ruled the decade on the concert- and CD-selling cir-
cuit and has since racked up over 128 million albums
in the United States.
Counterculture Still Finds Footing While many of
the above sought to break beyond traditional audi-
ences, other artists insisted on reclaiming the
genre’s heritage. This group of musicians was also
dubbed “new traditionalists” and was led by the tall
Texan George Strait (who first found fame in the
1980’s), along with artists like Ricky Skaggs, Alan
Jackson, Vince Gill, and Dwight Yoakam. By the end
of the 1990’s, however, players like Strait were also
reaping the benefits of the general public’s embrace
of country, finding crossover potential in 1997 with
the stadium-centered George Strait Country Music
Festival—which also became a springboard to fame
for Tim McGraw, Faith Hill, the Dixie Chicks, and
Kenny Chesney.
Approaching the New Millennium As the decade
came to a close, there were no signs of slowing down
for the crossover movement, with McGraw, Hill,
Chesney, and the Dixie Chicks all selling out stadi-
ums on their own. In 1999, the constantly evolving
Lonestar helped progress commercial country even
further when the single “Amazed” topped the coun-
try charts, followed by theBillboardHot 100. Those
trends continued into the next decade, with many of
the same acts finding additional success with album
and single sales, not to mention concert attendance
that rivaled some of the biggest rock bands of the
time period.
Impact While some have often scoffed at country’s
more profitable pursuits throughout the 1990’s, the
many artists involved in that dynamic shift helped
raise the genre to prominent heights and expanded
its audience. This movement also helped set the com-
pass for the future of country music, which continues
to integrate pop, rock, and other outside influences.
Many artists from the 1990’s continued to thrive into
the early twenty-first century, updating their sounds
and stage shows to reflect commercial trends.
Further Reading
Feiler, Bruce. Dreaming Out Loud: Garth Brooks,
Wynonna Judd, Wade Hayes, and the Changing Face of
Nashville. New York: Avon Books, 1998. A detailed
account of country music’s evolution, particu-
larly chronicling the 1990’s surge of the afore-
mentioned artists.
Kingsbury, Paul, ed.The Encyclopedia of Countr y Mu-
sic. New York: Oxford University Press, 1998. An
exhaustive look at the genre’s most prominent
artists. Compiled by the staff of the Country Mu-
sic Hall of Fame and Museum in Nashville.
Kosser, Michael.How Nashville Became Music City,
U.S.A.: Fifty Years of Music Row. New York: Hal
Leonard, 2006. Traces the history of “Music City”
since the 1940’s.
McEntire, Reba, with Tom Carter.Reba: My Stor y.
New York: Bantam Books, 1994. One of the lead-
ing musicians in the commercial country craze
tells her personal story.
Sgammato, Jo.American Thunder: The Garth Brooks
Stor y. New York: Ballantine, 1999. A biography
and backstage look at one of the scene’s most suc-
cessful innovators, including information about
how Brooks helped direct the entire genre
throughout the 1990’s.
Andy ArgyrakisSee also Brooks, Garth; Lang, K. D.; McEntire,
Reba; Music. Crime
Definition Transgressions of local, state, or
federal law
After a period of steady increase, peaking in 1991, the rates
of both property and violent crimes declined throughout the
rest of the 1990’s in the United States and Canada.
Beginning in the 1960’s, the crime rates in the
United States and Canada increased, reaching a
peak in 1991. Canada had higher property crime
rates than the United States for breaking and enter-
ing, motor vehicle theft, and arson. Rates of violent
crimes, such as homicide, aggravated assault, and
robbery, were much higher in the United States. In
the United States, the crime rates in all categories
decreased during the 1990’s, while Canada experi-
enced its greatest decline in violent crimes.
During this period, the United States and Canada
both experienced the largest, longest declines in
crime rates since crime statistics first began to be
tracked in the two nations. The countries showed
similar trends in overall decline, and the rates of
property crimes in both countries actually con-
verged by 1999. In addition to showing similar over-The Nineties in America Crime 227