Quote:
Originally Posted by michelej1
To me, things seem nearly the opposite. I think it's more cross over than ever, going between political and cultural lines. Just as music genres have blurred and become hybrids of one another, so have their audiences.
I mean, sometimes things do get entrenched, but it seems to me that happens more outside of the music based on off-stage personalities. The music seemed to have wide appeal, but sometimes things are said outside of the music (Toby Keith, Dixie Chicks, etc.) that causes people to take sides.
Michele
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I think there's increasing crossover between country and pop and there's always been a kinship between country and rock, but I think things like Tim McGraw's and Nelly's "Over and Over" and Brad Paisley's and LL Cool J's (puzzling) "Accidental Racist" are notable for their rareness, they're like attempts to reach across the aisle because attempts are necessary.
But even if there are a lot of hybrid genres now, I don't think that necessarily eats in to bedrock of country establishment. I grew up a fan of country radio, I adored Dwight Yoakam and Patty Loveless and all that, and I really can't stand country radio now. It seems to me there are far more mainstream country songs associated stridently and unsubtly (to the point of lyrical clunkiness) with things like patriotism, uncultured-and-proud-of-it attitudes, I'm-just-a-small-town-boy/girl sentiments, etc. Not all of it is stuff that offends me or anything, but I did feel it's kind of an in-your-face "Don't mistake which side of the culture war I'm on".
Then again since I haven't been able to stand mainstream country radio for a while, maybe I'm a few years behind. I think though that even if country has crossover appeal (I may underestimate how much it does ... but I still think that things like alternative country, folk, and bluegrass have more clout and further reach than just mainstream modern country, if not its numbers), it has something that you can't really find anywhere else for a segment of American culture, and that ensures it a loyal base.
But your argument is certainly strengthened by the fact that Taylor Swift and Keith Urban do have crossover appeal. It's very probably not just country-only fans lifting them up to such numbers, so I have to backtrack from what I said a bit in attributing polarization as a cause of what we're seeing here.