Zach Top: George Strait and Randy Travis Had to “Save Country Music”

Right now the signal is a little noisy on just where the country genre sits at the moment. Morgan Wallen is still indisputably the most popular artist in country music, even if some question just how “country” he is. Country has been in the crosshairs lately due to political friction stemming from the alternative Super Bowl Halftime show in early February. And Jelly Roll just won the Grammy for Best Contemporary Country Album.

But don’t let any of that distract you from the fact that traditional country music remains in a strong resurgence at the moment. Generally speaking, the country genre is more “country” right now that at any time in the last decade or two, and is more supportive of performers outside the conventional Nashville/Music Row bubble than ever before.

You can point to multiple things to verify this, including Ella Langley’s incredible #1 showing with her career-defining traditional country mega hit “Choosin’ Texas.” Everywhere you look, artists with more twangy sounds and traditional songs are finding traction. And then there is the continued success of neotraditionalist Zach Top.

Fresh off his win for Best Traditional Country Album at the 2026 Grammy Awards, Zach Top is preparing to headline the C2C (Country to Country) festival on Friday, March 13th at the O2 Arena in London. Ahead of the performance, he talked to Entertainment Focus, and had some great insight into this moment in country music from his perspective as an artist.

“It is crazy. I haven’t gotten out of the mindset of being the outsider or the underdog, you know, ’cause I still sound so much different than the rest of what’s going on,” Zach Top says. “It feels kind of wild that it’s caught on this well and that I am one of the, I guess, more prominent figures in the genre feels kind of crazy to me. I’m very humbled by it and very thankful, and overjoyed that this many people have caught on and fallen in love with the music as much as they have, when it sticks out like a sore thumb from the rest of what’s on the radio and everything.”

For anyone who’s followed country music for a while, they know the genre works in cycles, with moments where the genre becomes more pop and commercial as it chases trends outside of its conventional borders.

“I feel like fans of country always find something new that comes along that’s a little different, a little wacky, and they go chase that. The industry goes and chases that for a while,” Zach Top rightfully observes. “I think this latest cycle has been a long one, starting back in I think 2010 when ‘Cruise’ came out from Florida Georgia Line. That felt like the big shift toward this hip-hop influence into country. Obviously, Morgan Wallen is at the peak of his powers in that same type of vein as well.”

But now there is an entirely alternative universe where traditional country is thriving too, working in parallel with the folks like Morgan Wallen and Jelly Roll. And Zach Top and other neotraditionalists like Braxton Keith, Jake Worthington, and others aren’t just here to take advantage of it. When it comes to Zach Top, he’s responsible for the trend taking hold in large part.

“It’s a cool place to be,” Zach Top says. “I’m very thankful that I hit the cycle at the right time where it’s swinging back toward the traditional thing, like it’s done so many times before. It’s just another iteration of the cycle but I’m glad I showed up at the right time and that people are hungry for my sound at the moment. It feels like the hunger from fans has turned somewhat toward a return to the roots and traditions of country music.”

But the quote that got Saving Country Music’s attention the most is when Zach Top said, “It’s just so funny to watch it ’cause back when George Strait and Randy Travis came around, they had to save country music after Kenny Rogers ruined it. I feel like these cycles have been going on as long as country music has been around. There’s always been something new and a little different and edgy that goes on for a little bit and then people return to something traditional and familiar feeling.”

It feels a bit harsh to say it was Kenny Rogers who “ruined” country music. Much of Rogers’ music is excellent, and some is quite traditional. But Kenny definitely was one of the crossover stars that made country music more pop for a period, and less country in the early ’80s. Just like Bro-Country opened the door for someone like Zach Top, Kenny Rogers helped open the door for George Strait and Randy Travis.

These observations from Zach Top tell us two things: First, timing is incredibly important. If Zach Top had come along a year or two before, or a year or two after, who knows, maybe his carer would have never taken off. There are so many traditional country artists that you wonder why they never found the same success as Zach. Timing has so much to do with it.

Second, since all these things work in a cycle in country music, you can’t take it for granted when the cycle is working in your favor like it is now. You can’t rest on your laurels just because a few traditional country artists are finding success right now, and expect it to be that way forever.

But perhaps the long-awaited split in the country genre that many people have been clamoring for is finally here. Since it isn’t just radio that rules the roost and the internet has allowed for multiple lanes to success to open up, neotraditonalists like Zach Top can become stars and win Grammy Awards while the Jelly Rolls of the world thrive in the mainstream and do the same. It’s no longer an either/or proposition.

Maybe living side by side is still not appetizing for some traditional country fans. But at least traditionalists and neotraditionalists now have a seat at the table, and equal opportunities to their pop country counterparts. Country music has come a long way since the height of Bro-Country, even if there’s still much to do. And that success is thanks to the talent and appeal of country music’s young traditionalists whose talent and success can’t go unrecognized any more.

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