “in.” And it’s only gotten worse. Trigger has noted many times how songs are so commercialized and how there’s often absolutely nothing country about it.
But look at it further. If that mindset didn’t exist. If we didn’t have the Sam Hunts and the Florida Georgia Lines and the Luke Bryans, if the industry didn’t market anything and everything as country, simply because the artist happens to mention Johnny Cash in one song, where would our overall mindset be? Brantley Gilbert and Luke Bryan would be filed under rock where they belong, and Florida Georgia Line would be laughed out of an audition and never see the light of day.
Sure, a song like “Lookin’ For That Girl” would still be terrible, but would we despise it as much as we do now? Or would we look at it as experimental and say, “sure, it’s bad, it failed, let’s just hope he doesn’t do it again.” We might even get a chuckle out of “Truck Yeah” as something a bit cliched, but nowhere near as terrible as we know they are in country’s current state. I mean, say what you will about those two songs, but overall, McGraw still puts out solid albums and largely sticks to what made him a country star in the early 90s to begin with. Plus, he did follow up “Lookin’ For That Girl” very quickly with “Meanwhile Back at Mama’s.”
Is there any way to get this mindset to go away? Maybe what we can hope will happen is that, in a few years, another genre will become the “in” genre to be a part of, and this phase can die out. The best thing that could happen for country music right now is possibly for its mass-popularity to fade so that the crap can be weeded out and the good country music that still does exist can move back to the forefront.
January 20, 2015 @ 9:14 am
I guess I’m the only 13 year old guy left listenin to the classics like Hank and heck I still listen to bluegrass
July 31, 2014 @ 11:10 am
It almost sounds like your justifying what you see in todays country, or making excuses for poor behavior. When RAP was all that a minute ago, and gangster Rappers were singing about killing cops, that wasn’t happening! And for whatever bad RAP, Rappers where getting about there violent “truthful” songs, NO one at a RAP concert acted as bad as today’s country audience. I stopped going to LIVE shows of mainstream artists along time ago because of high tickets prices and horrible live acts, but to think I should go to a show that would now include drunk rednecks fighting, has assured me I made a good decision to stop attending concerts. Thank goodness for Americana music, dive bars and satellite radio!
July 31, 2014 @ 11:14 am
Well done, Trigger.
When I was a kid, we listened to rap music. NWA, Snoop, Dr Dre … we listened to it all. We didn’t understand the gang aspect of it, and we didn’t understand when the media said that the music was feeding into the culture. We were just a bunch of kids in semi-rural Georgia, listening to rap music alongside our Hank Jr, Charlie Daniels and Garth Brooks. But in the end, I stopped listening to NWA and Snoop and Dr Dre. I didn’t leave that music because it wasn’t good, but because it wasn’t what I related to. Today, kids are relating to the hip-hop-infused country more and more. They want to live out the songs, and I see it.
Drinking and fighting have never been absent from Country Music. Johnny Cash shot a man in Reno. Merle turned 21 in Prison. Hank partied with All His Rowdy Friends. But, it seems like the fans today are taking the actions in the songs more to heart. Maybe it’s a tale of what’s happening in America today – it’s a country where many of these youngsters aren’t struggling for what they have. The Country Mega Ticket is most likely often bought on Daddy’s credit card. I never would have started a fight at a Charlie Daniels show, mostly because I didn’t want to waste the $$ it cost me to be there. But, if you’re getting 17 shows for one price that you don’t ultimately pay for, I imagine you’ll get a big case of the “don’t give a damns” and just do whatever you please. The Spoiled Generation – it’s a boring meme and trite, to be sure…but it also carries some weight. Today’s music doesn’t say anything…because today’s culture doesn’t want it to. It’s obsessed with consumption. That douche Bobby Bones even said as much to me in a personal tweet. He said Country had never been so big. I said it had never been Less Country, and he said “Consumption is King.” He did not respond to my retort, calling out that attitude as one of a misguided generation. But, that’s what it is. It doesn’t matter what the song says, as long as we can party to it. Hell, that’s even a mantra of songwriters today. That’s why here’s so much gibberish lyricism in the music – “because when you lack something to say, you should just say Yeah or Hey.”
I think this article lines up well with your other about Garth Brooks and the chance he has to bring some of Nashville’s more substantive writers to light. I think that was one of his strengths in the 90’s. I go back and listen to his albums, and there are few wasted tracks among them. To me, a Garth Brooks song was one that had a real REASON to exist, and it was outside of simply selling records.
I’m hoping that he can once again reshape our genre. Look, I’d love to believe that mine would be one of the voices that could do that … and I’ll keep pushing toward that end. But at the end of the day, maybe it will take someone like Garth Brooks, a one-time “not country enough” singer, to properly Save Country Music.
Great article. This site is quickly becoming part of my daily routine.
Yeahcomeon!
July 31, 2014 @ 4:08 pm
Good comment, and an insightful piece by Trigger. There is a key difference between the boasting of lawlessness in many of today’s country songs and Johnny shooting a man in Reno or Merle turning 21 in prison: The protagonists in the Cash and Haggard songs were suffering the consequences of their actions, i.e., they were languishing behind bars. For the most part, the protagonists in today’s country songs commit their sins (drinking and driving, fighting, etc.) and not only avoid consequences but boast of avoiding them — and live to do it all another day.
That said, Johnny and Merle packed better songwriting in the choruses of those two songs than the current crop of songwriting-by-checklist-committee are able to pack into an entire year’s worth of albums.
August 1, 2014 @ 1:05 pm
Dukes those are good points. The thing about Cash and Merle though, while they sang about doing some rotten things, they didn’t glorify it. They also sang about the consequences of it. In today’s Country, I can’t help but think the likes of BG and his ilk would be singing as if it was the greatest damn thing they ever did.
August 3, 2014 @ 7:51 pm
I made very similar comments about Garth’s opportunity to help put an end to bro-country trend in a post I made a couple of weeks ago. I commented that he’s like a “newcomer who isn’t” – he’s an established name putting out his first new material in over a decade (sans his box-set and “The Lost Sessions”). To old fans, he’ll be welcomed back with open arms, and to those who have never really known him, at least not as an artist in the forefront, he has the opportunity to be the new “it-thing.” And since he’s flat-out said his music won’t be “bro-country,” but what he would call “Garth-music,” we can hope that this might signal the start of a turnaround.
