Going Back To My Roots

When I was little I grew up on country music. That's what I would hear in every car ride; that's what I would hear jamming in our tiny living room; that's what I would hear all around me. I can still remember the times I would jam Dixie Chicks in the front yard and dance my heart out. I can still remember the time I put a sad Shania Twain song on while solemnly looking out the living room window when my first grade crush moved away to Florida. It was around middle school that my view on country music started to change. My 6th grade math teacher would allow us to take turns choosing songs to listen to while we were working. To follow everyone else, I would choose the mainstream music of the time such as Akon's 'Lonely' or Gwen Stefani's 'Dirty Escape'. I couldn't tell you the amount of times I heard "Anything but country music" continuously as I grew older. If someone was asked what kind of music they listen to, I would hear the same reply: "I listen to pretty much everything. Except country." Why is country music seen in such a negative light? Why is it considered an embarrassing thing to like country music?

 I can't tell you that I'm exactly innocent from that judgement either. My view on country music changed so drastically that I would look at people as if they were crazy when they told me that they loved country music. My mind would put the automatic "red-neck" impression on that person after becoming aware of the fact that they liked country music. It wasn't until recently that my societal altered view on country music was at last put to rest. A few months ago I was in a car ride with my family, and my sister decided to put on Brad Paisley's 'Letter to Me'. Listening to this beautiful song made me remember all the things that made me love country music when I was younger. Country music has some of the most beautiful lyrics. Country music has some of the most uplifting songs. That 'twang' that I used to find annoying, I now love all over again. I'm going back to my roots. And for some reason it feels as though I've found a part of myself that I didn't even know I had lost.

I'm going to end this post with a few country songs that I just can't get enough of. Try giving them a listen and maybe you'll see why I love this genre all over again. They are all so different but all so great!