Country Music Is Becoming One of Western Culture's Biggest Gateways

For many people, country music is their first invitation into western culture—and in today’s digital-first world, that invitation is louder, more visible, and more influential than ever before.

They may not grow up on a ranch. They may not know the difference between bronc riding and bull riding. They may never have been to a county fair, a rodeo, or a livestock show. But they know the songs topping the country music charts, the viral TikTok dance trends, the western fashion aesthetics trending on Instagram, and the massive summer music festivals drawing crowds from across the country. They recognize the feeling that western culture sells so well: grit, nostalgia, independence, heartbreak, humor, and home.

As Allen Montgomery, the Wrangler’s Western Vice President and General Manager, said on our podcast, “Country Adjacent.”

From artists like Morgan Wallen and Lainey Wilson to crossover hits blending country with pop and hip-hop influences, country music has become one of the fastest-growing genres in the entertainment industry. Platforms like Spotify, YouTube, and TikTok have amplified its reach, turning songs into viral moments and artists into lifestyle influencers. This surge in popularity has created a powerful gateway into western culture—one that brands can no longer afford to ignore.

That creates a major opportunity for Western brands looking to expand their audience, increase brand awareness, and tap into new revenue streams.

Rodeos, ranches, western retailers, tourism destinations, and agricultural businesses are all operating in a world where country music has become a cultural bridge. A country concert fan might also become a rodeo ticket buyer. A festivalgoer might become a western fashion customer searching for cowboy boots, denim brands, and western hats. A social media creator who starts with music content might eventually become a trusted voice for western lifestyle, ranch life, or rural entrepreneurship.

We’re already seeing this crossover in action. Major events like Stagecoach Festival in California blend country music with western lifestyle branding, featuring pop-up shops, influencer activations, and western fashion showcases. Brands like Ariat, Wrangler, and Tecovas are leveraging influencer marketing and digital storytelling to connect with younger audiences who discovered western style through music culture. Even tourism boards are capitalizing on this trend, promoting “authentic western experiences” tied to music festivals, rodeos, and ranch stays.

The rise of “cowboy core” and “western aesthetic” trends on social media platforms has further accelerated this movement. Hashtags like #WesternStyle, #CowboyCore, and #CountryMusicLifestyle are generating millions of views, creating organic discovery channels for brands that understand how to position themselves within the conversation. This is where SEO-driven content marketing becomes critical—blogs, videos, and social media content optimized around keywords like “western lifestyle,” “country music culture,” “rodeo events,” and “western fashion trends” can drive significant traffic and engagement.

The crossover is not accidental. It is the new front porch of western culture—a place where tradition meets modern marketing, and where storytelling becomes the most valuable currency.

Turning this into a business strategy:

To turn this cultural momentum into real business growth, western brands must move from observation to execution. Start by aligning your brand with the moments where country music and western culture intersect—sponsor local concerts, collaborate with emerging artists, or create experiences that blend music with your product or service. Invest in content that tells a story, not just sells a product. Highlight the lifestyle behind your brand through behind-the-scenes videos, customer stories, and partnerships with creators who authentically live the western way of life.

Next, build a digital presence that meets your audience where they already are. Use social media platforms to engage with trending conversations, leverage influencer partnerships to expand reach, and optimize your website and content for search engines so new audiences can discover you organically. Consistency is key—brands that show up regularly with valuable, relevant content will build trust and long-term loyalty.

Finally, stay rooted in authenticity. While trends may bring new audiences to your door, it’s your commitment to genuine western values that will keep them there. By combining cultural awareness with strategic marketing, western businesses can transform country music’s popularity into a sustainable growth engine—one that connects tradition with innovation and turns curiosity into lasting customer relationships.

Podcast Episode 15: Sarah DeNunzio & American Family Feed

September 11, 2019 (California) - Sarah DeNunzio is one of the co-founders of American Family Feed - a low carb horse feed that is helping horses perform at the top of their game, maintaining conditioning and overall health, as well as saving horse owners money. Sarah also tells us about her battle with a terrible disease and a humorous recount of how she became involved in a real life, MTV-worthy CATFISH!

If you are a fan of Episode 15 - you may also like these other podcast episodes:

• Ep. #13: Angela Meyer & Dean Martin - Singer songwriter and her bullfighting boyfriend talk about working on the road, passions about the western lifestyle and what it’s like becoming accidental stock contractors! LISTEN HERE!

• Ep. #7: Trent Johnson with Greeley Hat Works talks about how he wanted to be an entrepreneur and his flair for style has resulted in one of the most western lifestyle involved companies! LISTEN HERE!

