Taylor Swift is topping the charts again and her return to country music comes as the genre is experiencing a boom few predicted.
As other music festivals around the nation falter, cancel and fold, country has been bucking the trend.
Just five years ago, country music artists thought they were watching their genre die.
Audiences were aging and attendances at festivals falling.
But in 2026, long-time fans are instead riding a wave they never saw coming as shows sell out, cowboy boots become mainstream fashion and country hits keep reaching number one.
Although musician Zara Lindeman grew up in the country, she said country music was not cool. (ABC News: Emily Anderson)
Townsville musician Zara Lindeman loved country music as a child, even when all her friends were listening to the latest pop hits.
“Country wasn’t cool,” Lindeman said about growing up in Deniliquin in regional NSW.
“We had wide-brim hats to shelter from the sun and the boots to protect from horses.”
Riding the high
Musician Zara Lindeman has noticed more young people are listening to country music. (Supplied)
Lindeman said she noticed people beginning to gravitate towards country music after the pandemic.
“I just feel so much more comfortable getting around in my boots and my hat, because it’s cool again,”
she said.
“All music can be very relatable but country in particular, the storytelling … can be a powerful message to people.”
Country music streaming has increased by 115 per cent in Australia over the past three years, according to streaming platform Spotify.
And Australia ranks fourth in the world for listeners discovering country music for the first time.
But it is not just people from the country who are listening.
Country music festivals are experiencing an increase in attendance from young female fans. (ABC News: Emily Anderson)
Spotify data shows 92 per cent of all country music streams over the past two years in Australia have come from listeners in metropolitan areas.
“There’s a lot of younger people that probably haven’t grown up around the country lifestyle but are still singing about hunting and fishing,”
Lindeman said.
American artist Ella Langley’s Choosin’ Texas climbed to number one on the ARIA charts for two weeks in May and a third week in June.
It was then overtaken by Taylor Swift’s return to country with her hit I Knew It, I Knew You.
Taylor Swift’s new chart-topping country pop song I Knew It, I Knew You was released this month. (Getty: Kevin Mazur, TAS Rights Management)
Riding the high of the boom, Lindeman decided to move to Townsville this year because she knew the region had an even bigger appetite for country music.
“Queensland with country music is a real hub,”
she said.
Country festivals buck trends
Country Music Association Australia (CMAA) research found there were 47 country festivals in Queensland in 2024 — the most of any state.
While major Australian festivals like Splendour in the Grass, Bluesfest and Groovin the Moo have had cancellations since the pandemic due to low ticket sales, country festivals across the nation increased their revenue by 70 per cent according to CMAA.
Country Fest in Townsville sold more than 9,000 tickets in June.
Industry data has shown an increasing number of country music festivals across the country. (ABC News: Emily Anderson)
“Country is very easy to sell,” Country Fest organiser Regan Anderson said.
“Everyone now loves to put on a pair of white boots and a cowboy hat.“
Major Queensland festivals including Gympie Music Muster and CMC Rocks, have also enjoyed record ticket sales since the pandemic drawing in audiences of more than 60,000.
Mr Anderson said success relied on booking American artists which needed to be locked in more than a year in advance.
He said festivals needed to provide an experience attendees could not get at concerts.
Attendees participating in line dancing during a country music festival in Townsville. (ABC News: Emily Anderson)
“Country is going to have to diversify very quickly in the next couple of years because everyone now wants to do country,” he said.
While experts are thrilled by the surge in popularity, some believe the industry needs to ensure Australian artists are not overlooked in favour of global acts.
US stars draw in fans
Publicist Bec Gracie said the rise of American country megastars such as Luke Combes, Lainey Wilson or Morgan Wallen did not guarantee bigger crowds for local artists.
Bec Gracie said not all new fans of megastar country artists are listening to Australian artists. (Supplied: Bec Gracie)
“It seems like Australian country music fans would really love to spend money on big US tours that come through but not so much buying tickets to their local artists,” she said.
“I would hope that there’s going to be a trickle-down effect. You do hope they’re looking into our local acts as well.”
Ms Gracie was confident the rising popularity of stars was inspiring a new generation which would take the genre into the future.
“People like Lainey Wilson and Ella [Langley] bringing the young girls in,” she said.
“It’s not something I predicted.”
