Could the ’90s country era really be far enough in the past to be considered “classic” at this point?
Tracy Lawrence certainly thinks so, and considering the fact that he had plenty of hits himself in that decade, I feel like we’ve got to hear him out on this one. The 90s country legend sat down with us on the Whiskey Riff Raff podcast to discuss his own venture into podcasting, why the 90’s era of music is as popular as ever, his songs getting a second life on TikTok, his passion for giving back to the less fortunate, and much more.
And at one point during our conversation with a fellow podcaster, Lawrence threw out a comparison that both stopped us right in our tracks and likely made a lot of people feel really old. But ultimately, the comparison that he presented did make a lot of sense.
Before he alluded to another popular era of music, he touched on how much he appreciates that 90s country seems to resonate with younger country music fans:
“It’s amazing to me how it’s transcended this new generation. There are a lot of young people that are really getting into traditional country music. The ’90s, I’ve always looked at the ’90s like our era is gonna be like what classic rock is to the rock and roll format. It’s kind of gonna be the go-to era. And we bleed back into some of the ’80s stuff too.”
@whiskeyriff ‘90s country forever. // The latest episode of Whiskey Riff Raff with @Tracy Lawrence brought to you by @Rock the Country is live NOW! Listen on Spotify, YouTube, or Apple Podcasts. 🦅 #whiskeyriff #countrymusic #90scountry #whiskeyriffraff #tracylawrence ♬ original sound – Whiskey Riff
Classic rock and ’90s country exist on the same plane? That’s certainly a bit of a wake up call.
Though like I said, I can see where Lawrence is coming from and what he’s getting at grouping together the two different eras. When you think of rock and roll music, you generally think of bands like The Beatles, Rolling Stones, Led Zeppelin, Pink Floyd, The Who, Aerosmith… and while it’s hard to argue with acts like Willie and Waylon, Merle Haggard and Johnny Cash as the real icons of country music, for many of us, George Strait, Garth Brooks, Reba, Shania Twain…. those are some timeless heavy hitters. In 20 years, there’s a real chance that country music could be looking back on the ’90s as the premiere era of country music.
Both classic rock and 90’s country have tremendous staying power, and the country music star suggested that has a lot to do with how it was produced:
“The ’90s… there was just such great diversity and great personality with the artists. I thought the music was phenomenal. The production levels were changing as we moved from analog to the digital world and pro tools. Just the music in general, I thought it was a very strong format for the ’90s.”
And just as you’ve got modern bands paying tribute to the classic rock of yesteryear, numerous country artists are attempting to recapture that ’90s sound in 2025. That’s something that Tracy Lawrence has not only noticed, but is a big fan of:
“I feel like we’re starting to swing back into a lot of that more traditional stuff too with kind of the rock and honky tonk edge back to it. Guys like Zach Top and some of the other young artists coming back in and moving away from what the pop stuff was. I like the ol’ honky tonk stuff myself.”
Yeah… Zach Top is single handedly trying to revive the ’90s country sound, and I’m absolutely here for it. It’s always cool to hear him get shouted out by artists like Tracy Lawrence, who knows the ’90s sound as good as anyone else.
Though I still can’t quite get over the suggestion that the ’90s era can be considered “classic country.” I’m fine with the title, but I just hate how old it makes me feel. But hey… we’re as close to 2060 as we are to 1990 at this point. Good Lord, that’s frightening to type out…
In order to avoid an existential crisis about how “Time Marches On” (see what I did there?), might I suggest firing up the latest episode of the Whiskey Riff Raff podcast with Tracy Lawrence? Download the podcast on Apple Podcasts by searching “Whiskey Riff Raff” or click here.
We’re also available on Spotify and wherever else you can listen to podcasts.
Cheers, y’all.
