Buzzing across social platforms, country sensation Oliver Anthony’s track ‘Rich Men North Of Richmond’ is getting both love and flak. But just who is this viral hitmaker, and why's he caught in a crossfire?
★★★☆☆
After rising to fame on America's X Factor over a decade ago, only now is Willie Jones releasing Something To Dance to, his major label debut.
★★★★☆
Jason Isbell and the 400 Unit show that country music can be as politically direct as any genre on their latest album, Weathervanes.
★★★★☆
Tanya Tucker provides the full, authentic country experience on her latest and 26th studio album, Sweet Western Sound.
★★★★☆
Kassi Valazza’s sophomore album, Kassi Valazza Knows Nothing, is a poetic package of tender tunes – for home, healing or the highway. Read our review.
★★★★★
Brandy Clark releases some of her finest work on her deeply personal self-titled album. Read our review.
★★★★☆
Texan country singer Parker McCollum’s latest album Never Enough might have a variety of substance, but that’s exactly what keeps things fresh.
★★☆☆☆
Diplo enlists another round of recruits to try and take on the country genre for a second time – with similarly uninspiring results.
★★★☆☆
Nate Smith’s 26-track, self-titled debut – already released, unconventionally, in deluxe format – boasts as many fine moments as it does forgettable parts.
★★★★☆
Eight studio albums deep and The Wood Brothers – brothers Chris and Oliver, flanked by multi-instrumentalist Jano Rix – are having as much pure, honest fun as ever.
★★★★☆
Ian Munsick pays tribute to his home state on his second album, White Buffalo. Read our review.
★★★☆☆
Read our review of Poets & Old Souls by country singer Bryan Martin, which follows the success of ‘Beauty in the Struggle’ on TikTok.
★★★★☆
When you hear that country music’s biggest star – who also happens to be only 33, scandal free, happily married and a doting soon to be father-of-two – is going to release an 18-track album called Gettin’ Old there is, naturally, a sense of trepidation. The risk that Luke Combs’ new record had to descend into one big saccharine mass of sentimentality was high, to put it lightly.
★★★★☆
Country music stars including Eric Church, Ashley McBryde and Lainey Wilson celebrate The Rolling Stones’ 60th anniversary with a twist on Stoned Cold Country.
Ahead of his headline slot at Country to Country festival, commencing today at The O2, Holly Smith speaks to country star Thomas Rhett about the UK’s love for the genre, his rise to the top of the charts and looking ahead to new music.
★★★★★
Husband and wife duo Tanya Trotter and Michael Trotter Jr – aka The War and Treaty – offer something of the divine on their major-label debut, Lover’s Game.
★★★★☆ Dierks Bentley is back doing what he does best: hitting that accessible spot between the mainstream and the traditional. Or, as he puts it, “it might be gravel but it feels like gold”.
★★★★☆ Alan Fletcher (Dr Karl Kennedy from Neighbours) releases his debut Americana album featuring soft, sad musings on relationships and everyday domesticities. Read our The Point review.
★★★★☆ Ernest's Flower Shops (The Album): Two Dozen Roses is a deluxe country music expansion showcasing the versatile crooner's signature style and blending of influences.
★★★☆☆
Shania Twain, the best-selling female country artist of all time, delivers Queen of Me, the follow-up to 2017’s Now. It’s a record that, whilst celebrating a revitalised artist, also nods to what’s created her significant legacy. Holly Smith reviews.
★★☆☆☆Tyler Hubbard's debut, self-titled album, doesn't lack sincerity but fails to build momentum.
Kiefer Sutherland is heading to the Scottish Highlands, performing at the Belladrum Tartan Heart music festival next summer.
Acclaimed country singer Luke Bell has been found dead at the age of 32. The official cause of death has not been revealed.
Lionel Ritchie, Pat Benatar, Eurythmics and Carly Simon will also join the class of 2022 in the Performers category.
Thomas Rhett is just about everything you want in a modern-day country star; a Grammy-nominated singer who, despite all his successes, still remains firmly rooted in family, home and his everyday surroundings.