July 31, 2014 @ 11:19 am
I used to work at a venue that jumped on the country bandwagon a few years ago, its multi-room with capacity ranging from 1500-3500. The acts booked were mid-tier draws like David Nail, Joe Nichols, Jamey Johnson and it seemed like Tyler Farr, Brett Eldredge and Chase Rice either headlined or opened up every 2 months or so. I found that the majority of the time the crowds were very controlled and respectful while still having a good time. My theory as to why that is has many factors including: the venue charges $9 for a beer(outrageous but surprisingly helps a little with crowd control), these are smaller acts so the people that come actually like the music, and folks drove distances and there isnt any tailgating so there isnt that much “pre-gaming” and they’re not hammered when they come into the venue. The only time I saw major douchiness on display is when Florida-Georgia Line played the big room with Colt Ford opening.
The problem I see with these bigger/mainstream shows is that they attract the party crowd and tailgating is an all day event. Limit tailgating to 2-3 hours and have security go around the parking lot distributing water. This might help a little but ultimately you’re going up against a cultural force that glorifies excessive alcohol consumption. The big difference between the classic “drinking” songs with todays is that guilt and shame was a central theme in the classics while excess is the theme within todays. With all these songs glorifying drinking, the people listening have a tendency to think they’re invincible and forget the consequences, which leads to the many scenarios you see at mainstream country events these days!
July 31, 2014 @ 12:24 pm
By any chance did you work @ Joes on Weed in Chicago?
August 3, 2014 @ 7:55 pm
David Nail is actually a great artist, and I’ve seen him three times. And you’re right…the smaller crowd shows can tend to be much more controlled and subdued. I honestly can’t imagine a fight breaking out at a David Nail show or a Joe Nichols show. And a few months back, Trigger showed us what happens when someone starts fighting at a Jason Isbell show. He personally boots them out and has them escorted out of the venue.
July 31, 2014 @ 11:22 am
As an Eric Church fan I usually give you a hard time when you critcize him or his music, but the excerpt of your article in reference to his attitude towards crowds is dead on. I go to concerts to listen to music I like a have a couple beers. Glorifying fighting and sex in no way makes it more appealing to buy concert tickets. I remember going to concerts years ago and sitting on the lawn section. People would move over to make room for each other or sit down if the person behind them was older and couldn’t stand. Now I won’t go to a concert unless I have reserved seats at some of these venues because its the only way to control who is sitting next to you. You basically have to pay more for not only the joy of being closer to the stage but to avoid bad situations. So as an Eric Church fan (and I know he was part of a larger commentary on the issue) I am disappointed with his approval of this behavior at a concert where he sings “Like Jesus Does” and other songs that are suppose to illustrate some sort of moral values.
July 31, 2014 @ 12:10 pm
I too am a Eric Church fan (although a lesser one recently) and will say that the two shows I have been to were not anything like what he described, but one was a festival and one was with Kenny Chesney so I don’t know what his own tour is like. Accurate or not, bragging about it was idiotic and made worse by all these recent events.
I think it is up to the artists to try to right the ship, whether they truly caused this behavior or simply went along with it.The first bro-country artist to call this behavior out publicly (maybe a op-ed in RS Country) and then also make an attempt to discourage the behavior in their music will have my respect. I don’t care if its Tyler Hubbard, Eric Church, Jason Aldean or whoever. I’d forgive anybody for their shitty music if they made any attempt at trying to change the culture they have played a role on developing. At this point, it would probably be a very smart career move to do so. After all, the bro-country trend seems to be coming to a close so whoever does this would probably get credit for spearheading a movement in the right direction.
August 3, 2014 @ 7:58 pm
I was just thinking the same thing. A lot more fights probably break out in the general admission seating as people are shoving their way for the best possible view they can get and not being respectful of others. Reserved seating will probably tend to have less fighting, as not only are your seats your seats, but the security and crowd control in the reserved seating area is going to be heavier as well.
July 31, 2014 @ 11:47 am
This is a great commentary Trigger. The further along I read the more ashamed I became of the current state of popular country culture. We read these kinds of stories regularly, but you did a great job compiling them into one comprehensive article.
I just hope the venues, artists, and money grubbing managers find their morality before this gets even more out of hand. Its an absolute disgrace to the founders of country music and the would be fans.
July 31, 2014 @ 11:48 am
If it wasn’t for mainstream country or modern country as I call it. Country music wouldn’t be so popular in the UK now wouldn’t it be
July 31, 2014 @ 11:49 am
Country music was a bastion of family values!? Every country legend was a junkie at one time or another and none of them sung about ‘family values.’
July 31, 2014 @ 11:59 am
Yes, country music was a bastion for family values.
“None” is a very strong word.
Johnny Cash was junkie, and every 3rd song he wrote was a gospel song. Ira Louvin was a drunken lunatic, and he co-wrote “Satan Is Real”.
As I said above, there’s a big difference between cautionary tales and glorification. One of the reasons these pop country artists can sing so fondly of being a drunk loser is because they’ve never been one. It’s all fantasy to them. The oldtimers lived it, and sang out their sorrows so others didn’t have to.
July 31, 2014 @ 12:05 pm
“Well I gotta get drunk and I sure do dread it
‘Cause I know just what I’m gonna do
I’ll start to spend my money callin’ everybody honey
And wind up singin’ the blues
I’ll spend my whole paycheck on some old wreck
And brother I can name you a few
Well I gotta get drunk and I sure do dread it
‘Cause I know just what I’m gonna do”
Willie Nelson’s “cautionary tale” tells us that getting drunk and wasting all your money on some harlot in a bar will result in you “singing the blues”.
Not exactly what FLGALine and their ilk would have us believe.
July 31, 2014 @ 12:22 pm
That’s a perfect example. He and George Jones are singing about the woes of their lifestyle, not drunk driving and fighting to see who has the largest testicles.
July 31, 2014 @ 3:49 pm
Yeah, no. To let the old timers off the hook is a little too convenient for your current argument. Willie Nelson was brought up.. Shotgun Wille? Bubbles in My Beer? The album cover featuring a double barrel shotgun? Whiskey River?
Bocephus never glorified drinking and hell raising? Ever been to one of his shows?
New guys.. my fav Hank 3? Gonna take him to task for his song content?
DAC?
Keith Urban, Tim McGraw.. where these incidents took place.. you draw a link to the music and the acts committed… but neither of those guys glorify anything negative.
It’s all in good fun to talk about George Jones and his problems. Everybody knows No Show’s issues with the bottle.. and they all joke about them now. How did he get the name no show in the first place??
Johnny Cash made Gospel records but in his private life he was a junkie. Oh, how about that forrest fire that he caused? “I don’t give a damn about your yellow buzzards.” I can only imagine your reaction if Luke Bryan said that about the California Condor. You basically say Cash was a fraud.. maybe even more so than the current guys considering his ‘song content’ and how he lived his life.
I can only imagine the feigned outrage you would have shown if you went to a Skynyrd, Jennings, Hank2, Paycheck concert in the 70s. Just call this current rant what it is.. a gripe about crappy country and less about the impact the actual song content has on poor behavior.. because no comparison can be drawn from Urban to what happened at his show.
