I Thought Country Music Wasn’t For Me — Until Black Artists Proved Me Wrong

For much of my life, country music felt like a locked door — a mysterious place that invited no one who looked like me. It seemed firmly rooted in a different world, one sprinkled with images of cowboy hats, winding dirt roads, and melodic twang that had no resonance with my own experiences. This was music crafted for small towns, steeped in southern traditions that never seemed designed to include voices like mine. So, I never allowed myself to venture into that realm.