Who Gets to be Country??

Country Music’s Identity Crisis: The Gatekeepers, 

the Culture Clash, and the Beyoncé Effect

Country music has long been branded as a white genre, but its roots tell a different story—one deeply embedded in Black musical traditions.

Country music is having another moment—but whose moment is it? With the release of Beyoncé’s “Cowboy Carter”, conversations about race, ownership, and authenticity in country music have reignited. The outrage from country purists and the celebration from Black communities highlight a fundamental identity crisis: Who gets to be "country"? This article examines the deep-rooted Black influence in the birth of country music, and how Beyoncé may be bringing country back home.

The Origins of Country: 

A Black Musical Tradition

Country music has deep roots in Black culture, yet mainstream narratives often downplay or outright ignore these contributions. In the early 20th century, African American musicians played a significant role in shaping the genre, incorporating elements from field hollers, spirituals, the blues, and banjo rhythms—an instrument that originated in Africa. These traditions laid the foundation for what would later be labeled as "hillbilly" music, which eventually evolved into country.

Black musicians in the rural South played the banjo, fiddle, and early forms of the steel guitar, shaping the sound that country music later embraced as its focal point. Black cowboys and folk musicians passed down ballads and oral storytelling traditions that became hallmarks of country songwriting. 

Although Black artists were instrumental in shaping country music, Black artists and originators were largely excluded from performing or participating in the industry as country music became a commercial genre.

Black Pioneers 

and Originators of Country Music

DeFord Bailey: 

A harmonica master and the first Black performer at the Grand Ole Opry. Despite his immense talent, he was dismissed from the Opry and faded into obscurity until his late-life recognition.

Lead Belly:

Known for songs like “Goodnight Irene” and “Midnight Special”, which were later recorded by white artists with little credit to him. His storytelling and folk music deeply influenced early country.

Charley Pride: 

A country music trailblazer and the first Black superstar in the genre. Despite facing racism, he earned 29 No. 1 hits, won multiple CMA awards, and became the first Black inductee into the Country Music Hall of Fame.

Sister Rosetta Tharpe:

A gospel-blues innovator whose guitar style shaped rock and country music. Despite influencing legends like Elvis Presley and Johnny Cash, she was largely erased from country’s history.

Ruby Falls:

Falls charted nine singles between 1975 and 1979, including her hit “Sweet Country Music”. After leaving Plantation Records due to its offensive name and bias toward white artists, Ruby was blackballed, silencing her career and forcing her into early retirement.

Big Mama Thorton

The original voice behind “Hound Dog”, a song Elvis Presley made famous. While his version brought him millions, she was denied recognition and fair compensation.

The Erasure: 

A Hillbilly Hijack that Gave Country Music a Color Change

The emergence of the Grand Ole Opry as a central institution in country music further solidified this racial divide, favoring white artists and excluding Black musicians. The rise of rock and roll—ironically influenced by Black country and blues music—also contributed to this shift, with white audiences associating country with whiteness and moving Black artists into the blues or R&B categories.

As country music gained popularity in the early-to-mid 20th century, the industry deliberately distanced itself from Black artists. Radio stations and record labels segregated music into "hillbilly" (for white audiences) and "race records" (for Black audiences), effectively excluding Black musicians from country airwaves. Over time, country music was branded as a "white genre," and Black contributions were systematically erased or appropriated with no credit.

The first Black woman to perform at the Grand Ole Opry,

Martell made history with her 1969 hit “Color Him Father” which made her the first Black woman to chart on Billboard’s country chart. Despite her talent and growing success, she faced relentless racism, both from audiences and the industry. She was heckled at performances, dismissed by country gatekeepers, and sabotaged by her own label, Plantation Records, which refused to support her career and ultimately pushed her out of the genre. Blackballed from country music, Martell was forced into early retirement, while white artists continued to thrive off a sound she helped shape.

Minstrels & Mockery: 

The Opry’s Dirty Little Secret

The Grand Ole Opry has long been hailed as the heart of country music, but its early years tell a much darker story—one where Black culture was mocked rather than honored. In the early 20th century, blackface performances were a regular part of the show, with white performers smearing on burnt cork to impersonate caricatured versions of Black people.

