They say the recipe for a good country track is simple – just combine three chords and the truth.
Over the past year though, a growing number of artists have been adding their own sprinkles with pop stars including Chappell Roan and Sabrina Carpenter leaning into the genre.
Chappell’s The Giver went straight to number two in the UK charts when it was released in March, with the self-proclaimed Midwest Princess saying she wanted to give country music a new take with “a little gay yodel”.
Figures from streaming platforms suggest that cooking up a country song has also been a recipe for success, with listening time up by 25% over the past year in the UK.
British artists are hopeful that’ll act as a giddy up to the UK scene and help them replicate some of the success of their US country cousins.
“It only benefits me and other country music artists in the UK because more people listening to country music just means they’re going to take an interest –
Her love for country music comes from two sources: her grandad and Hannah Montana.
The Disney Channel school-girl-by-day-pop-star-by-night character played by Miley Cyrus “probably started me off”, she says.
“I can now officially say I was country before country was cool.”
Neeve, from Manchester, is already noticing a spike in people coming to gigs and hopes the hype could build to a point where British country acts can be recognised with a category at the Brit Awards.
“That’s definitely the dream.”
Izzie Walsh is currently recording her debut album and tells Newsbeat it’s important fans support country artists “at a grassroots level” to ensure it can continue to grow in the UK.
“Everyone’s been sleeping on it and now it’s become this big thing.
“There’s a lot of support for the big US artists and it can be hard to compete with that budget, the press.
“There’s a big gap between people like me and these massive artists.”
In as far as a trend can ever be attributed to one person, this resurgence in the mainstream is “100%” down to Beyoncé, according to country music podcaster Matt Clewes.
Her 2024 album Cowboy Carter “very much splits opinions with country fans”, Matt tells Newsbeat, but “it has introduced new country artists to a country audience and gives a different perspective”.
Artists and critics predicted last year Cowboy Carter could “open the floodgates” for country music fans and Spotify credits “viral tracks” from 2024 with the sudden uptick in streams.
But there’s actually been a gradual increase in listenership going back much further it says, with streams of the genre in the UK growing by 154% since 2019, the year Lil Nas X released Old Town Road with country singer-songwriter Billy Ray Cyrus.
Apple Music says it’s noticed similar trends and both streamers report its rising popularity is particularly striking in the UK, where according to Apple it’s growing five times as quickly as in the US.