• Ep. #4: Brittany Phillips with Boot Barn talks about marketing, cutting edge, and what it’s like working in the sphere of nationally known retailers! LISTEN HERE!

Tara Trask - Fashion Designer & Podcaster

“Never let anyone dull your sparkle.”

A background on cattle ranches led Tara Trask through her western lifestyle roots as first a rodeo queen and then a communications specialist in the western lifestyle. This former Miss Rodeo South Dakota, she is thankful for the opportunities presented to her from her families Quarter Horse ranch to her education at South Dakota State University. She’s now an avid western fashionista, designs her own fashion line, produces her own western fashion podcast, and also produces a few other podcasts along the way!

Rodeo Background

Rodeo Queen Roots

The three-time South Dakota High School Rodeo Queen, she literally has a banner hanging in her high school gym next to the other sports championships. Living most of her life on the back of her horse at her family’s Quarter Horse ranch, she went on to South Dakota State University where she became the SDSU rodeo queen and then Miss Rodeo South Dakota; the pinnacle of her career.

“I am very honored and humbled by my past in rodeo… it’s opened up the doors to who I am today.”

Podcast Bonus Story: Some of the biggest changes that Tara has seen in rodeo over her span in rodeo with an emphasis on her master's thesis for public relations and social media for pro rodeo cowboys.

Most Influential Lesson From Being a Rodeo Queen:

“While I learned how to be a good public relations specialist… the biggest life lesson I learned from being a state rodeo queen, especially, is to be humble enough that you may think you know everything and you are at a level where there is sometimes a pressure to know everything, be humble enough that you can learn and be open to learn from absolutely everybody!”

Studying for Miss Rodeo America, you are expected to know all of this information and be able to speak to it at the drop of a hat. You should also know that you can listen to an announcer and that they are going to know ten times more than you.

“I gained a bigger respect for announcers and I really honed in on who they are and learned from them because, at the end of the day, they see rodeo from such a different perspective. They get to know the contestants, stock contractors, animals… they’re knowledge base deserves MAD respect!”

Social Media & Rodeo Today

“What the PBR is doing with Ride Pass, they have literally taken the sport of professional rodeo by storm with that and introducing it to a whole new level of people,” says Tara. “I see professional rodeo in the next few years continuing on that past and expanding more into … lifestyle pieces and what happens outside of the arena.”

Getting to see the personalities of those in the rodeo arena when they are outside of the area, for example the Tuf & Tif wedding series, allows for more fans to connect digitally. It creates an overall growth for the western lifestyle and the sport of rodeo to gain in traction with sponsors and audience size.

Tara predicts that podcasting will be one of the biggest steps moving forward for mainstream rodeo. Rodeo may have used to want to be mainstream but they weren’t ready; now they are. Co-host Katie Schrock talks about the PRCA Convention from the 2018 National Finals Rodeo which was covered in Episode 2 of the That Western Life Podcast.

If you could change, add or remove one rule into the PRCA rule book what would it be?

Tara goes more in depth on the podcast about her concept of tweaking the current PRCA patch program so that they can respect the National Sponsors of the PRCA but also allowing those competing sponsors that are helping those cowboys compete and get down the road.

“Healthy competition is a good thing!”

When we start to alienate certain brands out of a specific market place like rodeo, it’s only hurting the cowboys, the fans and professional rodeo as a whole. We need to make sure that we have those gates open to all sponsors for healthy sponsors.

Molly & Gidget

The Backstory

What started as a boutique named after Tara’s two former dogs, Molly & Gidget, she adopted Molly’s high class diva attitude and Gidget’s free spirit into her fashion designing.

“I always knew I wanted to open some kind of store,” says Tara about the start. At the end of grad school she felt ready to go for it and started an online boutique which it stayed as such for two to three years.

“I knew that I wanted to evolve it into something bigger, I wanted to create its identity and give it legs,” continues Tara about the adventure of Molly & Gidget. She didn’t want to spend her time worrying about how much she could carry, she wanted to have a brand that was tailored and a different energy than being focused on carrying mass product.

In the last two years, she has spent more time working on the designing of her fashion line which is a mix of 1950’s to 1970’s fashion that she finds and her own designs. Her designs are western shirts, leather jackets, and more; her focus is on the western clothing worn as the glitz and glammer for the stage of a country music singer.

Podcast Bonus Story: Who Tara would LOVE to design for? Listen to the episode to find out!

Podcast Bonus Story: What IS western fashion?

