It was an unexpected musical success story last year, one that has only continued to snowball: Country music, with its loyal listenership on the margins of pop’s mainstream, had a crossover moment.
Some of the biggest albums and songs of the year are credited to country musicians like Morgan Wallen, Zach Bryan and Luke Combs, whose hits went beyond country radio stations and onto pop rotations.
But when the 2024 Grammy nominations were announced in November, something seemed amiss. Country was not represented in the main categories — except for Jelly Roll and The War and Treaty, who are up for best new artist. It seemed like a notable absence for a genre that topped the charts all year. The lack of nominations surprised Recording Academy CEO and President Harvey Mason jr.
“We need to do more work with our country voters and continue to invite more country voters to the process,” he told The Associated Press at the time.
That hasn’t always been the case: In 2019, Kacey Musgraves won album of the year at the Grammys for her “Golden Hour,” a release celebrated for its innovative take on the country genre that combined elements of pop and disco. It’s the kind of innovation often celebrated by the Recording Academy.
Still, country music has broken new ground. In July, country acts held the top three spots on the Billboard Hot 100 for the first time in the chart’s 65-year history: Controversy hoisted Jason Aldean’s “Try That In a Small Town” to No. 1 for a short week, followed by Wallen’s “Last Night” and Combs’ cover of Tracy Chapman’s “Fast Car.” The latter also won song of the year at the 2023 Country Music Awards, despite the fact that the original was written in 1988.
Oliver Anthony’s viral hit “Rich Men North of Richmond” also made it to No. 1, making him the first artist without any prior chart history.
Wallen is in a league of his own. His latest album, with its inventive exploration of trap beats over heartbreaking country, titled “One Thing at a Time,” spent 16 weeks at the top of the Billboard 200 in 2023 — which meant he held the top spot for 30% of the year … and his record was released in March. It also means that Wallen’s album spent the more time at No. 1 than any other album since Adele’s “21” dominated over a decade ago. Unsurprisingly, “One Thing at a Time” was the most-consumed album in the U.S. last year.
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