Country Music Update

George Jones worries about the future of country music - San Jose Mercury News: "Country Music Hall of Famer George Jones simply does not care for this rap music fad.

Asked whether he'd ever branch out to a completely different genre of music, like heavy metal or rap, Jones laughed and said: 'Rap? That's tacky.'

'How can you call that music?' he said. 'Now, I love music, too. I love all kinds. I really do. I've got an open mind. But now, you can't call rap, talking stuff like that, music. No, no, no, you've got to have another name for that.'

Neither is he much of a fan of where country music has moved in recent years.

When asked about what he thought about the music being produced by today's top country stars, the 78-year-old said while they are good, 'they've stolen our identity.'

Artists like Carrie Underwood and Taylor Swift, he said, 'had to use something that was established already, and that's traditional country music. So what they need to do really, I think, is find their own title, because they're definitely not traditional country music,' he said."

Hat tips to Jeff Meyerson (article) and Lauren Bettinger (photo link).