When industry insiders talk about who's next in the music game, a lot of the conversation is centered on the name Blanco Brown.
A guy, who like Lil Nas X, is seamlessly fusing country and hip hop with great results.
And though Blanco admits he did rush the release of his rising hit "The Git Up" to capitalize on the success of "Old Town Road," mashing rap with country is nothing new for him or hip hop in general.
"Bone Thugs-n-Harmony and E-40 made country songs. Nelly. Bubba Sparxxx. Nappy Roots had a country twang to them too," he explains to Time. "They weren’t trying to identify as country—they were just being themselves. And that’s what I’m doing. I’m not trying to be country, I am country."
"My sound is not traditional country. But if I delete those drums, you can’t take back the fact that it’s traditional country that lies at the surface," he says.
His single "The Git Up" is out now.
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