July 31, 2014 @ 4:43 pm
CBCS,
First off, nobody is letting anyone off the hook. No doubt many of country’s past artists had their demons, and even released songs that spoke to those demons in a positive light. However I don’t consider Hank Jr. an “oldtimer”. I also don’t like or condone a lot of Hank Jr.’s music. Some of it I think is great. But some is self-absorbed and pretentious. If I’m being opportunist to prove a point, you’re mixing generations of artists to prove yours.
Hank3 is not presenting himself as mainstream, family music. His songs are not being played on the radio. This is the difference. We can go back and forth about individual artists and individual songs, but that is a tiring, pointless argument that misses the point of this article.
The point is that violence, arrests, hospitalizations, rape, and death used to not be a part of the mainstream country experience to the extent they are now. So the next question is, “Why?” If you have a better answer than the one I have presented here, I’d love to hear it. As I said in the article, I think this discussion needs to be broached, and I am most certainly willing to listen to other viewpoints.
July 31, 2014 @ 2:44 pm
Why is it that when “legends” are discussed it always comes back to Johnny, and Willie, and Waylon, and Hank? Its as bad as how these current “country” singers constantly name drop these particular artists. There is country far beyond the outlaw movement. And yes many singers had vices, I think it is difficult for anyone with any degree of fame to avoid that. But there are many LEGENDS of country music that sang plenty about family. To name a few Loretta Lynn, Lefty Frizzell, Stonewall Jackson, Tammy Wynette, Ernest Tubb, Hank Snow, The Carter Family, Alan Jackson, George Strait, Alabama, ETC ETC ETC ETC. As well, as trigger pointed out Johnny Cash did a number of gospel and hymns albums, also had numerous Christmas albums and television specials that reflected greatly his appreciation for family values. You can have an addiction and still care about family. Also, Willie did a number of cover albums that represented a softer side of him beyond his outlaw image, To say NOONE sang about family is one of the most incorrect statements about classic country music I have ever heard!!!
Also, there are a number of good comments below regarding the outlaw men that apply so I won’t bother repeating.
July 31, 2014 @ 4:13 pm
I think you bring up a good point here. Very Very often when topics turn to “Country Legends,” modern artists talk about the outlaws. I think it’s no real surprise, then, that the rise of this “drink, dope and dumbass behavior” songwriting is upon us. I’m guilty of some of it, too…because those guys were my heroes as well. Of course, I think I stick a little closer to the lamenting of it than glorifying of it. But, it’s present.
But think … if all of mainstream country grew up listening primarily to “the outlaws” and to hip-hop and such … that’s exactly where the genre is going to go. That’s what an “influence” is.
The question is … are there people who were influenced more by Lefty and Conway Twitty and Barbara Mandrell? If there are…can they succeed at radio? Because, let’s be honest – that’s where 90% of people are exposed to music. The loss of the discerning DJ has caused some of the garbage we’re faced with today. A DJ now is all about promoting who the big companies are throwing at him/her. You don’t find may “rebel” shows out there who do their own programming and give new artists a shot when they hear a song that strikes a chord.
So, artists have to turn to self-marketing on the internet.
The artists you’re looking for exist. Just don’t turn a deaf ear to them when they try to showcase their stories to you.
July 31, 2014 @ 11:52 am
I have been to a few country concerts (only one within the last 2 years) and I am sad about the current state of country music. It seems like rap, pop and country are being aligned together and that is a bad thing. The pronunciation of some words shows ebonics (Ju-ly) and other words. Country music is dying a slow, painful death and I am very sad to see that.
July 31, 2014 @ 12:07 pm
I think the first step has to be for the purveyors of “v-neck t-shirt” country to band together to redefine what a “good time” is. And while I”™ll take a wait and see attitude on whether Garth can be the savior, I do know it will take more than a “We Shall Be Free”-esque video.
July 31, 2014 @ 12:35 pm
I was at a Whiskey Myers show a few weeks ago and the crowd was terrible. A 21 and over venue and Im sure there were plenty of underage there. The problem with that is they were so wasted they couldnt stand 2 hours before the show started and crashing into everyone spilling their shit all over everyone… nothing pisses me of more than some drunk morons who ruin the good time of the true fans… i drink as much as the next guy but the music comes first. ALWAYS
July 31, 2014 @ 12:38 pm
Thank you for this article. This needs to be said. I’ve been very troubled by these concert incidents over the past few days, and what’s happened to the country scene I used to be part of. Just a few weeks ago (when I saw Tim McGraw was playing here in Edmonton – yes I like most of his music, Truck Yeah not withstanding), I asked my husband, who’s not a country fan, if he’d mind taking me to a couple shows a year. (I haven’t been to one since probably the early 2000s.) But now I’m rethinking if I even want to bother. Staying home with a CD and a glass of wine sounds much more appealing. And that’s a real shame.
I didn’t know about the country megaticket, which explains a lot about that Keith Urban show. That was just baffling to me. I can say, having lived in Boston as well as surrounding areas in NE, country was not a thing up there AT ALL. CMT wasn’t on the cable lineup. I’m not even sure they had a country station for a while. I had moved there from NC and it felt like a foreign country.
Even when I lived up there more recently, you hardly saw anything about country. It was all rock. This is a new thing. So I don’t think it’s a stretch these incidents are happening more in the North. These are a lot of new fans, and new fans that listen mostly to bro-country to boot. They have no perspective of country and its tradition. In that sense, you definitely can blame the music for bringing in that element and playing to them.
“there is a section where young people from Mansfield congregate, and if you try to come into the area, you could be assaulted. In this area, underage drinking and other illicit activities are common.”
Again, where is security in all this?? Why was this allowed to go on? Beefing up security is the first thing that needs to be done, because at least it’s a problem that can be fixed. The root problems go much deeper and require a much more complex solution, if one can be found at all.
July 31, 2014 @ 12:41 pm
A big part of the problem is the death of rock as a popular genre. Country has now become the de facto white-people-party-music. These people would have been Limp Bizkit fans a decade ago.
July 31, 2014 @ 1:16 pm
I’ve mentioned repeatedly before in previous discussions here over how, with the commercial decline of Nickelback, many fans of corporate rock were disappointed as to the lack of a successor in representing the genre at a massive scale.
Then, when they stumbled upon Jason Aldean via a word-of-mouth crescendo, and found he was rocking harder than many corporate rock acts were at the time, they swarmed to his camp. Then, as Aldean’s sound has grown increasingly polished, some have wandered to Brantley Gilbert and Eric Church to appease their sweet spots for face-melting riffs, cacophonous drums, crunching power chords and hell-raisin’ histrionics.
