7 Country Singers Who Are Unapologetic Liberals

Country music used to be synonymous with conservatism, but not so much anymore. These days the same singers who wear cowboy boots and croon about winding back roads and sweet iced tea are likely to hold the same political views as a blue-haired Gender Studies major from Portland. Somehow, even the country music world has been infiltrated.

There are plenty of big-name musicians who refuse to comment on politics. There are also some who are brave enough to admit they’re conservative. Then there are those who openly condemn the values held by most of their audience, which gets a little awkward sometimes. Here are the most liberal country stars and what they have to say about it.

The Chicks (formerly The Dixie Chicks)

Natalie Maines is the lead singer for the band, which formed in 1997, and has had some harsh criticism for Republican presidents ever since. In 2003, she said she was “ashamed” that then-president Bush came from Texas. There was also an unfortunate incident during a June 2016 performance in Cincinnati, when the band performed in front of a backdrop showing Trump with devil horns coming out of his head. 

“It’s too late to make it right / I probably wouldn’t if I could / ‘Cause I’m mad as hell, can’t bring myself / To do what it is you think I should,” the lyrics to the 2006 hit single “Not Ready to Make Nice” say. Since then, the band has also voiced their support for gun control and LGBTQ rights.

Dropping “Dixie” from their name was also a political statement. They removed the offending word due to its association with the South, and therefore, slavery.

“We felt like ‘Dixie’ is a word that does hold a lot of negative connotations and harkens back to a time in our country that brought pain to so many people,” Maines told Billboard magazine. “We are relieved to have a new name and shed the ‘Dixie’ once and for all.”

Garth Brooks

The 60-year-old country music singer Garth Brooks is one of the most successful in the business as the only artist in history to have nine albums reach diamond status. Still, a lot of his audience is not aligned with Brooks’ political views. The songwriter played at Joe Biden’s inauguration, saying “This is not a political statement. This is a statement of unity.”

He joked about being “the only Republican at the ceremony,” but conservative fans don’t believe he’s really on their side.

Brooks is also a huge proponent of gay rights. He won the GLAAD Media Award in 1993 for the song “We Shall Be Free,” which included the line, “When we’re free to love anyone we choose.”

The singer insists he’s not political and that in the end, it doesn’t matter one way or the other.

“You’ve got to understand that when you get to heaven, nobody cares about ‘Republican’ or ‘Democrat’ in heaven at all. ‘Welcome to heaven. This is it,’” Brooks said, per Fox News.

“You don’t care who’s on the other end of that board that’s helping you carry it. You don’t care the color of their skin, their sexual preference, their religious preference. It doesn’t matter. You’re all here to build a house for someone who needs it. Usually for a young lady and her babies, or a family that needs it. So this is way, way, way beyond any political agenda at all.”

Taylor Swift

Taylor Swift spent a long time trying to stay apolitical but eventually the current climate caught up with her, and now the 32-year-old Grammy Award winner is an avowed liberal. 

These days Swift makes no secret of her feelings about abortion, a hatred of Donald Trump, and her support for LGBTQ rights. Following the Dobbs ruling in June which overturned Roe v. Wade, the singer shared how upset she was with her millions of fans via Twitter.

“I’m absolutely terrified that this is where we are,” she wrote. “That after so many decades of people fighting for women’s rights to their own bodies, today’s decision has stripped us of that.” She posted this alongside an image of Michelle Obama’s letter about being “heartbroken” that abortions would be restricted in America.

Swift performed during WorldPride NYC 2019 at the Stonewall Inn and donated to the LGBT organizations Tennessee Equality Project and GLAAD.

The “Shake It Off” singer endorsed Joe Biden and Kamala Harris in the 2020 United States presidential election. She also showed support for the March for Our Lives movement to support stricter gun control. Swift has identified white supremacy, racism, and police brutality as major issues plaguing our country today.

Tim McGraw

Even though Tim McGraw is one of the most successful country music stars in the world with more than 80 million records sold worldwide, his politics are opposite from most of his fans.

In 2006, McGraw said he was contemplating running for governor of his home state

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