20th-century country music was influenced by Hawaiian instruments

Country music can be traced back to Colonial America

The genre begins with the folk music of the Colonial settlers, blending the area’s regional sounds, including gospel, African spirituals, and Anglo-Saxon, Scottish, and Celtic ballads.

Western swing merged country with jazz

For as long as country music has been set to record, its artists have experimented with the genre’s boundaries. Look no further than this track from 1946, Bob Wills’ “Roly Poly.” The song is a classic example of Western swing, a country subgenre that blended country and jazz.

The sound of country music has evolved over its lifespan

Like any genre, country music is constantly evolving. This in-depth analysis from NPR illustrates how the notoriously traditionally minded industry has been redefined, time and time again, by its greatest artists. More recently, it highlights stars like Kacey Musgraves, Sam Hunt, and Maren Morris for taking it in new directions.

In the 1920s, country was often called 'hillbilly music'

The term was meant to describe the rural people who typically performed the Appalachian folk music. Though Black people were also making country music at the time, their records were categorized as “race music.”

Blues was a major influence on early rock

Early rock ‘n’ roll had a straightforward sound, relying mostly on guitar, bass, drums, piano, and saxophone playing up-tempo 12-bar blues. In subsequent decades, the form evolved and splintered into countless subgenres that used more diverse sounds, instruments, and lyrics.

Country's popularity skyrocketed in the 21st century

Thanks to the crossover success of '90s artists like Garth Brooks and Shania Twain, country music found a larger audience. By the 2000s, the genre was more popular than ever, at times accounting for nearly a quarter of the Billboard Hot 100 chart.

Read an early piece of journalism on country music

This 1904 Harper’s Weekly article from Emma Bell Miles offers an early example of country music criticism. Miles traces the music’s roots to the mountaineers who pioneered it. It’s a famous piece for music writers: Miles saw a phenomenon building in the hills long before any major record label.

Béla Fleck took the banjo from Appalachian porches to African villages and Carnegie Hall

In a conversation recorded at a Philadelphia instrument shop, Fleck reflects on how an instrument associated with a single American folk tradition became his vehicle for bluegrass, jazz, classical, African folk, and orchestral music. He has long advocated that every living room should have a banjo, and he highlights how he has integrated the instrument across genres in this fascinating discussion.

The electric microphone led to a country music boom

The electric microphone provided enhanced audio and greater portability, saving the fledgling record industry and making recording outside of New York and Camden, New Jersey, possible. This proved critical for capturing early country and rock ‘n’ roll.

Irish music became popular in the US during the 19th century

The influx of Irish immigrants in the mid-1800s, driven by starvation and abysmal employment opportunities, led to a significant Irish-American culture, especially in urban hubs such as New York, Boston, Philadelphia, Chicago, and San Francisco.

Jazz improvisations are often based on well-known standards

Similar to blues, folk, and country music, jazz relies on a shared tradition of common songs that its artists learn, cover, and rework in their own unique ways. Jazz musicians are often able to easily improvise with other musicians because they share a knowledge of the songs and their languages.

Three rock stars who made great country music

Steven Tyler, Tina Turner, and Darius Rucker all crossed into country. The author claims the trio shared a common trait: they weren't chasing a new audience. Instead, they were delving deeper into a sound already present in their work.

Dylan influenced many of his contemporaries

Dylan’s groundbreaking approach to songwriting didn’t just change his career; it changed the trajectory of American popular music. This podcast from the National Association of Music Merchants’ oral history project features interviews with several Dylan compatriots and fans–including Pete Seeger, Emmylou Harris, and Robbie Robertson–who detail how Dylan changed their careers and how they viewed songwriting.

Why Frank Sinatra called Billie Holiday his 'greatest single influence'

In a 1958 essay for Ebony magazine, Sinatra wrote about the impact that Black music had on him, writing that "it is Billie Holiday, whom I first heard in 52nd Street clubs in the early 1930s, who was and still remains the greatest single musical influence on me. It has been a warm and wonderful influence, and I am very proud to acknowledge it."

Chris Stapleton's 'Tennessee Whiskey' is the best-selling country song of all time

The 2015 track has sold over 20 million units in the US, making it the third single to be certified double diamond. (The other two are Bruno Mars' "Just the Way You Are" and Post Malone and Swae Lee's "Sunflower.") Stapleton's track is actually a standard that was written in 1981 and recorded by several other artists, including George Jones.

The harmonizing Louvin Brothers continued country's religious tradition

You won’t find a better pair of harmonizers than brothers Ira and Charlie Louvin, whose records became cornerstones of country, bluegrass, and gospel. This podcast examines the brothers’ remarkable approach to singing, along with the close relationship that made them such ideal musical partners—and what ultimately tore them apart.

The Hawaiian pizza was popularized by a Canadian chef

Hawaii's tiki culture was popular in North America through the mid-20th century, with canned pineapple a household staple. Sam Panopoulos, a Greek immigrant who operated a diner in Ontario, experimented with outlandish pizza recipes until he stumbled upon the idea for topping a pie with canned pineapple and ham.

The surprising and strange sources behind 12 famous songs

Britney Spears's "Toxic" borrowed strings from a 1981 Bollywood film, Billie Eilish sampled The Office, and one duo made an entire album using only the sounds of their Whirlpool washing machine. Explore how sampling can pull from pretty much anywhere.