The Nickelback/Joey Moi influence on the current country/”country” climate cannot be stressed enough.
July 31, 2014 @ 1:21 pm
Why would those people want to come to a Keith Urban concert, though?
July 31, 2014 @ 1:32 pm
I think Keith Urban is an interesting case where, in the eyes of the “BG Nation”-esque listening demographic, many have a begrudging kind of respect for him.
Thematically and lyrically, many would find Urban too soft and lame. However, many hail him as a guitar hero and his deft musicianship. So, that’s good enough for many of them if all they ask for is a solid rock-heavy concert experience.
Also, it is important to recognize that even Keith Urban has been dabbling somewhat in “bro-country” sensibilities lately without succumbing entirely to it. For instance, “Little Bit of Everything” is by far his worst single to date in my opinion because Urban just sounds like he’s trying to pander to the frat-douche crowd somewhat in the lyrics, as well as experimenting with hip-hop beats.
July 31, 2014 @ 2:00 pm
If you’re 19 years old, you probably don’t even remember or care about Nickelback. It’s more like:
That crowd turned Country into party music.
Keith Urban is Country.
Therefore a Keith Urban show is a party.
Let’s act like meatheads! Text your friends!
July 31, 2014 @ 4:55 pm
I wonder what would happen if this same 19-year old found out that Old Crow Medicine Show and Jason Eady are country and hear they’re performing live in their area.
July 31, 2014 @ 1:56 pm
Especially seeing how he produces FGL.
August 1, 2014 @ 6:49 am
Thanks for mentioning Nickelback lol. I just had to go YouTube Like a Rockstar and now it’s stuck in my brain. It does seem like when I was younger, we had more of a selection of music to choose from. Now the majority of pop singers are teenagers, not very appealing to young adults. That whole Green Day, Nickelback, Smash Mouth, Barenaked Ladies genre seems to have just disappeared or maybe I’m just so far out of that loop that I don’t know who is popular in it anymore.
July 31, 2014 @ 10:55 pm
VERY good point Big A . When Chad Krueger ( Nickelback ) is writing songs for Tim Mcgraw….you KNOW that’s exactly what’s happening . Country is the new ( old ) pseudo-rock . Its sold it’s soul to the devil .
July 31, 2014 @ 12:43 pm
I’ve been reading Cash’s, Hank’s, and Waylon’s biographies recently. Yes, they had their problems and struggles with the wild side of life, but their backgrounds (and most of their contemporaries) came from a similar place ”” God-fearing homes, traditional values, extremely physical hard work in their youth. Their music was a product of that upbringing and the “cautionary tale” aspect of the songs reflected that. Today’s “stars” are a product of their times ”” and it’s reflected in their music. And the fans eat it up because it speaks to them.
July 31, 2014 @ 1:10 pm
Yes, exactly. Drinking in older country songs more often lead to heartbreak and damnation than having sex in a truck. And even the good time drinkin’ songs seemed more about blowing off steam after a long day’s work than empty-headed partying. It’s definitely part of the bigger picture of where country has gone. Less storytelling, less self-reflection, less self-awareness. I’m not sure whether the music echoes the culture or vice versa, or some of both. I know it sucks though.
July 31, 2014 @ 2:24 pm
On that note Tom, as a musician spending most of my life playing in Traditional Country groups there is a huge difference on how the artists present themselves. I am too guilty and have seen and played with many people who struggle with dope and booze, but still put on their game face and do their best not to show it while performing, or at least try not to let it show. Todays clan think it is COOL to show the world how messed up they are (or at least pretend to be) and its part of the shtick. However they don’t realize the airheads who buy into this genre really believe in it and act out these songs.
July 31, 2014 @ 12:45 pm
The George Strait concert I went to featured a substantial level of drinking as well. The difference was that most of it was at moderate levels and did not adversely affect the self-control of the attendees.
July 31, 2014 @ 12:51 pm
Clearly, these kids need to learn (or someone needs to teach them) how to be responsible, because most of these issues are simply from a lack of responsibility and/or education about alcohol safety. To some degree, I think it is a lot of copying or acting out what they’re favorite songs are glorifying; especially seeing as these tend to happen a lot more at country concerts, according to what’s been reported that is. Hell, I know back when I was an uneducated country fan (only listening to what the radio played and what was popular on iTunes), I felt the desire to act out in a similar fashion; a sort of self-fulfilling prophecy. Thank God I discovered Will Hoge and an entire network of singer songwriters with more talent than Luke, FGL, Jason, and Dallas combined. The powers that be on music row need to be aware of the influence their songs have.
And maybe things will change now that the Nashville AntiChrist has gotten FGL to release Dirt; and as terrible as Aldean’s sex song is, at least it isn’t a bro-anthem. For how popular those songs have been the past couple weeks, you gotta expect that others will follow suit and at the very least, alcohol and party anthems won’t be the norm for much longer.
Hopefully with the lingering theme shift, this type of influence will be subdued.
July 31, 2014 @ 12:55 pm
One correction: Dirt Road Anthem was definitely not the #1 song of 2011. It was #25 on the year-end country chart.
Also, bro-country may have started in 2011, but it was far from dominant on the radio. The list of #1 hits that year were dominated by old-fashioned country-pop, although bro-country did start making a significant appearance in the latter part of the year:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_number-one_country_singles_of_2011_(U.S.)
July 31, 2014 @ 1:00 pm
“Dirt Road Anthem” was the #1-selling song of 2011. Sales, not chart performance. One of the reasons it did not chart well but sold so well is because a lot of programmers were reluctant to play a country rap song. And my assertion that 2011 was the “Year of the Country Checklist Song” did not solely have to do with radio play, but a much broader assessment of how it rose to prominence in the genre in that year.
July 31, 2014 @ 1:08 pm
I’d like to single out another probable key turning point that will be remembered as a defining moment in the emergence of “bro-country” and later influencing the culture at mainstream country/”country music” shows…………….the massive viral cult success of Brantley Gilbert’s “Kick It In The Sticks”.
I mean, the amount of views its music video has received to date (it was temporarily removed and re-uploaded at one point, and had over nine million views at that point) with minimal airplay is insanely astronomical. Even though it’s safe to ay “Bottoms Up” will be remembered as Gilbert’s biggest hit, I actually will still dare say “Kick It In The Sticks” will still hold up and be considered his signature song because of how vastly it has influenced mainstream country/”country” music culture and its youthful demographic.
What is most explicitly featured in the video is brawling. Granted the young male depicted in the video obviously non-consensually touched and pressured the female subject in the video and that instance definitely calls for intervention, but I was nonetheless bothered by how not only this video, but plenty other offerings by Brantley Gilbert, romanticize physical violence. Consequentially, Gilbert and his co-writers have sent this message to “BG Nation” and mainstream country/”country” listeners en masse that brawling is the most effective way to settle any dispute as opposed to conflict mediation.
