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The Inquiry: Who is country?

Who is Country?

25/04/2024 GMT

Who is country?

BBC World Service - The Inquiry, Who is country?

Is Beyonce a country artist? If not, who is?

The controversy over Beyonce’s album Cowboy Carter may tell us more about the politics of America than it does the genre of country music.

Beyonce has released an album that has gone straight to the top of the country music charts.  

The 27 tracks include the work of many collaborators from the world of country music, including Black country artist Linda Martell and Dolly Parton’s 1974 song Jolene.

It has been so well received it has become the fastest selling album of the year.  

Beyonce is usually known for her pop and RnB. Her success in the country music genre has opened up a wider debate about where country music originates from, who it belongs to and its political associations.  

This week on the Inquiry we are asking, who is country ?

Contributors: 

William Nash, Professor of American Studies and English at Middleburgh College
Francesca Inglese, assistant professor in the Department of Music at Northeastern University
Taylor Crumpton, music critic and culture writer from Dallas, Texas
Charles Hughes, associate professor at Rhodes College in Memphis, Tennessee and co-founder of the No Fences Review

Presenter: Tanya Beckett
Producers: Louise Clarke and Lorna Reader
Editor: Tara McDermott
Technical Producer: Cameron Ward
Production Co-ordinator: Liam Morrey

Image credit: Reuters

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