The Business of Political Music

"There has always been a trend that the issues of the day are heard in music," said Geoff Mayfield, director of charts and senior analyst with Billboard magazine. "Entertainers have long been willing to espouse their political views. There can be consequences, but fortunately there are still a lot of people willing to go out on that limb."

And for the most savvy and motivated, the public's post-9/11 political awareness can be a marketing and sales bonanza.

Country's Conservative Connection

Keith has released two multiplatinum albums with political messages in the past three years. The first, "Unleashed," was headlined by the song "Courtesy of the Red, White and Blue (The Angry American)," a patriotic rant supporting the Iraq war and threatening a boot in the backside of any country daring to cross the United States. The song's wildly popular, chest-thumping message pushed the album to more than 4 million sales, according to Nielsen Soundscan.

The follow-up, "Shockin' Y'all," featured songs titled "The Taliban Song" and "The American Soldier" and sold another 3.8 million copies. And in 2003 Keith performed for troops at MacDill Air Force Base in Tampa, Fla., at the request of Bush.

The themes clearly struck a cord with country music fans, who have pushed similar works like Darryl Worley's "Have You Forgotten?" to the top of the country music charts.

Country music historian Bill Malone said the artists' motivations and the music's rabid following are likely fueled as much by personal feelings about the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks as strictly political partisanship. In fact, Keith calls himself a lifelong Democrat who now supports Bush and the war in Iraq.

And, oh yeah, there's probably at least a little salesmanship involved, too.

Marketing the Message

Malone, whose book "Country Music USA" is considered the most comprehensive work on the history of the genre, cited country precursors that tapped into strong political messages to sell albums, most notably Merle Haggard's Vietnam-era hit "Okie From Muskogee." The song, which Malone said was written as a joke, was a conservative anthem supporting the Vietnam war. It became Haggard's biggest-selling record.

Realizing the market demand, Haggard followed it with the similarly political "Fightin' Side of Me," which also became a big hit.