*
“Dirt Road Anthem” (also co-written by Brantley Gilbert) definitely reached more ears than “Kick It In The Sticks” has, but as aggressive as the lyrics and subject matter is, the video itself was notably tame. Not so with “Kick It in the Sticks”. It is one of the most egregiously in-your-face and visually assaulting commercial country/”country” videos in all recent memory, and will go down in history as one of the most iconic videos, if not THE most iconic video, of the “checklist to bro-country” movement.
July 31, 2014 @ 1:40 pm
Never heard of that one. “Country must be country-wide” is the one most folks I know associate with his rise.
July 31, 2014 @ 2:10 pm
“Country Must Be Country Wide” was his breakthrough song at radio.
However, make no mistake: “Kick It In The Sticks” will easily be the more definitive song of his career. It’s one of the most influential songs to the “bro-country” culture.
July 31, 2014 @ 1:11 pm
Along with the Megaticket argument, many of these outdoor amphitheaters discount their lawn seats for next to nothing (LAWN SEATS ONLY $8) when ticket sells are sluggish attracting teenagers and the unwashed masses hoping to at least cash in on concession sales.
A general rule of mine is to never attend free concerts; leave them to to strollers and the lowest common denominators looking for free entertainment. The last free show I attended was Lucinda Williams at the Three Rivers Arts Festival in 2000 – Lucinda didn’t want to be there, sound system sucked, people where disinterested, strollers everywhere.
It’s best to have to pay a cost for tickets to weed of the under belly of society.
July 31, 2014 @ 1:23 pm
Seems very elitist and un-country to keep the poor away from the musical experience.
July 31, 2014 @ 1:33 pm
A poor attitude to have. My wife, my 2 and a half year old daughter and myself will be attending a free John Fullbright show in the park tomorrow night, and yes we will probably have a stroller. For the record my daughter loves music and this is a great way to expose her to real music. It’s a shame that you think there should not be free concerts to allow people of all types to be exposed to music. To save country music and perpetuate worthy music it is vital to be able to expose children to the music and these free concerts are a great way to do it.
July 31, 2014 @ 1:46 pm
To be fair, hoptowntiger was using a different definition of “stroller”. In any case, your point on the musical experience being open to everyone is absolutely right.
July 31, 2014 @ 1:34 pm
The Koch Brothers, is that you? 😉
July 31, 2014 @ 1:52 pm
Cheap tickets are fine. Just keep drink prices high, and buckle down on people bringing in their own booze.
July 31, 2014 @ 1:32 pm
I’m from France.
I listen to country-music since 1994. I was too a hard-rock fan in 90’s. Today I think That Country-music is the punk-rock fm and a simple music party. The storytellers are in the Americana scène.
It´s the first Time That I shame about music I keep in my heart ! But I keep Hope to best moments in future.
July 31, 2014 @ 1:40 pm
The problems all seem to circle back to drinking, mostly underage, and people not being able to handle their booze. Maybe some sort of wristband system would help? Something not easily removed or traded. A limit of 5 alcoholic beverages per wristband. Obviously you only get one if you are 21. Also I think more security at entrances is key. Not allowing drunk people in, better searches for bottles/flasks, no outside containers ect could stop some problems before they happen. Limiting tailgating is also a necessity.
July 31, 2014 @ 1:59 pm
Trigger –
Does anyone go to club shows anymore? I wonder how it works in smaller markets. The Los Angeles market is awful. You’re playing 3-4 hours of cover tunes, or you’re working a meager door split with a “promoter” who does anything but, or you’re paying to play. Luckily, there is a #californiacountry movement happening here, and people are digging it. Podcasts, small jams, and now a full 3-day festival are highlighting what’s happening here. But, I wonder about the smaller markets – are clubs even doing concerts anymore, or is it all DJs and then “mega ticket” offerings?
July 31, 2014 @ 2:07 pm
I prefer smaller venues and real seats. Getting old I guess…
July 31, 2014 @ 2:25 pm
There’s still a vibrant club circuit in many markets, but it doesn’t really act like a country music farm system or proving ground anymore. You have a few acts like Sturgill Simpson that start there and will eventually work their way onto the theater circuit, but many club-level bands are resigned to the culb circuit for their existence. Any bands big labels expect to get big end up as openers on the big Megaticket tours, artists like Josh Thompson and such notwithstanding. Not really sure if that answers your question.
What has really hurt the club circuit has been the explosion of festivals. Instead of going out one or two nights a month, people are saving up and going to a few festivals each year where they can watch 6 or 7 bands a day and spend half as much money. The problem with the club circuit is it’s such a hassle for many consumers to get out of the house on a Tuesday night to see music. There’s a lot of bands, and a lot of clubs struggling in that live space at the moment.
July 31, 2014 @ 2:28 pm
I saw JD McPherson at Club Cafe in Pittsburgh recently. One of the best shows I’ve ever seen. The energy was amazing.
July 31, 2014 @ 2:33 pm
I saw Eric Church two summers ago and never saw anything like that. I just saw a bunch of people drinking and having a good time. I am also seeing him this October and am sure I won’t see anything like that. And if i did id be pretty disgusted. There’s a difference between marketing and just being true. I just find it odd that you consider Eric Church to be a “talentless asshole” yet you talk about him all the time. It seems to me like it would be a waste of time for you to talk about him.
July 31, 2014 @ 4:34 pm
Matty,
First off, I don’t talk about Eric Church ‘all the time.” It just appears that way to some readers because the only time they come here is when I say something about Eric Church.
“I just find it odd that you consider Eric Church to be a “talentless asshole” yet you talk about him all the time. It seems to me like it would be a waste of time for you to talk about him.”
I have no idea what that means. I run country music website and talk about issues. And since Eric Church is one of the biggest acts in the genre, it’s only natural his name would come up upon occasion.
I am not bashing Eric Church in this article. I am simply using his words as an illustration. If you have a problem with what he said, if you think the characterization of his shows being full of people “fucking and fighting” is incorrect, take it up with Eric Church. He’s the one that said it.
July 31, 2014 @ 2:35 pm
Eric church isn’t a drunk? The guy drinks jack daniels out of a coffee mug at five in the morning. And no that’s not mixed with coffee.
July 31, 2014 @ 4:44 pm
Because of how these country shows were set up it doesn’t really matter if it’s Keith Urban or Eric Church. Heck if during these big shows they decided to put Jason Eady as an opening act the crowd’s reaction would still be the same. These kids now considered country as the new rock and metal. if these kids were teenagers in the 80s or 90s it would have been a Bon Jovi or Bush concert.
