Most major music magazines seem to only pay lip service to Country's biggest stars but disregard fledgling Country bands. On the contrary, most people are aware of “the next big thing” in the rap and rock genres. It seems as if everyone knows someone that'll admit to liking every musical genre except Country. Where does all this embarrassment come from?
If one were to assume that “things aren't what they seem,” they'd be correct. One only has to look at record sales to know what's really going on, but if sales are strong then why such a negative attitude?
Some insight into this attitude may come from the fact that most major media outlets aren't located where all the action in this genre is. People have always been skeptical of anything that's foreign to them, and music is no different.
If the Entertainment Industry is indeed in the business of making money, perhaps they should take more notice of what people in the heartland are buying. Music Television might do itself a favor by playing Country Music Videos by more artists than Shania Twain – and, it might be a good idea for movie producers to associate Western twang with characters other than serial killers in horror movies.
If you do your research and track US Record Sales over the years, you'll see that after The Beatles and Elvis Presley, Garth Brooks is the number three top selling recording artist of all time. Country star George Strait beats Bruce Springsteen, Mariah Carey, Michael Jackson, Metallica, Van Halen, and U2 – but, unless you're a fan of Country, all those other artists are probably more familiar.
People may also find it surprising to learn that although Michael Jackson's Thriller has sold over ten million copies, it's his only album that does; Madonna has two albums that have sold over ten million copies, Shania Twain has three, and Garth Brooks has four.
In the scheme of things, fans shouldn't despair that country music may be underappreciated by mass media – the truth is in the sales. And, as long as fans keep supporting their favorite artists by purchasing albums, Country artists will remain chart toppers.
