US Authoritarianism

While this is funny, the real answer is Soundscan going live in the late 1990s.

Before then, no one really knew what music was popular, and the labels tended to put a thumb on the scale and inflated the popularity of their pet rock and pop acts. Soundscan revealed the hip-hop/rap and country were much, much more popular among actual consumers than anyone thought.

That resulted in more dedicated C&W and hip hop radio stations, and the general decline of rock, which all became self-reinforcing.

Tl;Dr there's a lot more Panderin' fans out there than anyone thought.

It's fallen so far from Boot Scootin' Boogie.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y7im5LT09a0

I read a great insightful, thoughtful article about ten or maybe even almost 15 years ago about how 9/11 changed country music from socially challenging music to blind patriotism and whatnot, and the article's theme has been done to death in the meantime, but not nearly so eloquently based on the few opinion pieces I've read with the same tone since.

It touched on some of the "fifth grade reading level" stuff, but also wasn't afraid to cover the politics of the left abandoning large swaths of the working poor in rust belt states in the late 90's/early 2000's because of the "coal bad, iron cheaper elsewhere" movements.

I wish I could find it now.

You're tuned in to WGOP. All regressive hits all the time. "hits to listen to whilst you hit your wife"

The sad part is this popularity destroyed both hip-hop and country. Which are both pretty much top 40 now.