Devon Herron

Country singer Charley Crockett comes to Beyoncé's defense after continued attacks from the "country" community "Hey country folks. Beyoncé ain't the source of your discontent. It was 25 years of bro country. #1 country artist on earth listens to nothing but rap. Openly says he doesn't really know any country music. Gotta respect his honesty. The machine points to a Black woman who's making a statement about marginalized people being removed from the conversation altogether, and somehow we all act like the entire pop industry didn't just ambush roots music. These “country boys” been *singing* over trap beats for years. So what’s different now? Authenticity. Many of those business folks called me early on. They had whole albums pre written and recorded ready to just plug me in. I have receipts. It’s harder than ever to keep the public’s attention. They said and I quote “we wanna get into country music where you have audience loyalty.” Hot today, forgot tomorrow. I don’t need to put down a Black woman to advance my music. That’s just embarrassing to the idea of America and I got no respect for it. Somebody asked me why I listen to BigXthaPlug the other day. Easy. He’s genuine. A true story teller. The best hip hop sound to come out of Texas in this century. The challenges country music faces aren’t unique. It’s an issue in every *genre*. I don’t have a problem with Americana. I have a problem with being compartmentalized by the music business. Outlaw as a *sub genre* of country was artists standing up for their rights against a rigid system. Ain’t no reason to imitate [Waylon] and [Willie] if you ain’t about the fight. Texas forever”.