Now I wonder if these same rowdy behavior happens at a Warped Tour.
July 31, 2014 @ 4:52 pm
Hey Triggerman,
This might seem like a weird question, but have you put a block on my e-mail address for some reason? Several times I have tried leaving a comment on SCM in the past 24 hours that simply disappeared instead of being posted as usual. Finally, I had to resort to using a different e-mail address, and it worked.
July 31, 2014 @ 5:09 pm
Applejack,
I just checked and it appears some of your comments were being marked as spam. Some of them were also going to moderation, and I was approving them as they were coming in. I just approved a bunch of your comments I found in the spam folder. This will hopefully help teach the system to let your comments go through. I assure you it was nothing I did. The site gets over 60,000 spam comments a day, and so sometimes the spam filters get a little too overzealous. It’s probably not your email address. It might be your IP address is similar to active spam IP’s or something. Anyway, please let me know if it continues to be a problem.
July 31, 2014 @ 8:11 pm
Thanks, and will do.
The fact that this site gets up to 60, 000 spam comments a day is mind boggling. Congratulations one staving them off, because I don’t recall ever seeing one make it onto the site. And there aren’t even CAPTCHAs anymore.
July 31, 2014 @ 4:53 pm
Lots of great observations and perspectives in this thread , for sure .
I think what gets overlooked too often when focusing on the behavior and tastes of young concert go-ers is that we just seem to focus on the subject of (country) music and its alleged effects. In fact , the entire culture is geared to marketing hip , cool , ‘outlaw’ , independence , rebel , material things and sex sex sex to an ever-younger unmonitored demographic . From video games ( Grand Theft Auto ) to Tv shows , the celebration of internet porn , cartoon references and sarcasm , the sex and alcohol and gangster quotient is off the chart . Nearly every program that isn’t on PBS is saturated with overt sexual references , drinking and plenty of gratuitous violence . Even the programs with ‘older’ stars are geared to that young drinking and sex mindset . Its quite pathetic watching these shows falling over each other to out-shock the other and their respective audiences. BUT this is what kids for the last 20 years or more have been subjected to from ALL media . Movies , music lyrics , the internet , Tv , video games etc.. they all play a part in the dramatic changes we’ve seen in the culture – random crime , the drug culture , mass shootings of innocent people almost monthly ..and spiraling disrespect for others and their rights . Country music has certainly contributed its part in the past years promoting this lifestyle …celebrating alcohol and degrading women . This stuff seeps into the pores of young , impressionable kids . If they don’t hear or see options , what kind of behavior do we expect from them ?
July 31, 2014 @ 6:59 pm
A few points:
1) This behavior seems to be unique to certain types of country concert. You do not see this happening at a Taylor Swift show, for example. Believe it or not, most pop concerts are also quite peaceful.
2) The violent drug culture peaked more than 20 years ago. Drug-related crime has been on the decline for quite some time. This has corresponded to a decline in the popularity of cocaine.
3) Mass shootings are not a new phenomenon. While their frequency may have increased, the frequency of serial killings and violent cults (e.g. Jonestown, the Branch Davidians, the Manson cult) has declined.
4) There is no evidence that online porn contributes to violent behavior. In fact, studies have shown that the state with the highest consumption of online porn is Utah, which also happens to have one of the lowest crime rates in the nation.
5) The idea that the younger generation respects the rights of others less than the older generation is simply ridiculous on its face. This is so self-explanatory that I do not need to lay out the details…
July 31, 2014 @ 11:04 pm
A DECLINE in the popularity of cocaine? Wish I could say I’d noticed that.
July 31, 2014 @ 7:07 pm
I will also add that it is sad that you are equating celebration of sex with violence. Inability to distinguish between violence and consensual sex is one of the ultimate signs of disrespect for the rights of others.
July 31, 2014 @ 10:23 pm
I think rape is universally considered a violent act .
And I think this :
“While watching Church”™s set that night, Moore saw a couple screwing in the audience. “A guy pulled a girl”™s skirt up, and the dirty deed was going on,”
and this :
“half the crowd was fighting. And I saw guys who had girls bent over the rail, screwing.” His lighting designer””a guy who”™d toured with nearly every major metal band, including Van Halen, Metallica and Guns N”™ Roses””was shocked. “He said to me, ”˜You should call this the Fucking and Fighting Tour.”™”
, as the article above suggests , goes hand in hand with drinking , drugs and a lack of respect ..particularly in a public venue open to families . I think most paying customers would argue that they should not have to be subjected to this behavior at a public concert . My comments above are just my opinion on how and why these things seem to be happening more frequently .
You may be interested , Eric and others , in a book published several years ago entitled ” Vulgarians At The Gate ” written by Steve Allen ( yes ..THAT Steve Allen ) in part as a plea to the motion picture , TV and music industry to ‘clean up its act’ or their would be serious social consequences . I think we all must share some of the responsibilities for the behaviors , positive or negative , of each succeeding generation. The omnipotence of the entertainment media ,thanks to technology and geared only to turning a profit ,makes our jobs , in that respect , that much harder and also puts the onus on them to share MORE of that responsibility than ever before ,. I think the ‘message ‘ many of these country acts are sending out ( partying , drinking , objectifying women etc. ) is , sadly , irresponsible .
July 31, 2014 @ 11:27 pm
Once again, you are equating partying with violence. It is impossible to discuss this issue rationally until those two concepts are decoupled.
In terms of violence, the pop music of today is thoroughly non-violent in comparison to the heydays of metal and gangsta rap, at least partly due to the current female domination of pop. Mainstream country music, at least what gets played on the radio, may be intellectually and emotionally shallow but is nonetheless not violent.
An interesting sidenote: the one place in country music where violent rhetoric and lyrics are commonplace is in the underground country that used to be promoted by SCM, due to the significant punk influence.
July 31, 2014 @ 11:49 pm
I think there’s quite a few examples of violent themes in popular country music. As the artist Austin Lucas explained about, fighting is one of the essentials on the country checklist, and it’s brought up often. At the end of Brantley Gilbert’s video for “Bottom’s Up” he shoots a cop.
August 1, 2014 @ 12:09 am
Brantley Gilbert’s violent lyrics are rather unique in bro-country. Looking at the top hits over the last year, from Luke Bryan, Cole Swindell, Chase Rice, Florida Georgia Line, Jerrod Niemann, Thomas Rhett, Joe Nichols, and so on, the only violent song I can think of other than “Bottoms Up” is “Redneck Crazy”. Almost all of the songs are about simple partying.
