As it’s December I am beginning my end of year posts with a little round up of the most read new articles of the year. 

One of the reasons I started this blog back in 2017 was because I was sick of the divided, angry online world of politics in the Trump era. Writing about music helped bring me joy and connected me to a range of diverse people around the world who shared a common love of song. 

Strangely enough despite its conservative themes, for a while country music was actually a safe haven for a liberal leftie like me looking to avoid the negativity of politics. After the Dixie Chicks were cancelled for speaking out the genre seemed to have a kind of ‘don’t ask, don’t tell’ policy for both sides of the political divide, which meant most artists remained neutral (in public anyway). Dolly Parton also set the gold standard for how to deal with any potentially divisive discussions – be kind to everyone, judge no one, focus on the music and steer clear of party politics.

So why then would Carrie Underwood, who has spent her career cultivating a very vanilla and apolitical image, agree to sing at the inauguration of Donald Trump – one of the most divisive figures in history? And what does this decision tell us about the state of women in country music right now? 

The Grammys have been too long dominated by major-label mega-artists (and their stan armies) and yet I still find the ceremony to be the only music award show with enough depth of categories to make it vital. The prestige a nomination gives cannot be understated, especially for lesser known artists.