Country rap

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Country rap (country hip hop and sometimes hick hop) is a fusion genre of popular music, blending country music with hip hop–style singing or rapping.[1][2]

History

Prototypes

Early influences on the emergence of country rap as a distinct genre include

Bad Bascomb.[3] Music journalist Chuck Eddy traces the genre's roots back to Woody Guthrie.[4]

Square Dance Rap" (1985) where he raps in the voice of a "white country boy". The lyric "From L.A. to Carolina / Drop them suckers in Aunt Jemima" in Sir Mix-A-Lot's "Buttermilk Biscuits" (1988) is a reference to what many consider a racial stereotype, trademarked after Chris L. Rutt heard a performance of the minstrel song "Old Aunt Jemima" (1876).[3]

The song "

Country Rap" (1987) with lyrics about soul food, church, turnip greens and black-eyed peas.[6]

1998–present: Emergence

Rap Albums
charts

Run DMC and Lynyrd Skynyrd.[11] Kid Rock's former DJ, Uncle Kracker, was another pioneer of country rap in his solo career.[12]

In the early 2000s, producer Shannon "Fat Shan" Houchins and Bubba Sparxxx released Sparxxx's 2001 debut album Dark Days, Bright Nights as an independent release. The blend of country and trap caught the attention of producer Jimmy Iovine who re-released the album on Interscope.[13][14] Houchins soon after created Average Joes Entertainment with Colt Ford.[15] With songs like "No Trash in My Trailer" (2008) and "Drivin' Around Song" (2013), Ford has sold over one million albums.[16][17][18]

The trend continued in 2005 when country music stars Big & Rich introduced Cowboy Troy and his album Loco Motive. Troy has said he uses "country instrumentation" that includes a banjo, fiddle, and acoustic guitar blended with "shredding rock guitar riffs and a rap delivery."[19] Hal Crowther has written that "I Play Chicken with the Train" (2006) by Cowboy Troy was "scandalous not because it mixes 'black' rap with 'white' country, but because, through the sheer force of unlikely-but-seamless juxtaposition, it forces us to acknowledge that those two musical styles, at least when they whoop it up, are brothers under the skin".[20]

In the late 2010s, country rap returned to prominence as part of the "Yee Haw" movement, a trend characterized by hip hop producers incorporating country music into their own recordings.

Ryan Upchurch, Jawga Boyz, Bottleneck, Moonshine Bandits and Big Smo.[22] Cowboy Troy, Lenny Cooper and The Lacs were three of the top country rap artists of 2013 each with an album on Billboard's Country Chart.[16]

In 2020,

Country trap

In 2019, 20-year-old rapper

RMR
.

Collaborations

The

B.o.B and pop singer Taylor Swift collaborated on "Both of Us" (2012). The track features Swift's country vocals and a blend of hip-hop with banjos. It became a top 10 hit in Australia and New Zealand and a top 20 hit in the US.[33]

Country singer Brad Paisley and rapper LL Cool J recorded the controversial song "Accidental Racist" for Paisley's 2013 album Wheelhouse.[34]

Other collaborations include "Po' Folks" (2002) by Nappy Roots with Anthony Hamilton, "Country Folks" (2012) by Bubba Sparxxx featuring Colt Ford & Danny Boone, "Dirt Road Anthem" (remix) by Jason Aldean and Ludacris, and "Try Harder Than That" by Meghan Linsey with Bubba Sparxxx (2014).[30][33]

Popularity

Physical sales of country rap albums are higher in more rural areas where country rap fans do not have the Internet services required to stream or download music.[35] There are numerous country rap festivals where artists gather to play their music for upwards of 7,000 fans.[35]

Politics

The term "hick-hop" is often criticized by some southern artists, with Struggle Jennings saying, "I love the country, I love the South, I've been fishing and hunting, but I'm not a hick. I'm not hick-hop".

conservative, due to some right-leaning politics expressed by artists like Upchurch and Forgiato Blow;[35] however the political ideology of country rap artists ranges the full spectrum of political beliefs.[35]

