100 Greatest Country Artists of All Time (Nos. 100-51): Staff List

Ever since Ralph Peer held his famous recording sessions in Bristol, Tennessee in the late 1920s with such acts as Ernest Stoneman, Jimmie Rodgers and the Carter Family, country music has uniquely told the story of American life.

Those early country stars and other artists recorded songs that reflected the down-home appeal of rural living, a nostalgia for what seemed to be a simpler past, a lure of a good old-fashioned murder ballad or a longing for an absent love.

The pioneers and trailblazers who brought these songs to the masses through the Grand Ole Opry weekly radio show (which celebrates its 100th anniversary this year) or by traveling the nation’s highways and byways helped establish country music, perhaps more than any other genre, as a storytelling medium.

Billboard looks at the those early, mid-century and 21st-century contemporary country artists who have delivered, and in some cases written, the songs that have made us cry in a tear in our beer –and who have widened the scope of what it means to be a country artist, without every sacrificing the genre’s heart.

In determining these rankings, members of the Billboard editorial staff selected their top artists from a list of nearly 200 names spanning the past century. Certain parameters were set, including focusing primarily on mainstream country artists, instead of embracing adjacent genres like Americana or bluegrass (therefore, no Jason Isbell or Sturgill Simpson).

While commercial success was a factor, artistry, longevity and enduring influence counted just as much. Because it’s too early to gauge the long-term impact of many of the newer acts yet, the list leans largely on artists whose place in country music history is already secure. But everyone on the list has in their own way moved the genre forward.

Lists such as these are always lightning rods for debate — and while our No. 1 choice, which will be revealed Nov. 19, feels pretty unassailable, there are certainly others in the Top 10 who many will feel deserved the top spot. In fact, we had a healthy staff debate over who it would be. That just goes to show the depth and richness of the talent in country music. The list will unfold over the next two weeks in five parts, as today (Nov. 13) we reveal the 75-51 portion of our countdown.