On this fateful day eleven years ago, the long-reigning era of country songs about driving trucks, crushing beer cans, and girls dancing on tailgates in short shorts officially came to an end… or at least according to HARDY.
Take it from the unofficial historian of the bro-country era, who even penned a song about the death of those beer-soaked party anthems. HARDY once declared that November 4 marked a monumental turning point in country music, signaling the beginning of the end for the once-dominant subgenre.
And what exactly brought about the downfall of bro-country, you might ask? None other than Chris Stapleton’s legendary 2015 CMA Awards performance alongside Justin Timberlake.
If you have no idea what I’m talking about, well, let me just say you’re missing out. The “White Horse” singer’s unforgettable onstage collaboration with the former *NSYNC member has since gone down in history as one of the most iconic performances in country music award show history.
Luke Combs once referred to it as “Earth-shattering,” and Eric Church hilariously admitted it kind of overshadowed his epic plan to debut his surprise album drop of Mr. Misunderstood. As for HARDY, during an appearance on the Ten Year Town podcast with Troy Cartwright, he recalled the viral moment as the real tip-off into a new wave for country music.
Before the 49th Annual CMA Awards back in 2015, he said that the genre was dominated by a very specific vibe: ““Bro country was like a professional wrestler era, and every song, every single was their theme song walking out… and everybody was fit and good looking, and like, that was your thing.”
He then clarified, “The moment to me that it changed was when Chris Stapleton sang on stage with Justin Timberlake… He was the first dude that was popping off and had a completely different sound.” During their performance, Stapleton and Timberlake teamed up for a fusion of his hit 2015 cover of David Allan Coe’s “Tennessee Whiskey,” along with Timberlake’s 2013 track, “Drink You Away.”
While the mesmerizing performance itself didn’t necessarily transform the genre overnight, it certainly catapulted Stapleton to an entirely new level of stardom, breaking the mold of what a mainstream country star was expected to look and sound like. Practically overnight, Stapleton became a household name, with his soulful rendition of “Tennessee Whiskey” emerging as a fan favorite and since earning a whopping 2x Diamond certification.
Now, that’s not to say the good-looking dudes and their good-time anthems completely disappeared over the following decade (and that bro-country isn’t still currently having its moment). However, Stapleton’s breakthrough undeniably helped pave the way for artists who didn’t necessarily fit the industry’s cookie-cutter image, including Luke Combs.
As Hardy explained, “It immediately broke the mold of what you have to look like. And then two or three years Later Combs came out. And then it just busted wide open with a bunch of normal a** looking dudes.” Combs agreed, emphasizing in an interview with Joe Rogan, “[Stapleton] opened the door up for guys like myself to pursue a career… somebody who didn’t look like every other guy in town.”
In HARDY’s eyes, Stapleton opened the floodgates for a whole new wave of artists and sounds to break into the mainstream, or as he hilariously put it,“All of us were like, ‘F*ck yeah, I can get a record deal now.”
So everyone in unison, let’s all say, “Thank you, Mr. Stapleton” (and I guess Justin too). Check out their full 2015 performance and Hardy’s interview below: