country music

Music & Culture

For Country Music Industry And Artists, Gun Politics Presents A Minefield

12:18am November 11, 2017

by Kelly McEvers

Country music long has been affiliated with the outdoors, small towns, hunting, and in turn, guns. Country music journalist Jonathan Bernstein talks about the dynamic between the two industries.

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Campers with Williams syndrome on stage at the Grand Ole Opry performing their original song, "I Love Big," with country artist Chris Young in front of a crowd of thousands.

Country Music And Brain Research Come Together At Nashville Summer Camp

5:26pm July 31, 2017

by Emily Siner

Researchers in Nashville are tapping into a country music camp to learn more about Williams Syndrome, a rare genetic disorder. Many people who have it love music but don't know why.

Country musician Merle Haggard, who died Wednesday at age 79, overcame early brushes with the law — and was pardoned by Ronald Reagan. He's seen here backstage in the late 1970's, for a taping of the Merv Griffin Show in Los Angeles.

National

5 Things You Should Know About Merle Haggard

8:49pm April 06, 2016

by Bill Chappell

"I was probably the most incorrigible child you could ever meet," the legendary singer once told NPR. "I was already on the way to prison before I realized it."

Music & Culture

At 83, 'Songwriter-Singer' Loretta Lynn Comes 'Full Circle'

1:43pm March 18, 2016

by Ken Tucker

The country music legend's new album mixes original material with interpretations of country classics. Reviewer Ken Tucker says the record shows a vulnerability that is somewhat new to Lynn's music.

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Singer and songwriter Ronnie Milsap is a new inductee into the Country Music Hall Of Fame in Nashville, Tenn.

Ronnie Milsap Joins Country Music's Hall Of Fame

8:39pm October 27, 2014

by Bill Chappell

Milsap's career ranged from playing on the 1960s Elvis hit "Kentucky Rain" to his own solo success in the '70s and '80s. One of his biggest hits was 1980's "Smoky Mountain Rain."

Raeanne Rubenstein first photographed Johnny Cash at the Ryman Auditorium in Nashville, Tenn. "It was just the most amazing experience," she says.

Arts

Meeting Country Music's Superstars: Behind Each Portrait, A Story

6:29pm September 27, 2014

by NPR Staff

Nashville-based photographer Raeanne Rubenstein recalls working with charismatic stars like Johnny Cash. Jerry Lee Lewis, on the other hand, dodged her (and his audience) by leaping out a window.

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Arts

Country Music Star George Hamilton IV Dies At 77

1:14pm September 18, 2014

Winston-Salem native George Hamilton IV died Wednesday in Nashville after suffering a heart attack over the weekend. He was 77.

Country Star George Jones Dies

12:13pm November 11, 2013

by Mark Memmott

Starting in 1959 and for decades after, he recorded some of country's greatest songs, including "He Stopped Loving Her Today." Jones was 81.

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