XII.

Current Trends

Country music has developed a broad palette of styles and attracted a large mainstream audience by adapting elements of other musical styles. Many country records of the 1990s would have been considered rock or popular music recordings in past years. As in many periods since country music first emerged, in the late 1990s a group of musicians advocated a return to a simple, pared-down country style. This movement, known as Americana, gained exposure through college and public radio stations and live performances across the country. Americana emphasized individual artists who combined singing, songwriting, and musicianship and it encompassed artists who were new to the industry, such as singer and guitarist Robbie Fulks and the band BR5-49, as well as established artists, including Johnny Cash, Guy Clark, Nanci Griffith, and Jerry Jeff Walker. An example of this trend was O Brother Where Art Thou? (2000), a hugely successful album that featured a rootsy mix of country, bluegrass, folk, gospel, and blues. Artists on the album include Alison Krauss, Emmylou Harris, Gillian Welch, Ralph Stanley, Norman Blake, and The Whites.

The average age of country artists began falling in the mid-1980s, paralleling the rise of music video as an important marketing tool. While still showcasing artists’ musical abilities, recording labels often placed equal, if not greater, value on the sex appeal of artists. During the first half of the 1990s, domestic sales of country music tripled in volume. In addition, country music has made important gains overseas, especially in Europe and Australia. Country Music Television (CMT), a 24-hour cable television channel, entered a period of aggressive foreign expansion in the early 1990s and by 1997 was available via satellite or cable nearly everywhere in the world.