1920s – 2020sPeak: 1970s
Country
About Country
Country music took shape in the 1920s from Appalachian folk ballads, gospel, and the songs of the rural South, broadcast by the Grand Ole Opry from Nashville. Hank Williams gave it its songbook, Johnny Cash its conscience, and Dolly Parton and Willie Nelson its enduring stars. It remains the most popular radio format in the United States and, through Taylor Swift and Beyoncé, a springboard into global pop.