Earlier in the week, Billboard turned heads after releasing their staff-compiled “100 Greatest Country Artists of All Time” list. While there are some solid picks overall, there are some genuinely baffling picks and placements throughout. From Hank Williams Jr. only being placed at #57, Conway Twitty at #47 and Shania Twain securing a Top 25 placement at #21 despite a lackluster output in the back half of her career, there are certainly some interesting choices, to say the least.
The Top 10 itself is honestly pretty damn solid with Dolly Parton, Willie Nelson, Johnny Cash and George Strait all capturing a spot in the upper 10% of the list.
Billboard’s Top 10 contains the following:
- Dolly Parton
- Johnny Cash
- Willie Nelson
- Loretta Lynn
- Hank Williams Sr.
- George Jones
- Garth Brooks
- Charley Pride
- George Strait
- Merle Haggard
There aren’t too many arguments to be had with the Top 10 looking at it from a broad perspective. Many of these artists were pioneers of the genre in its early years, have had a laundry list of iconic songs and have had a lasting impact throughout the decades. It’s the rest of the list, however, that leaves a lot to be desired.
The artist and placement of said artist that has sent the internet into a frenzy is none other than reigning Time Person of the Year, Taylor Swift, and her ranking at #41. At this point in her career, nearly everything revolving around Swift will cause controversy, for better or for worse. Couple that with the fact that she has been out of the genre for well over a decade at this point, and you’re bound to ruffle the feathers of many diehard country fans.
Let me preface this by saying that I am a big fan of Swift as an artist. Though I haven’t loved her latest entries, namely Midnights and The Tortured Poets Department, there is absolutely no denying that she is one of the most prolific songwriters of the current generation. With a laundry list of broken records, #1 hits and platinum records, she is, without a doubt, the biggest pop star we’ve seen since Michael Jackson. With all of that being said, can you really make the argument that she is the 41st greatest country artist of all time? I certainly cannot.
The placement itself, on its surface, isn’t the most egregious thing in the world; however, once you really dive into the artists placed below her, eyebrows begin to raise. Notable artists ranked below Swift include the following:
- Jason Aldean (Absent from the list)
- John Anderson (86)
- Patty Loveless (84)
- Morgan Wallen (79)
- Blake Shelton (73)
- Toby Keith (65)
- Roger Miller (60)
- Hank Williams Jr. (57)
- Eric Church (56)
- Luke Combs (54)
- Brad Paisley (53)
- Tim McGraw (52)
- Charlie Daniels (51)
- Kenny Chesney (49)
- Conway Twitty (47)
- Brooks & Dunn (46)
There’s a lot to be said about the dozen artists mentioned that Swift is above of, but for the sake of time, I’m going to highlight the three most egregious picks: Toby Keith, Tim McGraw and Hank Williams Jr..
Toby Keith has 32 #1 hits, 21 RIAA-certified songs ranging everywhere from gold to 4x platinum and over 30 million albums sold throughout his legendary career. Tim McGraw has 48 #1 hits (good for 3rd-most in country music history), over 25 RIAA-certified songs and over 90 million albums sold. Finally, Hank Williams Jr., despite not having the monster numbers that Keith and McGraw have garnered, is widely considered one of the most important and influential artists in the genre’s history.
That’s not even mentioning the fact that independent (and former independent) giants such as Tyler Childers, Sturgill Simpson, John Prine and Zach Bryan who were left off the list entirely.
We took to Instagram and shared a meme pointing out that Swift was placed higher than Keith, and the comments were not having it.
Even Swifties were pointing out how ridiculous the placement was.
At the end of the day, music is subjective and these lists are as well. They’re not to be taken as a definitive ranking by any stretch of the imagination, but with that being said, I think it’s fair to highlight some of the ridiculous placements found throughout Billboard’s ranking.