Country Singer Olivia Lane Speaks Out Against Bro Country and Why We Should Embrace Pop Country

From Country Living

Earlier this year, the CMT Awards lineup left country fans befuddled: Pitbull? Pharrell? Leona Lewis? Where was the #realcountrymusic, viewers wanted to know. To skeptics, the broadcast was just one more nail in the coffin of a genre that's becoming increasingly pop-ified.

But at least one industry insider isn't worried about country moving too far from its roots. Singer-songwriter Olivia Lane, one of Rolling Stone's "new country artists you need to know," says it's simply the latest iteration of a pattern seen repeated throughout history: the older generation resisting the ideas and influences of the younger generation.

CountryLiving.com recently sat down with the "Make My Own Sunshine" singer to talk about her new self-titled EP, the lack of female voices on country radio, and the genre's changing sound. Keep reading to find out why Lane believes the influence of pop and rock on country is ultimately a good thing.

You co-wrote "Lightning," which is about a "small town kid" who's "dreaming way too big."Have you heard similar disparaging comments?

Absolutely, yeah. I'm very fortunate that my family didn't discourage me. My mom [country singer Mary Ann Lane] sang professionally when she was my age so she gets it. Both of my parents have been so supportive of my dreams but I feel like in every artist's journey you're always going to have someone who didn't like your work. Art is subjective. I wanted to write a song about staying true to yourself. You're going to be like thunder, you're going to make everybody wonder what they didn't see, you know? It's really about remembering who you are and going after your dreams and being loud like lightening and thunder. That's where "Lightning" came from.

It's a message a lot of young people need to hear.

Yeah, especially with social media it is so easy for someone to tweet "this sucks" or "you stink." There's so much negativity out there. You just have to keep being who you are and doing the art that you love.

Is there any particular criticism you've heard that stands out?

I have a lot of energy. I get on stage and I'm running all over the place, I'm singing, I'm shouting-that's just who I am as a performer and as a person. After a show, some guy came up to me, I think he'd been drinking a little bit, and he's like, 'I need to give you a little piece of advice. You need to calm down when you get on stage. You have an issue with being way too over the top.' I get that all the time and you know what? I'd rather be over the top than be a nobody. I idolize women like Barbra Streisand and Dolly Parton, women who are larger than life and who did something incredible with their art, with their personality.

Speaking of incredible women, you started Diva Jam, which takes place annually during the CMA Music Festival, to showcase women in country. What inspired you?

I went to college at USC in L.A. and spent my summers interning in Nashville, so I'd been meeting incredible female artists but there wasn't really anything going on female-wise like there is now and the whole "bro country" thing was happening. I made a little joke like, move over, bro country, diva country's taking over, and my manager was like, wait a minute, let's use that. So we came up with Diva Jam. We set it as a picnic theme with "diva jams" like Bodacious Blueberry and Sassy Strawberry and biscuits. It's a female-supported event to triumph females. I feel like one girl just needs to be like, Hey, let's all get in the same room and become friends and write with each other. The boys in Nashville write with each other, so why don't we do the same thing?

What are your thoughts on the lack of female artists on country radio today?

It's so crazy. I don't know what the solution is but I feel like the pendulum is starting to swing back. The silver lining in the Tomato Gate thing is that it brought the conversation to fans. For such a long time it was just an industry thing but Miranda tweeted about it, Martina tweeted about it and so fans were like, ok, we can get smart about this. We can request [female artists] and control what's happening. I'm really excited to be in that wave [of new female artists] right now. It's a really good time to be a woman.

The 2016 CMT Awards caused quite an uproar with fans. What do you think about the state of country music today and where it's headed?

With technology, my generation-compared to my parents' generation-we're exposed to so much more. We have the ability to make our own playlists. My grandparents didn't like rock 'n' roll and that's what my parents were listening to. Change is inevitable. Change is always going to happen. I think it's amazing that other genres are influencing country music. It makes country artists think outside the box and be more artistic. Personally, it challenges me to think, how do I make a different sound with all of the things that I know and love and enjoy and still remain country? I love all music so I want my music to be reflective of that. For me country music is true lyrics and heart-and great storytelling.

With your appreciation for all types of music, how did you choose country?

The storytelling, plain and simple. I love reading autobiographies and biographies, and following people's lives personally. It felt like the genre for me to be in because I loved it so much. My mom sang country music back in the day. I think some of the best songs are from country music.

Any plans to perform with your mom?

Yes, absolutely. Everybody keeps asking me that. Actually, she has a song called "Wasn't Me" and I was like, Mom, this song is awesome but it's a little dated, let's re-write it. So we re-wrote the song together and I sang it for a long time in my live shows. Hopefully we can co-write one day and I can bring her on stage and we can sing a duet.

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