References

  1. ^ Lawrence, Keith (May 28, 2008). "Bluegrass meets hip-hop at Kentucky school". Chicago Tribune.
  2. ^ "Podcast: Country In HipHop". New York Times. Retrieved September 21, 2013.
  3. ^ a b c d e "59 Hay-Ya! Moments in Rap and Country's Uncomfortable History". Spin Magazine. March 7, 2019. Retrieved August 3, 2019.
  4. ^ "Remembering Blowfly, Black Music's Filthiest Legend". NPR. January 19, 2016. Retrieved August 3, 2019.
  5. ^ "A History of Hick-Hop: The 27-Year-Old Story of Country Rap". Rolling Stone. June 27, 2014. Retrieved August 3, 2019.
  6. . Retrieved August 4, 2019.
  7. ^ "Before "Old Town Road": The Evolution of Country Rap Tunes". No. Complex. April 11, 2019. Retrieved August 3, 2019.
  8. ^ "Kid Rock - C&I Magazine". July 1, 2015.
  9. .
  10. ^ "15 Best Kid Rock singles, from 'Bawitdaba' to 'First Kiss'". amp.azcentral.com.
  11. ^ Staff (November 25, 2015). "Country-rap pioneer Uncle Kracker brings his pure country-rock shine to Royal Oak Friday, Nov. 27". Metro Times. Retrieved December 20, 2022.
  12. ^ "Hick-Hop Gets Down and Dirty". The Tennessean. Retrieved September 21, 2013.
  13. ^ "The Guide to Getting into Country Rap, from Bubba Sparxxx to Lil Nas X". VICE News. April 22, 2019. Retrieved August 4, 2019.
  14. ^ David Jeffries. "Colt Ford biography". Allmusic. Retrieved July 1, 2009.
  15. ^ a b "The Unlikely Rise Of Hick-Hop". The Wall Street Journal. July 5, 2013. Retrieved June 23, 2016.
  16. ^ Caramanica, Jon (May 23, 2014). "Country Music Opens Its Ears". The New York Times. Retrieved May 23, 2014.
  17. ^ "Bubba Sparxxx Bio". 8/4/2012. BackRoad Records. January 11, 2019. Archived from the original on October 13, 2014. Retrieved September 21, 2013.
  18. ^ Stark, Phyllis. "Cowboy Troy's Wild Ride". Billboard.
  19. . Retrieved August 4, 2019.
  20. ^ Michael Saponara (March 22, 2019). "5 Things to Know About 'Old Town Road' Rapper Lil Nas X". Billboard. Retrieved March 29, 2019.
  21. ^ Peisner, David. "Rhymes From the Backwoods: The Rise of Country Rap". Rolling Stone. Retrieved August 4, 2019.
  22. ^ "Niko Moon – Chart History". Billboard.
  23. ^ "Makin' Tracks: Niko Moon Blends Country, Hip-Hop and Apple Pie Moonshine in 'Good Time'". Billboard.
  24. ^ "AVAILABLE NOW: BILLY RAY CYRUS DROPS NEW MUSIC AND ANIMATED VIDEO ON 4/20 "BALLAD OF JED" FROM HIS NEW PROJECT: MAMA KUSH | Broken Bow Records". promo.bbrmusicgroup.com. Retrieved May 23, 2023.
  25. ^ Fink, Jenni (July 29, 2019). "Lil Nas X's 'Old Town Road' Breaks Record Set by 'One Sweet Day,' 'Despacito'". Newsweek. Archived from the original on July 29, 2019. Retrieved August 1, 2019.
  26. ^ Unterberger, Andrew. "17 Weeks of 'Old Town Road': A Week-by-Week Look Back at Lil Nas X's Historic Run at No. 1 on the Hot 100". Billboard. Prometheus Global Media. Archived from the original on July 29, 2019. Retrieved August 1, 2019.
  27. ^ Trust, Gary. "Lil Nas X's 'Old Town Road' Leads Billboard Hot 100 for 19th Week, Ariana Grande & Social House's 'Boyfriend' Debuts in Top 10". Billboard. Archived from the original on August 12, 2019. Retrieved August 12, 2019.
  28. ^ McDermott, Maeve. "The next 'Old Town Road?' Trap-country goes viral again with Blanco Brown's 'The Git Up'". USA Today. Retrieved July 14, 2019.
  29. ^ a b c McDermott, Maeve. "It's not just 'Old Town Road': 20 best country-rap songs of the past 20 years". usatoday. Retrieved August 4, 2019.
  30. ^ Bernstein, Jonathan (February 13, 2019). "Review: Florida Georgia Line Sound Awfully Defensive on 'Can't Say I Ain't Country'". Rolling Stone. Retrieved August 4, 2019.
  31. ^ "You'd Never Say They Weren't Country: The Brand That Built Florida Georgia Line". Vice News. March 13, 2019. Retrieved August 4, 2019.
  32. ^ a b "Yee-Haw: 12 Hip-Hop/Country Collaborations". Vibe. April 5, 2019. Retrieved August 4, 2019.
  33. ^ Tim Nudd (April 9, 2013). "Brad Paisley Defends Controversial 'Accidental Racist' Duet with LL Cool J". People. Retrieved April 9, 2013.
  34. ^ a b c d e "Country Rap: Inside a Genre Full of Big Dreams and Contradictions". rollingstone.com. January 24, 2018.