Stop Saying You Hate Pop Country if You Don't Support the Good Stuff

Social media is full of keyboard warriors valiantly fighting against the destruction of true country music. Millions of fed-up fans of Willie, Waylon, and Merle share memes lampooning the likes of Florida Georgia Line and Luke Bryan. One Facebook page, appropriately named "We Hate Pop Country" is approaching half a million likes.

But does clicking "Share" on a post comparing a popular artist to a common lady's hygiene product really accomplish the goal of bringing true, string-driven country music back? We here at Finding Country don't think so.

Compare it to voting; You can share anti-Clinton, Trump, or Sanders memes all day, but in the end, the only real way for your average citizen to affect change is at the ballot box. When it comes to music, your dollars and your presence at a music venue are your vote. Whining about today's music if you don't financially support the artists you like is the equivalent of complaining about the president, but not voting.

There is a huge amount of amazing music being created out of hubs like Nashville and the Texas scene. Artists are touring without the support of labels, and producing amazing, "Real country" songs with depth and actual meaning. Unfortunately, they're often playing to half-empty bars and spending tens of thousands to record songs that might only see a few hundred downloads or CD sales.

No record label executive or radio program director is going to base their decisions on what people say they want; they look at sales first and foremost. As long as the fans of Taylor Swift, FGL, and Luke Bryan are buying albums and concert tickets, those are the artists that will be pushed to the forefront.

So next time, instead of sharing a meme, head to the country bar down the road that has local artists playing. Find someone you like. Buy a CD. Get a T-shirt. Fund their Kickstarter. Actions speak louder than words, and your wallet speaks even louder than that.
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So next time you get a beer, get it during a real country band's 4 hour bar set. That $4 will do more good than a lifetime of Facebook posts. In case you're not sure where to start, here's a list of just a few "True country" artists. Feel free to comment with more!