Grady Smith
Taste of Country
Charlottesville, VA, United States
Contact Grady
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Past articles by Grady:
Album Review: Kacey Musgraves’ ‘Golden Hour’ Is a Fun, Reflective Step Forward
Kacey Musgraves' Golden Hour (March 30) is an album that emanates mellow contentedness → Read More
Is country music ready to forgive the Dixie Chicks?
After the band denounced George W Bush, the country establishment turned against them. Now they’re touring the US again – in an even more divided environment → Read More
Chris Stapleton steals CMA awards show on career-making night
The Country Music Awards included an album drop and divorce intrigue – but that paled next to Stapleton’s astounding performance with Justin Timberlake → Read More
Ashley Campbell's tribute to her father Glen – exclusive video
The singer and banjo player has made a video for her song Remembering, about her father, who is suffering with Alzheimer’s. Watch it exclusively here → Read More
Joe Nichols and more country stars who don't like their own records
Nichols said that if it were up to him, he’d make old-style country music, but he’d never get on the radio – or make money. Yet being artistically bold builds a more satisfying career in the long run, and creates better records → Read More
The best country albums of 2015 (that no one knows about)
From established names such as Don Henley and Jewel to fiddle-wielding newcomers, 2015 has produced a slew of off-kilter albums worth exploring → Read More
The dismal ‘evolution’ of country is forcing fans to look outside Nashville
Guitars are being traded for drum machines, bro culture is suffocating subtlety and veteran stars are being dropped from the radio. No wonder country fans feel misunderstood → Read More
Blake Shelton and Miranda Lambert announce divorce
Country music’s Beyoncé and Jay Z, whose marriage catapulted them into stardom, say they are splitting up after four years together → Read More
Country music doesn't have a cocaine habit – it has a puppy problem
Luke Bryan’s claim that ‘outlaw country’ was made by ‘strung out’ drug fiends upset traditionalists – and betrayed defensiveness among country’s new breed → Read More
How Chris Young (not-so) suddenly became one of country's biggest stars
It took a few years and several singles, but Young is now in the process of graduating from mid-pack singer to the official country A-lister → Read More
#SaladGate: Expert draws ire comparing country music's women to tomatoes
Keith Hill says men are the lettuce of country music’s salad and to ‘take females out.’ After all these years, is the genre really that regressive? → Read More
Country might be the 'smartest' genre but it's suffering a brain drain
Research claims that country is the most intelligent music genre, but with asinine tracks from the likes of Luke Bryan, it’s getting dumber by the moment → Read More
Country music can't quit Taylor Swift – but it's trying to move on
The megastar whose 1989 tour opened on Tuesday night in Tokyo has long left Nashville behind – so an array of young women are being lined up to replace her → Read More
Zac Brown Band prove country is now a free-for-all
Their new album Jekyll and Hyde is part metal, part pop and part EDM, suggesting that country music will evolve by adapting other genres – but drowning out its distinctive character in the process → Read More
ACM awards 2015: veteran country acts (barely) redeem haphazard show
Staged in the Dallas Cowboys’ stadium, the 50th Academy of Country Music awards were noisy, glitzy and messy and did a disservice to the awards’ legacy → Read More
Thomas Rhett's Crash and Burn: the Uptown Funk of country
The song is precision-tooled to be a smash and it’s wittier than its competitors, but it shows up the insecurity of a genre on a strange quest to be ‘funky’ → Read More
Thomas Rhett's Crash and Burn: the Uptown Funk of country
The song is precision-tooled to be a smash and it’s wittier than its competitors, but it shows up the insecurity of a genre on a strange quest to be ‘funky’ → Read More
Jesus, take the whiskey: is today's country music still Christian?
The genre is historically intertwined with conservative Christianity, but Top 40 country’s party lyrics and tenets of old-time religion make uneasy bedfellows → Read More
Country music is the new hair metal – and we need a Nirvana moment
Authentic American folk music has become overrun with poseurs in skinny jeans hollering sexist cliches – and even non-country fans are starting to notice → Read More
Country music is the new hair metal – and we need a Nirvana moment
Authentic American folk music has become overrun with poseurs in skinny jeans hollering sexist cliches – and even non-country fans are starting to notice → Read More