Future Plans

Tara’s plans for Molly & Gidge is to get more into the country music scene to design for both stage shows and the red carpet. She also wants to get into Nashville Fashion Week as well.

She hopes to continue to provide outfits and designs to help women feel beautiful and to be more of a beautiful place. Tara wants women to be confident in their own skin and to help every client stand out!

Stylish Podcast

Gearing Up For Season 3

Stylish is the official podcast of Molly & Gidget that was founded two years ago. In April, they will launch with a “Hot or Not” episode after the American Country Music Awards for Season 3. In its initial start, they interviewed for 32 episodes and showcased the stories of not just western designers but also more Indie designers.

Tara wanted to not only introduce some of these brands but also show with people why they should learn more about them. For Season 3 they are going to be taking a different spin with a whole lot more personality! Different guests, hot topics, and some broadcasting live from the top music festivals like Coachella and Coachella fashion.

They’re still going to embrace their western lifestyle roots but also go into mainstream fashion where Tara draws a lot of her designing fashion inspiration. She hopes that this will help open everybody else's creative juices with the western lifestyle.

Ask Annie

Launched in February, Tara produces the “Ask Annie” podcast which features host Annie Kennedy who is your girl next door and best friend that you’d go to for product advice for anything horse related. She tries produce from saddle pads to supplements, saddles to trainers, and so much more. After she tries them, she gives her honest review of these products.

You can find Ask Annie on all social media sites as well as anywhere podcasts can be found. The more that she gets into it, the more of her personality that comes out!

On the Rodeo Trail

You can follow along with Tara, Molly & Gidget, Stylish and Ask Annie, at all of the links below!

Tara “TK” Trask: Facebook, Instagram

Molly & Gidget: Facebook, Instagram

Stylish: Podcast, Facebook, Instagram

Ask Annie: Podcast, Facebook, Instagram

Boot Barn's Brittney Phillips; Mullets should stay in the eighties!

A former Miss Rodeo California who placed in the top 10 at Miss Rodeo America, Brittney Phillips is the sponsorship coordinator for Boot Barn. We are excited to showcase Brittney’s ability to capitalize on opportunities to move her through her career trajectory with the success she has had, as well as a little bit more insight on the world of sponsorship for both contestants and rodeo committees, as well as the current influencer market.

Royal Background

Brittney started competing in pageants when she was 14 years old, winning her hometown title of Junior Miss Rodeo Ramona at the age of fifteen. She then worked her way through the San Diego rodeo pageantry circuit before taking a break out of high school. She took a variety of jobs including working for Iron Horse where she got her first look into the western fashion market. Shipping, order placing, invoicing, and some of the sponsorship program is where she first “dipped her toes in the water.”

The company closed its doors so she went back to the world of construction where, the Vice President of the construction company was married to the Vice President of Marketing for Boot Barn. Building an authentic relationship with Bob, he said, “I think you would really enjoy meeting my wife!”

He then proceeded to show her a picture of his wife with Florida Georgia Line. He had mentioned previously that she was involved with Boot Barn but she wasn’t sure on the capacity. Out of the blue, a year later, they called her and offered her a position, she moved to Orange County where she has been for four years now.

Building Authentic Relationships

1. Always be aware of how you interact with everyone.

2. Hear their stories, be interested in them.

3. Everyone has knowledge that you can learn from; enjoy speaking with them.

4. Be genuine - this world takes all types of kinds.

Podcast Bonus Story: “My first recollection of Rachel was dancing behind a curtain because I was so nervous.”

Boot Barn’s Partnership with the State Title

“I competed for the title of Miss Rodeo California twice,” Brittney says. “Hands down, the most difficult challenge for me to overcome was just finding a way to cope with the anxiety of doing something wrong or not going perfectly.”

Spending time with horse trainers and pageant coaches, she devoted every ounce of her being to competing. It was a moment of “this isn’t meant to be” after the first year. She felt, at the current time, that she had just moved, she was getting grounded in her job and career, working a lot of hours. The title of Miss Rodeo California didn’t feel like a good fit and the opportunity with Boot Barn was one that if she had walked away she would have a lot of “what if’s?”

“My boss and I were talking, she was actually the one who encouraged me to go back to compete for the title of Miss Rodeo California,” Brittney says with a laugh about her shock of them suggesting. This resulted in her compiling a calendar of her entire year for her boss before even turning in her application to compete. Everything had to be in line for that year, meaning that Brittney had to be willing to work crazy hours and days in order to fulfill all of her duties.

