“There’s this new guy at work who really loves country music. He’s like playing Morgan Wallen, Alex Warren and Carrie Underwood all day. Yet when he talks about politics, he’s pretty liberal. I suspect he’s a fake. I mean, only right-wing people like country music, right? Besides, the rise in popularity in country music this decade has been part of a larger right-wing wave, including the return of Trump and the rise of similar right-wing politicians across the West. I think it really can’t be denied that country music equals right wing.”
Is country music necessarily right-wing though? Country songs don’t usually have lyrics about supporting Trump, mass deportations or denying climate change, after all. It’s actually almost always apolitical, unlike some other genres. This means that people across the political spectrum can enjoy some country, if they want to. On the other hand, there are plenty of rappers rapping about right-wing politics. If right-wing music is what you’re after, you’re probably going to enjoy Tom MacDonald more than just about any country artist.
As for the idea that country music’s popularity is part of a right-wing wave, let’s take a closer look. Many countries in Europe have seen a rise in support for the right in recent years, but country music remains largely absent in the European music scene. Meanwhile, in Canada and Australia, two of the three nations in the world where country music is actually popular, the right-wing ain’t doing so well. The Canadian right has been out of power for more than a decade now, and the Australian right just suffered its largest defeat in more than 70 years. Even in America, Trump’s popularity has declined since November ‘24, but country music’s popularity certainly hasn’t declined at all. As you can see, there really is no clear relationship between country music being popular and right-wing politics!