Rogue Country calls for revolution on the UK Country scene
It’s time to introduce you all to something very special here at Stargazer Music Magazine and something very new.
Recently we had the pleasure of talking to, and being introduced to, a collaborative amalgamation within the country scene, that is fast becoming a new sub-genre within the Country Music Scene itself, and fast approaching public awareness courtesy of this great new organisation.
Rogue Country is a growing collective of artists promoting musicians and genres they feel have been left behind by the mainstream scene. Supporting Bluegrass and Honky–Tonk, Folk, Blues and every genre that is founded upon Roots Music,
Rogue Country offers a platform for these artists to reach a network of open minded fans that they may not find on their own.
Since founding the Rogue Country page and group on Facebook, their numbers have been growing consistently with the motto Honest Music for Honest Folks, working with the best Country and Roots musicians around the world and highlighting the wealth of talent that the UK itself has to offer.
In a recent interview, I asked what was the main reason behind starting Rogue Country, they went on to add;
“Originally we were Rogue Country UK as we are based in England and Wales, and as musicians ourselves, we are painfully aware of how many great musicians are playing Country Music around the UK and that they aren’t getting the recognition or platform we think they deserve. The UK has a country scene we don’t see ourselves in, with backing tracks and costumes taking priority over the music and we want to show the UK and the World that we have more to offer than these Karaoke Cowboys.
We’re fans first and foremost and want to show the online community what the UK has to offer and using other groups and communities we are a part of, such as Honky–Tonk Heroes, as a template we began showcasing those musicians we love either through Featured Artist slots, Livestreams or just posting about them regularly. As Rogue Country has grown, we widened our reach to include European and American acts that we love who, again, may not be getting the recognition we think they should”.
So I went on to ask how Rogue Country supports artists to reach its audience, they went on to add;
“We cater for almost every genre rooted in Roots Music. From Country, Folk, Blues and every other genre that stems out from them which can include Bluegrass and Traditional, Murderfolk or Murder Ballads. We try to showcase artists that we believe exemplify Honest Music for Honest Folks or the classic Three Chords and the Truth. We are open minded, music loving fans. We are overwhelmed with the talent that comes through our inbox and group and it is a genuine pleasure to find and share music we love. Our most common method is our weekly featured artist slot where we highlight one artist for a week, sharing their music, videos and links to our audience and we are lucky enough that the artists we feature help us with exclusive videos to introduce their feature or we have a new Q&A segment called Going Rogue which gives the Rogue Family an insight into these artist’s personality too. We have just launched Rogue Radio, a 2 hour show that airs weekly, where Alex Tempest and Bob Lowthian play the best modern and classic artists we love that we don’t really hear anywhere else. We’re really proud of the Rogue Country Group on Facebook as well, as more and more people share the music they love and the community is really building something special”.
o with that said, I asked what is Rogue Radio, they went on to tell me;
“With gigs and festivals being non–existent due to the pandemic, we wanted to provide a new platform for the artists we love that and provide an alternative to mainstream stations. The battle between Country Radio and Country Music has always been present, even in the UK and we wanted to provide an alternative to stations that actually played music that we wanted to hear and we think other people would want to hear. We love the fact that on Rogue Radio you can hear Waylon and Buck right next to Sarah Vista or Ags Connolly and we don’t think many other shows do that. Having Bob Lowthian and Alex Tempest host the show has been the icing on the cake as it brings a dynamic and energy that is a joy to listen to. With their commentary in between songs and not shying away from issues or problems in Country music, Rogue Radio plants its flag where we think not that many people would publicly and is a conversation that needs to be had and we’re glad Rogue Country has a voice to be heard with. It airs weekly on Radio Country UK and then we upload it to our Mixcloud soon after so we can continue to reach people with new and old episodes all the time”.
To close, I asked what they hope to achieve with Rogue Country now and in the future, to close they told me;
“We want to get the music and artists we love in front of as many people as possible while bypassing the entrenched, politicised scene that UK Country Music has become. We want to show artists that you can exist and thrive without the backing of any self–important organisation and you can start your own scene with like-minded people. We have achieved what we have with Rogue Radio, selling Rogue Country Merchandise, putting on shows and what we have done online by being true to ourselves and each other, putting the music first and recognising that not every Association or Club has the best interests of the musicians at heart. We promote, play and push all artists we love purely because we love the music and we want to continue to do that on a bigger scale. We have gigs and festivals in the pipeline for when we can safely do live music, we continue to push featured artists from every genre and with Rogue Radio, we can provide a new platform that people can tune in to and discover musicians who may not get played anywhere else and we are so proud of that. We are also currently setting up UK distribution channels for American and European artists to help reach a wider audience and avoid postage and import fees. We want to continue to build our Rogue Family to show what the UK and the world has so much more to offer than people playing dress up and putting on accents. We are here to show that honest, well made and sincere music has its place and artists don’t have to bite their tongue or tow a party line to do well”.
So if you like any of the above, then the time has come to check out their page and tune in to the station for something a bit different for 2020, as Rogue Country, Rogue Radio and its contributors are here to stay.
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© Stargazer Music Magazine 2020
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