“You do what you have to do to make it work! I took my laptop everywhere. When you want something bad enough, you’ll figure it out as you go!”

Time Management

When you love what you are doing, you are going to find a way to make it work and it’s not going to feel like work. Take your breaks and take care of your personal health.The job, the colleagues, and the company make it not feel like work which was an amazing opportunity. Brittney was also able to meet a lot of the committees that she had been working with for the past three years and be able to put a face with the name.

Boot Barn

What is Boot Barn?

Boot Barn is the nation’s leader in western and work retailer with nearly 235 stores across the country in 32 states. They sponsor nearly 700 rodeos a year. They carry any of the major western brands that come to mind plus their in-house private labels. Each of them have a core line that has research with the right fit for the people riding or working on a ranch can appreciate. It’ll actually last through the test of time and handle anything that you throw at it.

An amazing company, they have a brand new creative team that they have built. They take the time to meet the people in the industry and talk with them to create and even use them in their photo shoots and marketing. Local cowboys that they would pay their entry fees and have them wear their products which created for some amazing shops.

There is a huge pride in the western industry and lifestyle; representing them has become a huge emphasis for the company. From work wear to high fashion to practical fashion, they’ve got everything that you need at Boot Barn!

Podcast Bonus Story: Modeling with real life cowboys.

Fashion

Fashion has been one of the fastest growing sectors for them. It’s been fun to watch it grow over the past years as western fashion continues to grow. As a former rodeo queen, Brittney had some influence with the private label in the design room where they discussed the product they have been considering putting into stores. They were concerned about creating items that make the customer happy.

Different patterns and materials, plus designs will all be seen in their new items.

What have you learned?

It’s a lot of fun and work for Brittney, building authentic relationships with committees and associations across the country. You get a broader understanding of how much rodeo and the western industry gives back to their local communities. There isn’t many industries that have opportunities like this that gives back.

“It’s been truly astonishing to see how amazing it is!”

The Future: Teaser

We are consistently growing and one of those tasks for Brittney was to create a program for endorsing their in-house brands. They want their name to be more involved in the industry than it already is, especially when it comes to working around exclusivity agreements. Shyanne, the brand, has grown crazy in the past year especially and Cody James in the past two years has grown a lot as well. Keeping things running with their private label brands.

They are also looking to grow with 25 more stores in 2019 as well as two acquisitions of Drysdales and Lonestar. Moving forward with those growth goals are going to be huge. Business is steady and they are looking forward to 2019!

Marketing & Sponsorship

Influencer Marketing

Influencers have taken on the last few years of the emphasis of social media having such a powerful stance in the realm of marketing. It can be a positive influence for companies but Boot Barn has only worked with a few individuals coming through working with their Public Relations and media team. Meeting new people and hearing their story, as well as hearing how they want to promote your brand.

They must be actively excited with their product. It’s not about getting free stuff, it’s about getting the product.

Sponsorship Marketing

What are ways we can promote our private label brands? This is what Brittney has been tasked with this year. Currently they do wear-test sponsorships for product to be tested. They also work with college rodeo stars and even some young guns. Case by case, it’s not something they are fully prepared to do right now but it’s something in the near future that they will be more open too.

Professional Rodeo Sponsorship

We’ve always really based our sponsorship program on communities and local rodeos that are really supporting us. When people go to a rodeo they want to wear boots and get dressed up. We want to empower that western community. They have a great standing relationship with the PRCA, PBR and amateur rodeo associations. Event sponsorship is very important.

One of the biggest trends in the past few years is media presence. Television, photography, social media, etc. have all been important aspects. Other staple items that you see in rodeo that doesn’t ever change is signage at the event such as a bucking chute.

“We evaluate each one for what their strengths are and what they bring to us,” Brittney explains.

Brittney & Extracurricular

Gunner and Barrel Racing

Brittney picked up her horse almost by accident and talks more indepthly on the podcast about her barrel racing background and what her future goals are.

Miss Rodeo California Pageant Director

Recently name to the Miss Rodeo California board as the pageant director, Brittney discusses her hopeful changes to the pageant game and what contestants can gain from the process.

College Education - Bachelors Degree in Marketing

Taking the prerequisite courses to get her marketing classes, she’s excited to get her marketing degree.

Conclusion

Thank you to Brittney and Boot Barn for sharing all this amazing information! We are so excited to see the future of Boot Barn and go shopppppinggg!!!!

Make sure to subscribe to the That Western Life podcast on iTunes or Spotify today! Leave us a review on either of those platforms and you might get a shoutout on our next episode!