Black Folk and Country Music

Country music: Is the twang just a white thang?

I am a black man, and a huge fan of country music. This article made me think- segregation has ended. But are there still certain cultural norms that will perpetually be slow to change? White people have come into hip hop, often scaling the heights of the genre (vanilla ice, eminem, rjd2). Black singers have been rather limited in their fortunes in country music. Apart from Charley Pride, there have been few serious black country musicians in the modern Music television era. There is of course Cowboy Troy, but who really thinks there's any vitality in country rap?

Anyway,I was wondering what people think about this lack of black performers? Is it on the demand side or supply side that we find the answer? Are there not enough people willing to listen to black singers, is the industry fearful of going against tradition? Mind you, country's blues-oriented origins were black-influenced. I am a black man, and a huge fan of country music. This article made me think- segregation has ended. But are there still certain cult... more

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