With seven albums certified Platinum or higher, five number one hits, and two Grammy Awards, you could say that Travis Tritt knows how to make good country music. Known for hit songs such as “Anymore” and “Here’s a Quarter,” Tritt is one of few current country artists to be labeled as an “outlaw” like other notable artists such as Waylon Jennings and Johnny Cash.
Tritt has a great respect for the artists of years past, particularly outlaw legends like Jennings and Cash. He frequently covers their songs during his own concerts, exposing a new generation of country fans to their music.
Since Tritt has such an admiration for the old style of country music, he’s been pretty outspoken about his feelings concerning the new country sound. He’s also made it crystal clear what he thinks about pop influence in country music.
Following pop star Beyoncé’s performance with the Dixie Chicks during the CMA Awards in November, Tritt reacted on Twitter. Taking a stand for country music, he said they “don’t need pop artists on our awards shows.” He continued in another tweet, saying he felt the need to defend what he considers to be true country music. “I love honest to God country music and feel the need to stand up for it at all costs,” he wrote.
Tritt recently sat down for an interview with Rolling Stone to talk about his reaction to Beyoncé’s CMA performance. The interview eventually took a turn toward Tritt’s views of modern country music, and he didn’t hold anything back.
Referencing how many people view Beyoncé’s song “Daddy Lessons” as a country song, Tritt said it’s unfortunate that the younger generation considers that to be “country”:
“That’s one of the problems…[‘Daddy Lessons’] was a country song by a lot of people’s standards, but they, especially a lot of the younger people out there, don’t have anything else to reference it to, to what I consider to be real country music.“
Tritt made his feelings known about what he doesn’t consider to be real country music, saying, “I’m not a huge fan of the direction country music has taken in the last few years. We seem to have left out a lot of what influenced us to start with.”
For Tritt, he’d love to hear more artists who have been influenced by some of the country greats such as George Jones, Conway Twitty, and Emmylou Harris. “Those people, that’s what I consider to be real country music and you don’t hear as much of that these days as I would like to,” he said.
Whether you agree with Tritt or not, there’s no arguing the fact that he’s made some of the best country music there is. Tune in below to check out his video for his smash hit “Here’s a Quarter.”