Blogocentric Formulations

Body Like A Back Road

"Barrel of Monkeys"  | Day 2

"Body Like A Back Road"
by Sam Hunt
from Southside (2020, single released in 2017)

I picked this song because the "bro-country" sub-genre of country music fascinates me. On the one hand, songs like this those from artists such as Florida Georgia Line, Luke Bryan, and Jason Aldean. On the one hand, bro-country has been extensively criticized for its repetitive subject matter (frequent themes are partying on Friday nights, drinking, trucks, and the objectification of women), and the lack of representation for female artists. On the other hand, the sub-genre is immensely popular with fans, regardless of what music critics, radio programmers, and established, old-school country stars may think of it. This song, for example, broke a record by being the first song in history to spend more than 24 weeks on the Hot Country Songs list, a record which had until then been held by "Cruise" from Florida Georgia Lina, another "bro-country" song. Those two tracks also have the distinction of reaching the top 10 of the Billboard Hot 100 as well. And yet many critics labeled this as one of the worst songs of 2017.

I'm torn about this sub-genre of music. They are definitely popular songs, and in a lot of cases that remind me of pop country where it's often upbeat, catchy, and easy to listen to on repeat. But I have noticed how many of the songs tend to glorify drinking, partying, and treating women as little more than sex objects... so I don't disagree that the songs can be somewhat problematic.

One of my favorite things about this genre, though, are the childish responses of bro-country singers to those who criticize their music. Blake Shelton was quoted as saying he doesn't care what "old farts" think, and went further to say, "[The reason you don't like it] is because you don't buy records anymore, jackass. The kids do, and they don't want to buy the music you were buying." When Zac Brown criticized a Luke Bryan song as being one of the worst songs he'd ever heard, Jason Aldean replied, "nobody gives a shit what u think."

Based on its popularity with fans, it seems like whether you love it or hate it, bro-country is here to stay for a while.