Thomas Rhett is defending artists like Post Malone and Beyoncé in country music. Amid the ongoing arguments, Rhett says their addition in country music is only good for the genre.
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"I guess you have to ask yourself the question, 'How many people do you want to know about country music?'" Rhett reflects. "[There are] a lot of people that were brought into country music with a lot of different artists in our genre. [They] might not have listened, had it not been for a couple of different artists.
"I've always been a big believer that the more people that can hear country music, the better," he adds. "If that takes bringing in somebody from the outside world to introduce people to a lot of different artists, then I think it's a big win for our genre."
Rhett apparently isn't alone in his beliefs. Post Malone is already working on his second country album. And Beyoncé's Cowboy Carter won a Grammy for Best Country Album.
Thomas Rhett's 'After All The Bars Are Closed' Single
Several of Rhett's owns songs have found a place on non-country charts, including "Die A Happy Man," which hit the Top 25. But his feet are firmly in country music. It's a point he illustrates with his current single, "After All The Bars Are Closed." The song, from his latest About A Woman album, is already in the Top 15, and climbing.
Rhett's wife, Lauren Akins, is the inspiration for all of the songs on About A Woman.
"Anytime I write a song, whether it's [about] heartbreak, love — whatever — I'm either looking at my present day with my wife, or I'm kind of looking back into when we first started dating," Rhett tells Billboard.
Rhett acknowledges that the song may not sound as traditional country as some of his songs. Still, he says it is definitely a country music song, through and through.
"It's sneaky because the music is very 'now'-sounding. But there's something about the way that that song sort of teleports you. It makes you feel nostalgic," Rhett explains. "It makes you feel kind of like you want to dance. But also, just kind of like you want to be with the person that you love. It doesn't happen very often where a song checks all those boxes."
