One of the longest-running (and oftentimes most frustrating) debates throughout the genre’s history has been none other than what is or isn’t country. With very loud opinions on both sides, it seems like there is never going to be a true middle ground and/or consensus reached on what truly makes a song “country” or not.
While the definition of country music has undoubtedly been watered down lately, especially given the fact that it houses so many different subgenres that all contain some elements underneath them, it’s always fascinating to hear different perspectives on the century-old debate.
Back in 2024, Chris Stapleton appeared on 7x Tour de France winner, Lance Armstrong’s podcast, WEDŪ, where he talked about everything from the beginning of his career, his passion for sports and most importantly, the state of country music.
Towards the end of their hour-long conversation, Armstrong posed the question, “What do you think of country music today?” before extrapolating and including the fact that so many people like to claim that songs labeled in the genre “aren’t country.”
Stapleton gave an extremely pointed answer, noting the broad nature of the genre and the fact that legendary artists had radically different styles, “I think country has always been a very broad spectrum of things, and I think people forget that sometimes. There’s always been Crystal Gale and Johnny Paycheck.”
The “Either Way” singer then pointed out the fact that there has always been a poppier side to country that coexists with the traditional and/or grittier side of the genre, “If you can go back eras, there’s always a pop side to country music. And there’s always something a little grittier, and then some of it meets in the middle. It’s all blues-based generally; I just think it’s different strokes for different folks”
Stapleton would later claim that he doesn’t like to judge a song’s quality simply on the merits of whether it is truly country or not before noting that he doesn’t even view himself as a traditional country singer:
“I don’t ever get caught up in like, ‘Oh no, I hate that because that’s not country.’ I do what I like to do and a lot of what we do is not necessarily country. I think you can make that argument too easily. But we’re influenced by a lot of country music and we certainly play some songs that can only qualify as country music, but I’m not really a traditional country singer.”
There’s no doubt that Stapleton brings something to the table that is incredibly unique to the genre. Blending traditional country elements with the likes of rock, soul and R&B, he’s a tough one to tie down, and that’s why he thinks it’s hard to compare him to the likes of Alan Jackson and Merle Haggard:
“If you put me next to Alan Jackson or Merle Haggard or George Jones or [Randy Travis] or any of these guys who are kind of Mount Rushmores of guys that sound like what we think are country music through and through, I don’t fit.”
To finish out their discussion on the current state of country music, he gave one final, poignant response, “I think country music always evolves, and I think it always turns over. And I think whatever parts of country music, just like any genre of music, are lasting and good will remain lasting and good.”
Watch the clip and full podcast here: