Country music isn’t good. Bold statement, I know, but before you throw corn at me for not being a true Nebraskan, hear me out. And yes, I know, everyone has different tastes in music and you shouldn’t judge other people’s opinions, but country music is the exception.

First of all, country music is bland and boring. It’s pretty much about the same three things: tractors, love, and loving ‘merica. That’s a pretty big generalization, but am I wrong? I spent an hour listening to a “Country Hits” playlist, and every song had something to do with at least one of these three things. 

All of the songs followed the same formula as well. The song starts off with some guitar strumming in the intro. Man with a heavy Southern accent comes in, probably singing about a tractor or a girl. Chorus. Man continues to sing about said tractor/girl, but also includes a lyric about loving his hometown in the sweet South. Repeat the last two steps, and ta-da! You’re on the Spotify playlist, “Hot Country.” 

Yes, the same could be said about any other genre, (that’s why they’re called genres) but country music seems to stick to their formula more than the other genres. It almost seems like the country music industry promotes these basic songs more than their “better” music. For example, other genres tend to push their more meaningful music to the top, but the country industry seems to do the opposite. Fans claim country songs are “wholesome” but isn’t that just a way to say they don’t focus on real issues? And yeah, music doesn’t have to be about serious and heavy topics to be good, but it just seems a bit hypocritical of country music fans to call their music heartfelt and pure, and then bash other genres for not doing the same. 

Country music has had no growth; it’s just gotten worse as time has passed. I’m not gonna lie, Dolly Parton released some bangers back in the day. Rap, alternative, hip-hop, and basically any genre, have all gone through multiple different eras. They were able to grow and change, to learn what works and what doesn’t. The country music industry hasn’t done anything different or unique, it’s predictable. Music is supposed to be a way to express creativity, but the country music industry has just produced the same sounding music for years now. 

All I can say is that people have different opinions, but liking country music is the wrong opinion. Just kidding. But after listening to a solid hour of country music, I’ve come to the conclusion that if I was on a road trip and the two options for music were nails on a chalkboard and Luke Bryan’s entire discography, I would pick the nails in a heartbeat.