Wren Graves (Features Editor): Yeehaw! Or as the country music-lovers in my Wisconsin family might say, ah geez! Today’s Consequence Chat looks at country’s record-breaking run to the top of the Billboard charts — and what it reveals about the music industry.
The controversial superstar Morgan Wallen continues to perch atop both the Billboard Hot 100 and Billboard 200, which respectively track songs (“Last Night”) and albums (One Day at a Time). In the process, as Billboard reported, it became only the third album to dominate both charts at once for at least 11-weeks straight since Michael Jackson’s Thriller did it twice. Not only did his 2021 use of the N-word not hurt his career, Wallen is more popular than ever before.
At the same time, as of the July 8th chart, Luke Combs’ cover of Tracy Chapman’s “Fast Car” has rocketed up to No. 2 on the Billboard Hot 100, making this the first time in 42 years that the two most-popular songs are both country tunes. “Fast Car” has also taken the No. 1 spot on the Country Airwaves chart, so not only has Combs’ cover surpassed the original in airplay, it has made Chapman the first Black woman with a No. 1 country song writing credit.
That’s a lot to unpack! Luckily, joining me today are Associate Editor Mary Siroky and Editorial Coordinator Jonah Krueger. Folks, is country music just in a better place than other genres right now? Or is something else going on? Let’s start with Nashville’s own Mary.
Mary Siroky (Associate Editor): I love so much about country music as a genre, and living in Nashville for over a decade now has allowed me to have an interesting proximity to this specific industry. Obviously, there are so many great country artists creating fantastic work right now, but I don’t think that’s necessarily what’s driving the successes here.
Wren: Can I be honest? We’re all friends here, right? That Morgan Wallen song sucks.
Jonah Krueger (Editorial Coordinator): It is, indeed, a bit of a stinker.
Mary: It’s not good! It doesn’t even have the earworm catchiness of “Whiskey Glasses” or some of his earlier hits; it doesn’t have the edge of a country song of yesteryear.
Jonah: But if country music is truly better than other genres at anything, it’s being able to systematically push songs, sounds, and artists — and they get results.
Mary: The machine remains well-oiled; as Garth Brooks acknowledged in a recent interview with Billboard, labels and country radio are far more intertwined than many people realize. Once a label makes a choice about an artist, radio tends to rally behind them. Trends aren’t as organic in country music as they might be in other genres.
According to good ol’ Garth, “As long as the labels have you, then you’re on the radio. The second something happens and you’re not with that label, the career goes into some other stage.” Labels and radio have the power to make or break, in a way that’s unique to country music.
Jonah: Which is not to say you don’t see organic, grass-roots artists rise, even to astronomical heights. I’m thinking of someone like Zach Bryan, who dominated the streaming charts despite country radio dragging it’s feet when it came to airplay. But artists like Bryan remain the exception rather than the rule, even in the streaming age.
Wren: That’s a great point. What do we know about how country gatekeepers have wielded their power?
Mary: Consider the extra barriers that women and people of color face on top of that, when one kind of country singer has been the standard for so long. Folks like Maren Morris and Brittney Spencer are out here making some of the best country music right now, and it’s a battle to hear one of their songs between those from seven or eight white men.
Jonah: Nearly a decade after “tomato-gate” and the blinding white, maleness of the radio is still intact, as reports from this year continue to show. According to Mediabase, 80% of modern airplay still belongs to the men.
Wren: Ahhhh, tomato-gate. Anyone care to refresh our memories?
Mary: In 2015, country radio consultant Keith Hill went on record to say that if country music is a salad, women are the tomatoes; best when used sparingly. I always think back to that and consider that if he felt comfortable saying that on the record to Country Radio Aircheck, what are these guys saying behind closed doors?
Jonah: Needless to say, the gatekeepers of country music aren’t always as responsible with their power as we’d hope they’d be. But then again, I’m sure they’ve tested and found that responsibility doesn’t really help their bottom line.
Mary: Unfortunately, that’s true. Remember that following the racial slur incident, Morgan Wallen saw an uptick in sales? Dark stuff.
Jonah: Truly. And even outside of controversial figures, it’s easy to fall into cynicism as country gains even more mainstream popularity. The optimist in me wants to celebrate the fact that the success of Luke Combs’ “Fast Car” means that Tracy Chapman became the first women of color songwriter to top the country charts. As she said, she’s “honored” by all the renewed interest. Then, the pessimist in me questions why it took a white man’s rendition for such a feat to get accomplished.
Wren: It’s interesting, Morgan Wallen broke out with a cover of Jason Isbell’s “Cover Me Up,” a great song that had been snubbed by country radio for its writer’s liberal views. And now Luke Combs, who is already a big star in his own right, seems to be reaching another level with this cover of “Fast Car.” It’s staggering to think of all the other songs that would have been massive hits if the person singing it had conformed to country radio’s expectations.
