Girl power rallies in country music
In May, country radio consultant Keith Hill ruffled feathers when he told Country Aircheck women were the tomatoes in the salad of country music — elevating male singers to the salad staple of lettuce.
“If you want to make ratings in country radio, take females out,” he said.
For all of the coverage and pro-female conversations his comments generated, Billboard’s year-end country radio airplay chart reflected none of it. The chart, which lists country music's 60 most heard songs on radio in 2015, includes just six from female artists. Only Maddie & Tae, Maddie Marlow and Tae Dye, rank in the Top 30, with “Fly” coming in at No. 27.
'Tomato-gate' galvanizes women in country music
The lack of women on country radio is a well-documented trend — in 2014 women had three songs in country radio’s most heard 60 songs of the year and in 2013, there were six. But there's optimism for an upswing in 2016.
“I do know there was a time in the ‘90s when guys were wondering how they were going to get in because the charts were dominated by women,” said John Esposito, CEO and president of Warner Music Nashville. “We’re just as likely to find that in the next couple of years, the pendulum has swung (towards women) as we’re going to find out that there’s more traditionalism on the radio because of Chris Stapleton or William Michael Morgan.”
Radio veteran Tim Roberts, program director and operations manager for WYCD, WOMC and WDZH in Detroit, said the yearslong lack of female vocalists on country radio was due to several factors, including bands with female singers taking female slots, a shortage of competitive material from up-and-coming female vocalists, and a strong showing from male vocalists whose popularity make them tough to unseat.
“I don’t think it was a conscious effort by anyone (to keep women out),” he said. “I think it was cyclical … but people took steps in Nashville to correct that by signing better new female artists and I think radio responded to that."
The second half of the year offered indications that female artists are picking up steam.
Kelsea Ballerini took “Love Me Like You Mean It” to No. 1 in July — the first time a female has accomplished the feat with her debut single in more than nine years. Cam’s “Burning House” is one of country music’s few songs to sell more than 1 million copies this year, and her album “Untamed” had 2015’s best first-week album sales by a debut country artist.
Roberts said the success of Cam and Ballerini as well as the continued career growth of Jana Kramer reflect country radio's openness to women, and he predicts that strong albums full of radio-friendly songs from Cam, Ballerini and Kramer will grow their presence in the format in 2016.
The issue of gender-biased radio playlists is deeper than the creative and economic impact felt by female artists or the lopsided listening experience during an evening commute. If female artists represent only about one in 10 songs played on country radio over the course of a year, young women rarely hear songs from a female perspective.
“Women have to have heroes,” said Tracy Gershon, vice president of A&R at Rounder Records and artist manager at Red Light Management. “When Martina McBride came out with ‘Independence Day,’ it was such a powerful message and she became a real spokesperson.”
Gershon said women are still being told by record label and radio executives that there’s limited slots available to them, which in the past has made women competitive with one another.
“Miranda (Lambert) sends a real girl power signal and I think we need more of that,” she said. “More and more they are seeing strength in numbers and supporting each other, and a win for one is a win for all.”
Women fared much better on critical year-end lists than they did on country radio airplay charts. Sharply written, articulate storytelling made Ashley Monroe’s “The Blade” and Kacey Musgraves' “Pageant Material” reviewers’ staples.
“There’s been a lot of attention put on why women are not at the forefront of a lot of these charts, and with that, you start to see the swing,” said Jason Owen of Sandbox Entertainment. “When you change the perception of what women in country music have to offer, you start to change the reality (of how the music is received). In 2016, you’ll see a reality change.”
The reality is that plenty of women made strong attempts to break through in 2015.
Sony Music Nashville’s Maren Morris and Universal Music Group Nashville’s Mickey Guyton generated positive buzz along with other women including Kramer, RaeLynn and Lauren Alaina.
Morris sparked a label bidding war before she signed with Sony in the last half of the year and is now on tour with Charles Kelley. Guyton was formally introduced to country music fans with her moving ballad “Better Than You Left Me," which was among the most added debut songs in its first week to country radio playlists in history. She appeared on national television and toured with Brad Paisley, yet radio failed to continue supporting her song. Kramer, who had success in 2011 with “Why You Wanna,” has fought for nearly a year for her current Top 10 hit, “I Got the Boy." RaeLynn’s “God Made Girls” was her first Top 20 country hit, and while “The Voice” alum can move audiences to tears or to its feet depending on the song, she’s still struggling with airplay on country radio. Alaina was introduced to country music fans as runner-up to Scotty McCreery on “American Idol” in 2011. At 21, Alaina has the vocal prowess of a seasoned professional and has been crafting her songwriting chops for the past several years.
“I never say women deserve to be on country radio, but they shouldn’t not be on radio because they are women,” Gershon said. “If they are making great music, they deserve to be heard.”
Reach Cindy Watts at 615-664-2227.
Female artists on the chart in 2015
Carrie Underwood delivered three Top 60 hits: "Little Toy Guns" at 47, "Something in the Water" at 49 and "Smoke Break" at 52.
Maddie & Tae hit No. 27 with the duo’s song “Fly.”
Kelsea Ballerini’s summertime No. 1 song, “Love Me Like You Mean It,” came in at No. 36 on the year-end list.
Cam’s platinum-selling chart-topper “Burning House” squeaked in at 58.
Female artists to watch in 2016
Maren Morris was recently named one of CMT’s "Next Women of Country." The Texas native was selected as a Spotify Emerge artist, and her self-penned song “My Church” has more than 4 million streams on Spotify. Her self-titled EP is available now.
Mickey Guyton made her "Grand Ole Opry" and country radio debut in early 2015 with the ballad “Better Than You Left Me.” When it was released, the song was among the most added first-week debut singles in country radio history. While the song didn’t perform as well as initially expected, Guyton proved herself an engaging performer and powerhouse vocalist who should have a place in country music.
Lauren Alaina is poised to re-emerge in 2016 with her distinctive Southern voice, natural stage presence and a set of songs that will prove she is worth the wait.
RaeLynn landed her first Top 20 hit in 2015 with “God Made Girls” and has spent the past couple of years sharpening her songwriting and performing skills. The newly engaged Texas native was featured on Blake Shelton’s hit “Boys ‘Round Here” and has toured with Miranda Lambert. Over the summer, she reduced a Nashville crowd to tears with “Love Triangle,” a poignant song about what happens to children in divorce.