Acts like Lee "Lasses" White and Lee "Honey" Wilds leaned into minstrel traditions, playing up racist stereotypes for laughs while Black artists were barred from the stage entirely.

This wasn’t just harmless entertainment—it was a deliberate effort to control the image of Black people in country music, reducing their presence to racist parodies while simultaneously blocking them from the industry. Blackface at the Opry helped reinforce the false narrative that country music was a white-only genre, sidelining the very Black musicians who shaped its sound. Instead of inviting real Black talent into the fold, the industry opted for imitation, ensuring that Black artists remained invisible while white performers profited from their erasure.

This exclusion didn’t stop at the Opry—it became the foundation of country music’s industry-wide discrimination. Record labels categorized Black artists as "race records," radio stations refused to play their songs, and country’s gatekeepers built a system that benefitted from Black creativity while denying Black artists access to the stage.

No More Stolen Songs

Black Artists Demand Their Due

For decades, Black artists have fought back, calling out an industry that profits from Black creativity while denying Black artists their due credit, compensation, or visibility. 

Through music, public outcry, and organized movements, Black country artists have exposed an industry built on theft and erasure—and every time the industry tried to deny them, they refused to be silenced.

Lil Nas X and the Racist Gatekeeping of Country Music

When Lil Nas X released Old Town Road, it skyrocketed to popularity, blending hip-hop and country in a way that resonated across audiences and genres. But Billboard removed it from the country charts, claiming it didn’t have “enough country elements”—despite the genre’s long history of embracing white artists who incorporated pop, rock, and R&B influences.

The backlash was swift. Fans and fellow Black artists called out the hypocrisy, forcing a national conversation on country music’s exclusion of Black artists. Only after Billy Ray Cyrus joined the remix did the song get reaccepted into the country conversation—this time, with the white industry’s stamp of approval.

The Cowboy Carter Snub Sparks a Social Media Revolt

Beyoncé’s Cowboy Carter made history as the first country album by a Black woman to top the country charts. It was a flawless blend of traditional country elements infused with blues, gospel, and soul—genres deeply rooted in Black musical history. Yet, the Country Music Association (CMA) failed to nominate the album for any major awards, reigniting the long-standing grievances about the industry's racial bias.

 For decades, Black country artists have struggled against an industry that reaped all the benefits of their influence while keeping them on the sidelines.

Beyoncé’s omission from the CMA Awards only reinforced what many already knew: country music institutions continue to gatekeep Black artistry, aiming only to recognize it when it remains secondary to its white counterparts.

No Permission Needed 

Denied, But Not Defeated

The outrage was immediate.

 Black country artists, fans, and activists launched social media campaigns calling for accountability within the music industry, using hashtags like #CMABlackout and #CountryMusicSoWhite to highlight the systemic exclusion of Black musical genius.

Even Black female country artists who have won awards in the past have rarely received the same level of industry support as their white peers.

has spoken openly about the discrimination she has faced. Despite her unmistakable talent, she remains one of the only Black women acknowledged at major country music award shows since their inception.

Similarly, Tracy Chapman made history in 2023 when Luke Combs' cover of her song Fast Car won CMA Song of the Year, making her the first Black woman to receive a songwriting award at the CMAs. But the fact that it took a white male artist’s version of her song for her to receive that recognition only underscored the industry's ongoing bias. These milestones aren’t signs of progress—they are exceptions to a rule that still exists.

Reclamation, and Reckoning

The CMA tried to shut Beyoncé out, but—as if that was ever going to work—she responded in the most Beyoncé way possible. Instead of waiting for validation from an institution that had already made its bias loud and clear, she doubled down with Cowboy Carter—an album that wasn’t just country, but a history-making reclamation.

This was more than just an album—it was a statement. Cowboy Carter forced a reckoning, shifting the public conversation from “Do Black artists belong in country?” to “Why is the industry still trying to keep them out?”. And Beyoncé made it clear: she didn’t need their permission to take up space.