Why is Keith Urban considered Country?  When I first heard him I figured nice Pop sound.  It seems to me that if a singer sings with a cowboy hat on or adopts a southern sounding name the are labeled country when their sound doesn't actually hold true.  Now Waylon, Willie, Dolly,.....  that is Country

Keith Urban is considered part of the New Country.  Some of his songs sound Country, but there are a good number of them that don't.  Kind of the whole country artists doing the pop cross over thing.  Shania Twain popularized it big time in the 90s and now alot of Country acts are doing it

Why is Keith Urban considered Country?  When I first heard him I figured nice Pop sound.  It seems to me that if a singer sings with a cowboy hat on or adopts a southern sounding name the are labeled country when their sound doesn't actually hold true.  Now Waylon, Willie, Dolly,.....  that is Country


It's more the image than the sound that classifies it. Sorta like calling hair bands Bon Jovi or Poison "metal" - they were, just in a very pop friendly, commercial way. But if you told a purist who listened to old-school Metallica or Slayer, they'd laugh at the idea of them being considered heavy metal. So it's sorta true but isn't at the same time.

I think when Shania and other 1997+ pop country broke out, the lines between true country and poppy country music became even more blurred.

ya, there are a lot of "country" artists who are more pop than country. My husband listens to country music a lot...so I have to deal with it most of the time. Some of them are ok though.

ya, there are a lot of "country" artists who are more pop than country. My husband listens to country music a lot...so I have to deal with it most of the time. Some of them are ok though.

Yeah, I like a few of the ballads and the poppier country songs (mostly from the '90s) in limited amount. Aside from it being sorta in the mainstream as early as 1993ish, I always managed to know a few people who listened to that, so I was exposed to it over the years.


I will say though, something that can annoy me about hardcore country listeners is that tends to be the only thing they like, lol. Sure, '80s pop/rock is my favorite music, but I like other stuff too. Yet I have noticed limitations with some country fans (that's not meant to be offensive, just something I've observed).

Yeah, I like a few of the ballads and the poppier country songs (mostly from the '90s) in limited amount. Aside from it being sorta in the mainstream as early as 1993ish, I always managed to know a few people who listened to that, so I was exposed to it over the years.


I will say though, something that can annoy me about hardcore country listeners is that tends to be the only thing they like, lol. Sure, '80s pop/rock is my favorite music, but I like other stuff too. Yet I have noticed limitations with some country fans (that's not meant to be offensive, just something I've observed).



ya, my husband likes country music the best...he listens to it about 85% of the time....but he does like other music too.

ya, there are a lot of "country" artists who are more pop than country.

Such as LeAnn Rimes. A lot of her stuff from 1997 through 2002 sounds more like pop. Especially her rendition of "How Do I Live" (1997) and "Can't Fight The Moonlight" (2001-'02).

As for Keith Urban, I only know his 2005 hit "You'll Think Of Me", as it sounds like a soft pop song in many regards. Although I did hear it on a country station not too long ago (which doesn't surprise me).

One of my favourite ballads in the 90s was a country-pop crossover:  'When She Cries' by Restless Heart