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Country rap

Country rap (country hip hop and sometimes hick hop) is a fusion genre of popular music, blending country music with hip hop–style singing or rapping.[1][2]

Country rap

  • Country hip hop
  • hick hop

Late 1990s, United States (South, South Central)

History[edit]

Prototypes[edit]

Early influences on the emergence of country rap as a distinct genre include talking blues like "Big Bad John" (1961) by Jimmy Dean, "A Boy Named Sue" (1969) by Johnny Cash, the 1971 cover of "Hot Rod Lincoln" by Commander Cody and His Lost Planet Airmen, "Convoy" (1975) by C.W. McCall and "Uneasy Rider" (1975) and "The Devil Went Down to Georgia" (1979), both by Charlie Daniels. Black artists' works that may have been influential in the genre's development include Jamaican ska artist Prince Buster's "Texas Hold-Up" (1964), "Lil Ole Country Boy" (1970) by Parliament, and "Black Grass" (1972) by Bad Bascomb.[3] Music journalist Chuck Eddy traces the genre's roots back to Woody Guthrie.[4]


Blowfly's single "Blowfly's Rapp" (1980) drew on the influence of earlier country musicians like Charlie Daniels and C. W. McCall; NPR said the song is a "Deliverance-style encounter with Ku Klux Klan-accredited truck drivers to light funkbacking".[5] Spin Magazine said Trickeration's "Western Gangster Town" (1980) (released four years before Schoolly D's "Gangster Boogie") is "cowboy rap's Rosetta stone, and probably the first 'gangster' rap".[3] Other early examples of country rap are Sir Mix-A-Lot's "Square Dance Rap" (1985) where he raps in the voice of a "white country boy". The lyric "From L.A. to Carolina / Drop them suckers in Aunt Jemima" in Sir Mix-A-Lot's "Buttermilk Biscuits" (1988) is a reference to what many consider a racial stereotype, trademarked after Chris L. Rutt heard a performance of the minstrel song "Old Aunt Jemima" (1876).[3]


The song "Rappin' Duke" (1985) is a parody of western film star John Wayne: "Two hundred punks, well, what you gonna do?/I got two six-shooters that'll see me through". The song also contains a reference to "Old Folks at Home" (1851).[3] The genre-blending was not limited only to hip hop artists; country duo Bellamy Brothers released "Country Rap" (1987) with lyrics about soul food, church, turnip greens and black-eyed peas.[6]


UGK became pioneers of the hardcore Southern rap style that emerged after the success of the Geto Boys, which they started to call "country rap". At the end of "Let Me See It", Pimp C raps: "This ain't no muthafuckin' hip-hop records, these country rap tunes", originally a response to Northern hip hop artists who had criticized Southern rap for not being "real hip-hop".[7] The name of the song "Hay" (1996) by Crucial Conflict is a reference to marijuana.[8]

Collaborations[edit]

The Mo Thugs Family single "Ghetto Cowboy" (1998) is noted for featuring a harmonica.[30] Rolling Stone said of "Cruise (Remix)" (2012) by Florida Georgia Line featuring Nelly, that the track "ushered in the wave of escapist fantasies set to syncopated drum loops that became known as 'bro country'.[31][30] Florida Georgia Line has said that Nelly's part "just connected", helping to make the "Cruise" remix reach the No. 1 and No. 4 positions on the Billboard Hot Country Songs and Hot 100 charts respectively; it also became the first country single to ever gain a RIAA diamond certification.[32]


B.o.B and pop singer Taylor Swift collaborated on "Both of Us" (2012). The track features Swift's country vocals and a blend of hip-hop with banjos. It became a top 10 hit in Australia and New Zealand and a top 20 hit in the US.[33]


Country singer Brad Paisley and rapper LL Cool J recorded the controversial song "Accidental Racist" for Paisley's 2013 album Wheelhouse.[34]


Other collaborations include "Po' Folks" (2002) by Nappy Roots with Anthony Hamilton, "Country Folks" (2012) by Bubba Sparxxx featuring Colt Ford & Danny Boone, "Dirt Road Anthem" (remix) by Jason Aldean and Ludacris, and "Try Harder Than That" by Meghan Linsey with Bubba Sparxxx (2014).[30][33]

Popularity[edit]

Physical sales of country rap albums are higher in more rural areas where country rap fans do not have the Internet services required to stream or download music.[35] There are numerous country rap festivals where artists gather to play their music for upwards of 7,000 fans.[35]

Politics[edit]

The term "hick-hop" is often criticized by some southern artists, with Struggle Jennings saying, "I love the country, I love the South, I've been fishing and hunting, but I'm not a hick. I'm not hick-hop".[35] The political ideology of country rap artists is perceived as being right-wing or conservative, due to some right-leaning politics expressed by artists like Upchurch and Forgiato Blow;[35] however the political ideology of country rap artists ranges the full spectrum of political beliefs.[35]