Wales has had a massive influence on fantasy music, movies and books

Many of "The Lord of the Rings" settings and languages are rooted in the country's landscape and dialect. Studio Ghibli icon Hayao Miyazaki was inspired by Wales' countryside. Rock band Fleetwood Mac used Welsh myths as a basis for songs.

The history of music explained in 8 minutes

Traditional music history focuses on composers and sees music as an object. Historian Michael Spitzer focuses on music's role in everyday activity and sees it not as an object, but an activity. This brief history illuminates the fundamental role music plays in human culture, and sounds a hopeful not for music in the internet age.

The US framework of government has influenced the constitutions of many other countries

In 1787, the US Constitution introduced a system built on the separation of powers and individual liberties, including freedom of speech and religion. Though widely influential, its rigidity has made it less of a modern model as countries adopt more adaptable constitutional frameworks.

King is a major influence on modern genre writers

Stephen King's influence is felt across literature, film, and television—even outside the many books and adaptations that make up his long and storied career. This podcast features interviews with "Lost" showrunner Damon Lindelof and horror novelist Grady Hendrix, two writers who also happen to be King superfans.

Indigenous art's influence on pop art often goes uncredited

Keith Haring’s iconic imagery, often known for its accessibility, was deeply inspired by the artwork of the Indigenous people of Australia. Their artwork influenced aspects of Haring's paintings, such as flat block colors and symmetrical compositions. While some critics find Haring to have appropriated their culture, others find his work to be pushing a message of unity and togetherness.

Mardi Gras has inspired several songs

New Orleans is a historic music town—with deep-rooted jazz, R&B, and blues traditions, to name a few—so it's no surprise that its annual Carnival has led to more than a few Mardi Gras-themed songs through the decades. One of the most famous is Professor Longhair's 1959 track "Go to the Mardi Gras," an upbeat shuffle that's still played at parades today.

Your favorite music can minimize physical pain

According to a 2025 study, a person's favorite music can help them address pain. The report stated that “listening to a favored music genre has a significant positive influence on pain tolerance, irrespective of the kind of genre.”

A century of Billboard issues documenting the evolution of popular music.

70 years ago today, city officials in Santa Cruz, California, banned rock 'n' roll to protect its youth from corruption after witnessing a 'provocative' concert the night before.

Quincy Jones' 'Big Band Bossa Nova' helped introduce bossa nova—a jazz-influenced Brazilian genre—to the US

Watch a 1934 short film starring jazz legend Cab Calloway, a major figure in the Harlem Renaissance's music scene

The 19th-century painters of the Hudson River School were among the first American romantics, with portraits that displayed the natural beauty of the young country.

The word 'jazz' evolved from 'jasm,' 19th-century American slang for 'energy'

The US Constitution is widely regarded as the longest-standing written national constitution still in force—see how it has influenced rights worldwide.

One disco producer saw 'Star Wars' four times on its opening weekend and was so inspired that he recorded the album 'Star Wars and Other Intergalactic Funk,' which produced a chart-topping single.

The rivalry between Alexander Hamilton and Thomas Jefferson centered on federalism—the question of how much power the federal government should hold relative to the states.

In preparation for this weekend's Eurovision finale, which is something like the World Cup of pop music, here's a young Céline Dion performing (for Switzerland?) at the 1988 competition.

In 2026, Finland was named the world's happiest country for the ninth consecutive year based on its wealth, social safety network, and high life expectancy, among other factors.

Long before Major League Baseball began allowing instant replay for balls and strikes, an umpire reluctantly used the technology to determine whether a hit was a home run, a move that inadvertently ushered in a new era for the sport.

English mathematician Ada Lovelace wrote the first computer algorithm a century before computers existed and hypothesized that computing devices would one day be able to compose music—foreseeing the generative AI systems of today.

While the first exchange-traded fund (a 'basket' of different assets that can be bought and sold on a stock exchange) in the US only launched in 1993, the global ETF market has grown to more than $10T in the short time since.

The price of gas is a composite made up of several different factors, with the federal gas tax making up less than 20% of what drivers pay at the pump.

While El Niño moves warm Pacific Ocean waters east along the equator, La Niña moves them west, shifting where rainfall will become more common for months.

Jimmy Carter signed a 1978 bill that legalized home brewing, a move credited with kick-starting the craft beer industry.

Georgia O'Keeffe's flower paintings are often assumed to be sexual, though the artist claimed she was simply interested in highlighting the beauty of flowers that most people neglect

The first horror movie is believed to be George Méliès' 1986 short 'The Haunted Castle,' which pioneered the use of special effects

See how fireworks are made and learn how metals like magnesium and copper are responsible for different colors.

Cultural norms about how to handle the bodies of loved ones in communities in West Africa have hampered Ebola responses.

Explore fun facts from the USPS, including unique post office buildings, a stamp that traveled past Pluto, and more.

Fish populations in the Great Barrier Reef have increased after installing waterproof speakers on the ocean floor that played recordings of sounds from healthy coral reefs.

The American cockroach is actually from Africa, an apparent hitchhiker aboard ships carrying enslaved people, with evidence suggesting the bug may have arrived in the New World as early as the 1600s.

Fast-casual restaurant Chili's is experiencing a resurgence, with its parent company recently reporting a nearly 32% increase in sales, thanks to passionate Gen Z fans on TikTok.