My Country Music Self

Country music has been my constant companion in my short life.  From road trips to the lake, long summers working with horses, collecting my thoughts, and quiet Sunday afternoons, the genuine country music has been my friend.  Whenever I find myself lost, I know that there is a country song just waiting on my iPod to bring me a moment of peace.  I am unsure how to put into words how much country music means to me, but I will try.

At six I remember listening to my Dad explain how “Ol’ Red” is about a man who is sentenced with life in prison for killing his wife’s lover.  I relive serenading my Mom on the way home from school when “Chrome” came on the radio.  Further, I can remember struggling to learn all of Garth’s lyrics to, “Ain’t Going Down till the Sun Comes Up,” through the static of the only station we get at the lake.  These memories are forever tied to these songs, for better or worse.

When I wonder about God and his master plan, I listen to “God’s Will”, “Address in the Stars”, and “Who You’d Be Today” among other tunes.  I listened to these songs until my tears flow freely and my chest feels lighter.  These and others keep me grounded and allow me to cope with emotions too powerful to be explained by mere words.  When it came to religion, I found myself identifying with the Big & Rich hit, “Between Raising Hell and Amazing Grace.”

Country music has allowed me to cope with death, abandonment, and feelings of despair.  The intense lyrics and powerful melodies convey much more than words will ever be able to say.  Country music, REAL country music, is music so full of truth and emotions that once it falls upon ears, the listener is held still and forced to listen to the sirens song.

This new country music is a slap in the face to all the artists who have come before them.  There is no emotional connection between the artist or songwriter and the audience.  Now the once powerful lyrics are reduced to watered-down soda – flat and disappointing.  Gone are the soulful emotions and deeper meanings, nowadays ‘country’ music is barely dealing with reality.

The new songs are either about partying, objectifying women, or both.  As a girl having grown up on the country music sung by artists who had respect for others, these new songs disgust me.  How could anyone actually enjoy such empty and manufactured tunes?  What connections is that individual making with the lyrics and emotions?  What knowledge is gained about the world as we know it today compared to the past?  How about the values that current ‘country’ songs inspire?

If I were to have grown up on the modern ‘country’ music I guarantee you I would not be the lady I am today.  Instead of valuing family, I would be seeking ways to get out of family functions to go party and hang out with my boyfriend.  I would allow boys to holler at me like I was a piece of meat, and dress in next to nothing.  This is all hypothetical, as I also know for a fact that none of the above would sit well with my parents.  Are these the values we want people to associate with country music, and more broadly, America?

Truly I would not be the person I am if country music had not saved me.  The music of many country artists has been my salvation and has helped shape me into the opinionated, yet respectful lady I am.