But from now on, we will present the Grand Ole Opry.”īailey, a 2005 Country Music Hall of Fame inductee, would go on to become one of the most popular members of the now-legendary Grand Ole Opry program. Hay announced his performance, explaining, “For the past hour, we have been listening to music largely from Grand Opera. In 1927, following an hour of classical music on WSM radio in Nashville, harmonica virtuoso DeFord Bailey took to the microphone as the first black performer on the WSM Barn Dance. So if country music is your thing, or reading this article made you the least bit curious, here are 10 contemporary African American country acts you should check out.Hear Black History in Country Music on Pandora. They reminded me of my friend in Ghana who explained why she and her friends liked country music (and telenovelas, which is a whole ‘nother article): “They are great stories, and we love great stories.”
My brother admitted to liking the genre a little when his co-workers play it.
#Black country singer plus
She said, “You don’t have to worry about negative content as much when the kids are around,” Plus “black folks love a twangy accent,” she added. While writing this article, I learned that a close friend and her family enjoy listening to country music. Even today, around 10 percent of African Americans live in rural areas, with another 15 percent living in small metro areas. Many of us who live in or near big cities only have to go a couple generations back to find our relatives who migrated from the south in search of better jobs and less openly racist terrorism.
Hip-hop and R&B are more commonly associated with our urban African American culture, but our rural roots run deep, too. (Bailey and Pride are the only two black musicians inducted into the Country Music Hall of Fame.) Even the sound of country (and bluegrass) music - from the banjo to the fiddle - is influenced by our African roots and American adaptations. Black country singer and harmonica player DeFord Bailey was the first artist featured on the debut of the hit country music radio-turned-TV show “Grand Ole Opry” way back in 1927.
She was amazing! I had never known that black folks were making country music.Ĭome to find out, black musicians like Charley Pride, Linda Martell, and even Ray Charles have been operating in the country music scene since the beginning. Then, some years later, I went to a show in Kentucky where the featured musical guest was a black female country music singer named Amythyst Kiah. I was so intrigued I actually gave ole Patsy a try and got into her music for a spell. Plenty of Jamaicans and other Caribbean people were really into country music, she told me. The last known duet between a rapper and a country artist was actually called “Accidental Racist.” (Dear LL Cool J don’t ever do that again.)īut my DJ friend had lived in Jamaica for a while and told me Mrs. I mean, look how the country music industry and fan base has shunned Lil Nas X and even Beyonce’s collaboration with the Dixie Chicks.