Americana

Americana arose as both a category of music and as a country radio format in reaction to mainstream country radio stations that were over-enamored with "young country" stars like Alan Jackson, Garth Brooks and Shania Twain. The idea was to create a home for artists who had plenty of country in their music -- too much so for the average pop station -- but who were too eclectic and raw for the country mainstream. Americana is a broad category that encompasses Nashville fringe artists like Marty Brown, Allison Moorer and Jim Lauderdale, as well as stalwart Honky-Tonker Dale Watson and folk-inspired Singer-Songwriters like Fred Eaglesmith and Iris Dement.