Are country music’s traditional walls crumbling? Maren Morris thinks so. In an interview with Billboard she opens up about her own cross-genre collaborations, expressing that it’s a new dawn.
Morris recently teamed with One Direction’s Niall Horan on his song “Seeing Blind,” and when asked whether the song might make its way to country radio, she admits she could see it happening.
“I was thrilled to join him for the collaboration, but that will be up to him,” she shares. “But, yes, I can certainly see ‘Seeing Blind’ as a country single and I’d love for it to be promoted to country radio at some point down the road.”
The idea that it is frowned upon for country and pop artists to collaborate is of the past, she says, citing Florida Georgia Line‘s success as widening the gap when it comes to genre lines (the controversial country duo have collaborated with numerous acts over the years, including Nelly, Backstreet Boys and Bebe Rexha).
“When I look at songs like the Bebe Rexha and Florida Georgia Line collaboration [‘Meant to Be‘] being so successful at country, it leads me to believe that the boundaries are coming down and people just want quality,” Morris explains. “Fans don’t think that way about the genres, it’s just about good music.”
In addition to a No. 1 hit on country radio with “I Could Use a Love Song,” Morris is earning cred outside of the genre — in the EDM world, even. In addition to her work with Horan, Morris is featured on a new Zedd track with EDM duo Grey called “The Middle.” Morris is keeping her ears open for future collaborations as well, citing Ed Sheeran, Bruno Mars and R&B artist Kehlani as dream duet partners.
She may get her chance to ask them to work with her, too — she’ll attend the upcoming 2018 Grammy Awards (Sunday, Jan. 28), where she is nominated for Best Country Solo Performance for “I Could Use a Love Song.”
Maren Morris Stands Up for Women in Music
This Article Was Originally Posted at www.TasteofCountry.com
http://tasteofcountry.com/maren-morris-pop-country-music-boundaries/
