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Shaboozey Explains His Side-Eye Reaction at AMAs to Line Claiming ‘the Carter Family Basically Invented Country Music’


Shaboozey has elaborated on why he rolled his eyes at a line about the Carter Family having 'basically invented country' at the American Music Awards.

Shaboozey wasn’t “tipsy” but, rather, appeared to have reached some kind of tipping point in reaction to the patter that he and fellow country star Megan Moroney were reading as presenters at the American Music Awards Monday night. Viewers couldn’t help noticing the singer’s suddenly puzzled facial expression, followed by an abrupt chuckle, in response to his co-presenter reading a line off the prompter stating that the Carter Family “basically invented country music.” Beyond the difficult-to-defend idea that any single artist could invent an artform, there has been a very public discussion in the past couple of years about the Black roots of country, led by Rhiannon Giddens creating awareness of the banjo as an instrument that was introduced to America by slaves, and greatly amplified by Beyoncé further bringing up the issue of the genre’s origins with her “Cowboy Carter” album, which featured Shaboozey on two tracks.

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