July 31, 2014 @ 6:07 pm
The glorification of alcohol abuse. When drunkenness is the goal, you can expect problems. These aren’t fans simply relaxing with a few beers before and during a concert, these are people who attend the shows with the specific goal of getting annilhated. It’s become a badge of courage, something to brag about and celebrate. You have tens of thousands of very intoxicated people stumbling about, you add youthful testosterone and women into the mix and soon you have mayhem. It will continue until the genre stops glorifying alcohol, “fightin” and such. It’s as simple as that.
July 31, 2014 @ 7:10 pm
Fantastic article, Trigger. As someone who is 21 and lives in the north, I can definitely confirm there are many people my age who act like this at concerts and have just recently got into “country.” Three years ago they would tell you they hate country and now they quote it everyday on social media. And of course they post drunk pictures of themselves at these concerts. Heck one concert that is held annually nearby me, called Jamboree in the Hills, is notorious for mass chaos and heavy drinking. Many of the big names in country music in the last five years have performed at this venue recently. How bad is it? My dad once told me that I should never marry a girl who’s ever been to it. I think I’ll take his advice.
July 31, 2014 @ 8:27 pm
Man, that is so telling.
Like many others, I’ve strongly suspected that many who are fans of the current bro-country zeitgeist are not longtime country fans, and in fact may not have cared about “country music” as recently as two years ago. Recent comments from music executives about the migration of rock fans to country music (such as the ones in the recent Windmills article) confirm this theory, and anecdotes from people like you corroborate it. I have observed this phenomenon myself to some extent, but I’m in the South where country music is a big deal anyway, so it’s harder to tell how many of these bro-country fans are bandwagoneers.
July 31, 2014 @ 8:18 pm
I’m currently in this age group being discussed, and I’m sorry, but so much of this can simply be based off of what I’ve grown up with. My parents, specifically my Dad and his friends, were in the party crowd back in the day. Fighting, drinking, and getting laid was the goal back then in the ’70s too. My Dad hung with the bikers and the cowboys at all the stuff he went to, and they got into a lot of trouble. Hell, half the reason people went to Bluebonnet Palace, even into the 90s, was picking the hottest, easiest girls and the fights.
My Dad doesn’t glorify it. He hated it and wishes none of it upon me. Neither does my mother, or anybody else who dealt with it. But hearing the stories and seeing the scars, and hearing country (traditional, mind you. Even 90’s country wasn’t allowed in my house growing up) about drinking, fighting, and finding the sexiest person of the opposite sex was what I grew up with. Its what I wanted, and still want. But I’m not that way. I wasn’t ever allowed to run with these kind of people because I wasn’t cool, because I don’t have the looks, whatever. I understand why they get this way- its what everything around us taught, even if our parents wanted something else. Momma tried, so the story goes.
I’d also argue concerts have always been this bad, its just a matter of how public things were allowed to be. Back in the day, they didn’t report on a dead body at a concert, or a fight. My parents were at country concerts where those happened in their days. The alleged rape is the only thing that blows my mind here, but the music and scene can’t be blamed for that.
The fighting and drinking also, I think at least, comes from the fact that my age group grew up too safe. People want a little danger, want a little roughness. I was taught to fight if someone started one with me, although I’ve never had to. If your whole life for 18 years is about school and preparing for college, and nothing else, as it was for many in my age group, you want to fight and get stuff out of your system. I’ve had few girls I’ve loved, but I would kick the shit out of any of the men they run around with if I thought it would get them to look at me.
I probably make a fool of myself saying all this, but I can’t help it. I grew up on Quentin Tarantino movies and Easy Rider. I, like many my age, grew up with the last bit of that late sixties early seventies revolution mind set. I don’t know anything different. Its not my parents fault, they did everything they could to do their best. Its society’s problem, because it is encouraged.
July 31, 2014 @ 10:30 pm
I appreciate your perspective , Luke . Well said and clearly articulated . As I mentioned above , I too think its a bigger issue than just drinking and violence at a country music concert . It is , undoubtedly , encouraged by society, for the most part ,through the entertainment industry.
July 31, 2014 @ 11:47 pm
“I”™d also argue concerts have always been this bad.”
Yes, concerts have always been this bad. It just rarely or never happened at country concerts. Now that’s where the majority of this behavior resides.
August 2, 2014 @ 5:06 pm
I believe it just wasn’t discussed as often back in the day when it happened- my Mom went to a concert where a man had his jaw broken with a hammer, my Dad was at a concert where three men and one woman were stabbed, only the woman surviving.
And this was all country. Not to mention the stories my Grandparents have from the times they went to see Bob Wills and Hank Sr. Bob Wills was known for getting so drunk he couldn’t stand on stage, and the venue was one of the ones with chicken wire around the stage. Lots of fights, and my Grandfather was part of a group who stopped a rape. When they saw Hank Sr. once, there was a bar wide brawl not long after he got off stage.
I also think it is interesting, when mentioning this article to people, how they react to the idea that country was “family oriented” music. Most balked at the idea, saying it never was. Those who agreed with it? They were the ones listening to the music everyone here is against, or skimmed the very top of the most popular country over the years, or stuck to radio listening only. As my Grandfather put it, drinking, fighting, and fucking are pretty much all country has covered over the years. Its just changed in how its presented.
August 2, 2014 @ 10:33 pm
Look, nobody is saying there has never been violence or problems at country music concerts in the past. The question is if the degree and rate of incidents is on the increase. And I say that’s the question, because like I said above in the article, I don’t think we really have the statistical data to say for sure if this is a trend or not. But what we do have is quite a few high profile incidents that do not paint a very rosy picture, a police chief from Mansfield, Mass. saying country music used to be an easy night, and now it’s hard, and many other significant signs that these problems are on the increase.
“my Mom went to a concert where a man had his jaw broken with a hammer, my Dad was at a concert where three men and one woman were stabbed, only the woman surviving.”
This is an example of anecdotal evidence, meaning it really doesn’t corroborate anything but the story being told. What year was it? Who was the headliner? Where was the venue? What was the context of the incident? Sure, Willie Nelson started out playing behind chicken wire on stages in Ft. Worth, but this was in 21 or up bars playing for 30 people and not being passed of as family entertainment like Keith Urban to an 18,000 capacity venue.
Yes, we shouldn’t be chicken little, but we also shouldn’t be an ostrich putting our head in the sand. There is a problem here.
July 31, 2014 @ 10:23 pm
Hailing from the despite popular beautiful and great state of NJ and living on the NJ/NY border I can tell you exactly whats going on pop country garbage is this generations crap hair metal. Everything about it Blake Shelton is poison….I mean the band but if ya wanna take it the other way I wont argue.
