Defining Americana (It’s Not What You Think)

What is Americana? The answer seems simple, but when you look a little closer, americana is a deceptively difficult to define genre. Let’s look at what separates americana from similar genres (like folk, rock, and country), why the genre line is so blurred, and provide a definition of americana music that I think hits closer to the genre’s actual makeup. 0:00 - Tyler Childers 2018 Americana Music Awards 0:57 - Alt-Country Roots 1:12 - Why Genre Matters 1:58 - Americana Definition 3:27 - Subgenres 3:55 - Americana, Folk, Country, and Rock 4:32 - Fusion and Subgenres 4:52 - Is Americana a Community? (Brandi Carlile) 6:19 - Americana’s Lack of Diversity (Buffalo Nichols) 8:47 - What Does it Mean to Be a Community 9:20 - Artists vs Sounds 10:28 - Americana vs the Music Industry 12:04 - Outlaw Country and Americana 12:41 - Americana vs Record Labels 13:17 - Americana Reinvents Tradition (Rhiannon Giddens) 14:02 - The Free Spirits of Americana Artists (Amanda Shires) 14:55 - My Definition for Americana