Jonah: Which seems to point us back to Morgan Wallen and the utter domination of his latest album cycle.
Wren: Yeah, it does beg the question: Would “Last Night” have dominated the charts if it was sung by someone else, like Kenny Chesney or Thomas Rhett?
Mary: Well, besides the fact that Thomas Rhett would’ve written a better song, I’m going to say no.
Wren: So why is it a hit with Wallen? He doesn’t have a huge Chris Stapleton voice or a one-of-a-kind vocal instrument like Dolly Parton. He’s just got a mullet and a history of yelling racial slurs.
Jonah: Some percentage of fans are drawn to exactly that. But it cannot account for the immense popularity of his work. I’d wager most people don’t know of his past or simply don’t care.
Mary: So much of the old guard in Nashville — from radio stations to labels to venues — quietly rallied around Wallen in the midst of controversy, simply by refusing to stop booking him or playing him. It was visible solidarity.
Wren: But not all of Wallen’s popularity is based on radio; he’s putting up massive streaming numbers, too. Is his popularity on TikTok or Spotify playlists more organic?
Mary: I’m not so sure. I’m personally skeptical of organic growth on Spotify, simply based on something that happened to me the other day — I opened up a Beach playlist that Spotify had noted as “Made For You,” and found at least three Wallen songs in there. I’ve never streamed him a day in my life, and it felt like a bit of a push.
Jonah: It’s an open secret that labels and the big radio players are in bed with Spotify when it comes to what they promote via their playlists. It’s certainly more organic, but to what extent is up for debate. And with a big enough marketing budget, you can make any song a TikTok trend. Most everything is for sale.
I think more than TikTok and Spotify showcasing new organic growth from these artists, it’s proving that Music Row has officially learned how to play the digital game.
Mary: We also can’t forget that a digital divide does still exist in rural America; reports as recent as 2021 dig into some of the disparities between more urban communities and households that could be described as remote. Radio will still be the default over streaming in places like this.
Jonah: That’s a great point. And traditionally, rural America is country music’s target demographic. Seems like the math is adding up. And the sum is, Morgan Wallen will probably spend another couple of weeks on the charts.
Wren: It all adds up to a lot of missing sums from deserving artist’s bank accounts. “Cover Me Up” and “Fast Car” would have been massive hits when they first came out, if country radio had given them a shot. Surely there are other songs that would have done the same.
Country music fans deserve to hear all of them, and instead all they got was a mullet with a mic.
Jonah: Very true. Next time you talk to Jason Isbell, Wren, suggest a mullet. Might help him out with country radio.
Wren: We’ve mentioned a couple of artists that haven’t seen a big country radio push, like Maren Morris, Brittney Spencer, Jason Isbell, and Tracy Chapman, who at the time wasn’t even considered to be country. Who are some other great artists that deserve better?
Jonah: A few that immediately come to mind for me are Adia Victoria, Margot Price, and I feel like Kacey Musgraves could be even bigger if she were to get the Wallen treatment.
Mary: I think Margo Price is so cool, and The Highwomen are essential to the conversation. (Natalie Hemby is such an underrated talent.) While Brandi Carlile has always straddled the line between country and Americana, her music embodies so many of the aspects that define country music songwriting at its best – honesty, intimacy, and sharp insights.
Jonah: Sometimes I feel as if certain artists embrace and/or are tagged with “Americana” over “Country” to avoid political or ideological associations, when the actual music itself is more blurred. It’s a different situation, but I’m reminded of when Lil Nas X’s “Old Town Road” was considered not country enough to qualify for the country music charts. Seems like it had much more to do with everything but what the actual song sounded like.
Wren: Another great example of the gatekeepers showing their hand. Lil Nas X had to hire Billy Ray Cyrus as an ambassador to move past the incident. There’s a clear pattern.
Mary: After tomato-gate, many were optimistic about the backlash becoming a turning point. Instead, things returned to the old status quo not too long after. It’s still a tremendously difficult place to get airplay as a woman, and perhaps only marginally better than it was in 2015.
While a totally different situation, Morgan Wallen’s controversy didn’t result in a large amount of change either. Things, in fact, stayed remarkably the same. Business as usual from the old guard.
Wren: Well, one thing is different. They aren’t hiding their priorities anymore. No one can look at what’s going on in country and come away with the wrong impression about its gatekeepers.
Mary: True!
Jonah: Fortunately for them, they don’t have to get on stage or face the talk shows. No matter how transparent their intentions, they can cash checks safely, comfortably, and without any backlash aimed directly at them.
Mary: Y’all have me ready to drive over to Music Row and start banging on some doors.
