1980’s-2000’s Country Music

1980’s-2000’s Country Music
Country music has recently become more radical. In the past country tunes were sluggish and slow, but a group of up and coming artists would revolutionize the music industry forever. These new artist did more for the southern/western genre than anyone in the past. They sold millions of record. Cumulatively they made billions of dollars! Artists had gigantic concerts that attracted hundreds of thousands of spectators. Their songs began to do something no country artist had done before… top the pop charts. The 1980’s brought forth some of the most dominant and influential country singers of all time, while seasoned veterans, who were previously successful in other decades, continued to create great music. In the 1990’s the money began to flow. Artists composed albums that went Diamond (sell over 10,000,000 units) and sold out stadiums. The “good time” singers of the 2000’s sang songs about love, drunkenness, and the party life. These topics appealed to regular folks and attracted new followers. Overall, this period of country music brought light to the genre and delivered great wealth to its artists.
The country artists of the 1980’s are the most famous in the history of country music. The 80’s was a period when the older singers from recent decades, such as George Jones, Dolly Parton, Kenny Rogers, etc., still continued to churn out hits. Their style was popular but new faces were coming to the scene. George Strait, “The King of Country”, came to Nashville and stubbornly wore his western attire (cowboy hat, Wranglers, etc.) which by the 80’s was being done away, but with the help of Mr. Strait was being brought back into style! He sang western cowboy music and barroom swing music which became popular v...

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...itional, clean cut, and much acclaimed vocalist. The 90’s was a boom for country music when entertainers and rock-a-billy singers were common, and they attracted colossal crowds. Finally, came Y2K and fresh folks to sing the country style and connect with the people who love the genre so dearly. From George Strait to Garth Brooks to Tim McGraw, these names have come up on more than just the country charts but also the pop charts. Also, they drew in a substantial amount of wealth. They have changed more than their genre but also the entire music industry.

Works Cited
Dooley, Sean. "Top 10 Country Artists of the 2000s." About.com. N.p., n.d. Web. 12 Nov. 2013.
Kallen, Stuart A. The History of Country Music. San Diego, CA: Lucent, 2003. Print.
Kingsbury, Paul, and Alanna Nash. Will the Circle Be Unbroken: Country Music in America.
London: DK, 2006. Print.