Travel Editor Mary O’Leary considers the topic of liberalism in country music.
Over the past month, American country singer Zach Bryan has been under fire from conservative American news outlets and politicians for his new song ‘Bad News’. The track references both Trump and Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) with lyrics such as, “ICE is gonna come bust down your door” and “Got some bad news / The fading of the red, white, and blue”. Though not the first American singer to release music speaking out against the Trump administration’s actions, his status as a country singer has garnered a unique type of backlash.
This is largely due to the fact that in the past two decades, the country music genre has amassed a reputation for conservative values and hyper nationalistic imagery. Often country singers are seen at republican rallies as well as loudly speaking out in their endorsements of right-wing political figures.
So infamous is this reputation, that both sides of the political spectrum have been known to correlate favoring country music and supporting right wing politics all together. But what if you were told that this reputation wasn’t the entire truth? And that Zach Bryan’s song is far more aligned with traditional country music than most other modern country songs?
In truth, the origin of American country music is actually quite progressive, with many legendary early country singers, such as Woody Guthrie and Johnny Cash, having been widely outspoken in their progressive beliefs both in and outside of their music. In fact, early country music was one of the first genres to discuss topics such as prison reform, anti-fascism, police brutality, corporate exploitation, and racial injustice towards Black and Native American people.
Furthermore, this trend of progressive themes in American folk and country songs did not stop after its inception, with artists such as Dolly Parton and Tracy Chapman continuing this legacy up until the late 20th century. The question is how a genre so steeped in progressive politics could ever take such a hard turn to the right. Unfortunately, the answer lies in the aftermath of 9/11.
Following the terrorist attack, American nationalism was at an all-time high, with criticism of hyper nationalist policies being portrayed as anti-American as a whole. Genres such as country became the antithesis of this criticism due to its representation of cultural, rural America. As such, what used to be a genre that focused on the problems rural people faced at the hands of the American government then became one that largely embodied nationalist American ideologies.
That’s not to say there wasn’t pushback against this shift, only that when it occurred, said country artists were silenced in the name of pro-American sentiment. Most notably of these singers were the Dixie Chicks, a once widely popular country girl band that spoke out against the American invasion of Iraq and were subsequently blacklisted and ostracized.
Knowing this history, it's not hard to wonder why country music has the reputation it does, but why is it seemingly shifting back now? In truth, rural America and Americans in general are far more critical of their government in comparison to the 2000s. The cost of living is now through the roof, and corporate America is the only demographic in the country which the government actually seems keen on helping. Knowledge of government exploitation and the country’s use of abroad conflicts for economic gain are also now widespread.
That being said, this shift is certainly still within its early stages, with much of the genre still being associated with hyper nationalism. Those who oppose this resurgence in traditional country music values claim that it goes against the genre but refuse to acknowledge the legacy that built this genre in the first place. It’s safe to say that if songs such as Woody Guthrie’s ‘Tear the Fascists Down’ were released today, he would be criticized the same way Bryan was.
Zach Bryan is also not the only country singer to speak out against the American government, with singers such as Tyler Childers and Bryan Andrews also having garnered such critiques. It’s safe to say that modern country music fans see Zach Bryan’s song not just as a critique of a politician they admire but also as a betrayal of the country music genre as a whole.
The more country music continues to shift with modern politics, the more conservative fans and politicians will push back against this change. How this genre evolves however, is outside the control of any singular political party, especially when it has historically represented the poorest demographic in the country’s history.