Fin De Semana! 8-1-14 |
August 1, 2014 @ 3:17 am
[…] Bad culture comes from garbage music. Saving Country Music has been talking about this for a while, but this is probably the definitive piece on the degeneracy at the heart of mainstream country. […]
August 1, 2014 @ 3:59 am
Trigger,
I’m actually not arguing that church said that and I’m also not arguing that it happened. I’m just telling you my experience was nothing like that. Eric church has said a lot of stuff, he doesn’t really have a filter. My argument is that this article puts fans of Eric church or any other artist into categories. Believe me there are a lot of good Eric church fans who would not condone that kind of behavior. Lets not forget eric church himself is married and as far as we know he has been 100 percent faithful( not something ol johnny or aldean can say) .Not everybody who goes to a concert is looking to get laid or get in a fight . I just happen to love his music, and I really don’t think he’s a bad person either( although he could be in the wrong genre) anyways have a good day!
August 1, 2014 @ 6:42 am
We can theorize to death why this is now happening – I remember seeing Hank Jr. many times in the 1980s and Jim Beam was mentioned many times in his songs, but never did the arrests and drunken fights occur like we see today. My only thought on why this is now occurring is that we are seeing more “mega-shows” where there are four, sometimes five, artists and people are at the venue drinking for up to 10 hours compared to when there is a single opening act with a headliner and the show is done in three-to-four hours.
August 1, 2014 @ 1:00 pm
Thing of it is, both country music and it’s fans ready had a bit of a stereotype. Bro Country has not only confirmed those stereotypes to anyone that views the music as an outsider, but ramped it up to almost cartoonish levels.
August 1, 2014 @ 4:19 pm
I don’t have a lot to say beyond what’s already been said, but this was an especially fine piece of writing and argumentation by you, Trig. Thanks for laying it all out so clearly.
August 3, 2014 @ 2:50 pm
Country music has gone to hell in a hand basket,…what is considered country music is the same crap that was rock and roll in the 70’s…..If you want to hear some real Americana made by Americans…Check out the IBMA…..Bluegrass is true Appalachian Music….We may play thru mics. but we play acoustic instruments and the songs tell the stories of real Americans…not what they want or should be…
August 4, 2014 @ 8:23 am
First of all, these aren’t country fans. They’re pop fans. This is bubble gum music performed by a bunch of sell outs and these fanatical idiots have bought into the hype. They grew up on MTV rap and Backstreet Boys. That’s why they’re ignorant of country’s illustrious past. Secondly, the whole world is turning into a shitpool of idiots because everything that real country music held dear (things like respect, truth, dignity, tradition and humility) aren’t as important as being seen and heard even if it means being disgraceful. Just grab your TV remote and flip through a few hundred channels. We’ve become a world of trash-consuming zombies. Miley Cyrus is just taking what her daddy did and taking it up a couple of notches. Debauchery rules!
August 8, 2014 @ 1:14 pm
Thank You, Trigger, for what you do on this site. Thank You for trying to warn the world. You are the man!
August 10, 2014 @ 10:45 pm
This is one reason I came to favor bluegrass over contemporary country some years back. I love the outlaws too, but they loom larger than the founders of country, the men and women who set the foundation stones of what country was to be for many years-Jimmy Rodgers, Hank Williams SR (who spoke of his pain and his wrestling with his demons, not the glorification of them), The Original Carter Family, etc. The ballads, the narrative songs. When was the last time the narrative, formerly a mainstay of country music, was a hit? Ode To Billie Jo? Harper Valley PTA? It’s quite possible that there’s been one (a hit) since then, but Top 40 country began dropping off my radar some years ago, even before the “bro-country” phenomenon.
What would be amusing, if it hadn’t ruined the music I loved, is how those who didn’t “get” country in the past, mocked its narrow parameters, or what they chose to see as narrow. I look back at over half a century of country music, even just the hits, and see a wide range of subject matter, moods, sounds. Now, when country music is touted as oh-so-broad and inclusive, it has become more narrow in sound and in subject than ever in its long history. The train song? A song about a Witchita lineman? A song (from not that long ago) about coming back as an astronaut, or a rain drop, after living lives as highwaymen and sailors? Songs about the heartbreak of divorce, its effect on kids, about how Mama tried to raise you right, about the unconscious cruelty of hearing your family casually discuss the suicide of your love while your heart is breaking (Ode To Billie Jo), heck, even a song about having TB (Jimmy Rodgers’ TB Blues)? The range was deep and wide. Now it’s as shallow both sonically and lyrically as a mud puddle, and about as inspiring in any way.
There was even a distinct dance form of country-western swing, which was instrumentally sophisticated (partly inspired by Big Band). There was the virtuosity of bluegrass, which to me can be compared with rock’s excursion, in the seventies, into progressive rock. Mainstream country had its own instrumental virtuosos, such as Chet Atkins and Roy Clark.
All of it gone, and only remembered by old fogies like me, and a small band of torch keepers. All of that richness and variety erased, while today’s “country” is breathlessly touted as wider and more varied than ever before. It makes me sick, really.
September 6, 2014 @ 3:21 pm
I know this is an old article, but I have recently discovered this site and been completely devouring it. I hate that my first comment is gonna have this tone, and I don’t doubt that I’ll have naysayers bitching about “political correctness.” But since I’ve been respecting the hell out of your writing and the education I’m getting here, I don’t want to just not say anything and walk away. My gripe is this:
“Someone was killed and SOMEONE’S DAUGHTER was raped” ? Seriously? As though this young woman’s father was the real victim of this crime. It doesn’t sound as upsetting to just say that a woman was raped? She has to be contextualized in relation to someone else?
Just sayin.
But again, I am so excited to be finding some great country music through this site. I gave up on country long ago due to the direction of the mainstream stuff, but I’ve really missed it!
September 6, 2014 @ 4:02 pm
Hey Stephanie,
I wrote this a while ago so I’m not sure, but what I think I was trying to communicate here was that these incidents are an issue ALL of us should be concerned about. I think that final paragraph was dramatically extended and then I edited it down because I didn’t want to come across as grandstanding. Either way, your point is a valid one, and I’m very glad that you were able to discover the site.
January 20, 2015 @ 9:22 am
I may as well admit it, I invented FGL and bro country to torture you here on earth so you don’t have to wait for hell.
January 22, 2015 @ 8:13 pm
I’ll probably get some negative feedback, but for those who are defending some of the so called “country artists”, example Eric Church, I have to disagree with you. As far as I’m concerned, if they are part of the bro-country scene whether they condone what happens at their concerts or not does not matter. If they are part of it then they are also a contributing factor to the violence and what is happening to country music todsy.
May 4, 2015 @ 3:31 pm
You hate everybody. All you do is bash everything you see, and then offer no solutions to it. Come up with constructive criticism and solutions to what you view as problems. Heck, why don’t you join their security crews and police the shows? It’s probably because you’re an old, grumpy, sad little man with gout in his genitals.