However, some country music purists argue that these artists aren’t real country at all and can’t hold a candle to the greats like George Strait, Charley Pride and Willie Nelson.
Here’s what they mean.Country music has completely devolved into a cesspool of fake accents mumbling key words over trap beats and this dork is carrying the torch. pic.twitter.com/bvTyF4dwyQ
— Doug 🧢 (Blue Checkmark) (@dwoverdrive) April 16, 2025
In the days of Hank Williams and Lefty Frizzell, country music had an acoustic twang that meshed with rustic and plaintive voices to create an emotional song that made listeners feel the love and loneliness in the sound. The lyrics were simple, the sound was smooth and the genre was pure.
Into the 1960s and 1970s, the genre evolved with artists like Johnny Cash and Merle Haggard, who were storytellers through their music, adding even more sound and rhythm into their tunes, creating different styles of the genre like the "Nashville sound" and the "Bakersfield sound" that helped country music grow in mainstream popularity.
In the ‘90s, pop-style songwriting really began meshing with the imagery and vocals of country music through artists like Tim McGraw and Shania Twain. This paved the way for a new genre of pop country that would begin to rise in popularity and create a whole new ideology on what country music was.
That brings us to 2025, where country purists are screaming that artists like Jelly Roll and Morgan Wallen have taken the purity out of country music, using too many hip-hop and rock influences with trap beats and rap flows. They should be considered country rap or country pop rather than flat-out country, and only those who stick with the traditional acoustic sound and emotional lyrics should claim the title of country.
These opinions on the pop-country genre are rather strong.
Jelly Roll makes music for white trash 40 year olds that are like yeah I’m fucked up, I’ve done a lot of bad shit, I’m a sinner, but I’m also a fighter, and I love a lot. And I’m getting the fucking kids back
— Kafka, Esq. 🧌 (@metalgearobama) May 10, 2025
I figured I’d wait a super long time before I said this publicly so is not to get canceled by the fans, but I absolutely cannot stand cowboy Carter, a pop album pretending to be country.
— Logic (@LogicProXGaming) May 6, 2025
At times, the debate has created a toxic environment around the industry that even some artists have addressed. In 2023, Grammy-winning Arlington native Maren Morris said she was “leaving country music” because of the genre's inability to adapt to America's ever-changing culture and create more acceptance for LGBTQ people, women and people of color within the industry.I hate the fact that country music is making a resurgence because its only that fake ass newgen country music yall need to listen to dolly parton and willie nelson
— Marine (@Marine__VA) April 26, 2025
She later elaborated on her comments on the New York Times' Popcast, saying that she’s done with the “toxic arms” of the country music industry, which likely referred to industry staples such as award shows and country radio.
2025 ACM award nominee Flatland Cavalry has a song called “Country Is...” that addresses the gatekeeping and purist attitude within the genre. The chorus sings, “Country is what country means to you,” meaning that country in itself isn’t one fine line but an attitude that can be expressed in many different ways, however, you may see fit. The lead singer of Flatland Cavalry, Cleto Cordero, was inspired to write the song after somebody told him he wears his jeans too tightly and that his voice sounds too funny to be considered country.
Cordero says it’s the uniqueness and diversity among the group's members that make their music special.
The ACM awards, which took place last week, has had its dances with controversy in the past, as The Observer discussed after the 2020 show. It’s been a rocky award season for country music, especially after every country award at the Grammys was riddled with pop-country and hip-hop artists. Beyoncé, Post Malone, Jelly Roll and Shaboozey were all nominated under the country music category, which had people fired up, considering three of them started their careers as pop and hip-hop artists.@brickedupcountry Flatland Cavalry | Cleto Cordero shares the story behind the band formation and inspiration. | Sleeping Alone - Follow For More - #flatlandcavalry #flatlandcavalrymusic #flatlandcavalrymusic #flatlandcavalryconcert #country #countrymusic #texascountrymusic #podcast #greatestofcountry #cletocordero #westtexascountry ♬ Sleeping Alone - Flatland Cavalry
While Post Malone and Beyoncé were left off of ACM ballots, Shaboozey was up for New Male Artist of the Year, as Jelly Roll received nominations for Entertainer of the Year and Male Artist of the Year. Most country music purists will put foot to ass to argue that Jelly Roll and Shaboozey have no business being at the ACM awards, so it was refreshing that the only drama of the night came from Morgan Wallen, who decided to once again skip the show despite receiving multiple nominations.
Pop, hip-hop or country, good music is good music. Post Malone exemplified that with his stop at AT&T Stadium during his Big Ass Stadium Tour. Posty brought Chandler Watson, Sierra Ferrel and Jelly Roll to accompany him at Jerry’s World, and it was a hell of a homecoming. In front of a sold-out crowd, Malone performed music from his recent F-1 Trillion country album and songs from his older more hip-hop-forward projects to put on a breathtaking show.
Pop country or not, the fans loved it, and Malone made sure to show his gratitude and feel the love from his hometown. Maybe it wasn’t honky-tonks and steel guitars, but it was a night for country fans to remember.
DALLAS FUCKING TEXAS!!!!! 💙 pic.twitter.com/3F57dy6Oxt
— Post Malone (@PostMalone) May 11, 2025
Despite the toxic nature of the “real country versus fake country” debate, fans of Beyoncé, Post Malone, Jelly Roll and others who may fall into this fake-country category can be assured that this debate is nothing more than internet trolls trying to gatekeep the genre. And it's a debate as old as country music itself.
Country music legend Dolly Parton defended Beyoncé and her album Cowboy Carter, saying, “I thought that was a great album. She’s a country girl in Texas and Louisiana, so she grew up with that base. It wasn’t like she just appeared out of nowhere.”
Country singer Kelsea Ballerini also said when asked about Beyoncé’s country takeover that “you don’t have to be a country artist to make a country record.”
Ballerini puts it, and we agree: the music is for everyone.
