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What is country?

Country music is a broad term, covering a great many styles of music predominantly created in the southern United States of America - however there are growing traditions of country music elsewhere, particularly in Canada and Australia. Country music is generally characterized by its use of the guitar and its heavily-accented vocals describing life's hardships.

Artists to start with

  1. Taylor Swift
  2. Dolly Parton
  3. Kacey Musgraves
  4. Johnny Cash
  5. Luke Bryan
  6. Luke Combs
  7. Jon Pardi
  8. Rascal Flatts
  9. Morgan Wallen
  10. Lady Antebellum

Albums to hear first

  • Tailgates & Tanlines by Luke BryanTailgates & TanlinesLuke Bryan
  • Jolene by Dolly PartonJoleneDolly Parton
  • American IV: The Man Comes Around by Johnny CashAmerican IV: The Man Comes AroundJohnny Cash
  • Chief by Eric ChurchChiefEric Church
  • Some Hearts by Carrie UnderwoodSome HeartsCarrie Underwood
  • Here's to the Good Times by Florida Georgia LineHere's to the Good TimesFlorida Georgia Line
  • Gunfighter Ballads and Trail Songs by Marty RobbinsGunfighter Ballads and Trail SongsMarty Robbins
  • Clancy's Tavern by Toby KeithClancy's TavernToby Keith

Country songs

  1. Jolene by Dolly Parton
  2. 9 to 5 by Dolly Parton
  3. Made in Japan by Buck Owens
  4. Need You Now by Lady Antebellum
  5. TEXAS HOLD 'EM by Beyoncé
  6. Islands in the Stream by Dolly Parton
  7. Southern Nights by Glen Campbell
  8. Neon Moon by Brooks & Dunn
  9. Before He Cheats by Carrie Underwood
  10. You Belong with Me by Taylor Swift

Country on Risocast

  • reputation by Taylor SwiftreputationTaylor Swift · 2017
  • 1989 (Taylor's Version) by Taylor Swift1989 (Taylor's Version)Taylor Swift · 2023
  • 1989 by Taylor Swift1989Taylor Swift · 2014
  • Speak Now (Taylor's Version) by Taylor SwiftSpeak Now (Taylor's Version)Taylor Swift · 2023
  • The Life of a Showgirl (Track by Track Version) by Taylor SwiftThe Life of a Showgirl (Track by Track Version)Taylor Swift · 2025
  • Red (Taylor's Version) by Taylor SwiftRed (Taylor's Version)Taylor Swift · 2021
  • Zach Bryan by Zach BryanZach BryanZach Bryan · 2023
  • Traveller by Chris StapletonTravellerChris Stapleton · 2015
  • Blank Space by Taylor SwiftBlank SpaceTaylor Swift · 2014
  • Blank Space (Taylor's Version) by Taylor SwiftBlank Space (Taylor's Version)Taylor Swift · 2023
  • Shake It Off (Taylor's Version) by Taylor SwiftShake It Off (Taylor's Version)Taylor Swift · 2023
  • Style (Taylor's Version) by Taylor SwiftStyle (Taylor's Version)Taylor Swift · 2023

Neighbouring genres

In the folk & country family. All genres

americanabluegrassalt-countrycountry rockcountry popchamber folkacoustic rockavant-folkdark folkapocalyptic folkcontemporary folkfolk rock

Questions

What is country?
Country music is a broad term, covering a great many styles of music predominantly created in the southern United States of America - however there are growing traditions of country music elsewhere, particularly in Canada and Australia. Country music is generally characterized by its use of the guitar and its heavily-accented vocals describing life's hardships.
Who are the best-known country artists?
By Last.fm listening: Taylor Swift, Dolly Parton, Kacey Musgraves, Johnny Cash, Luke Bryan and Luke Combs.
What genres are similar to country?
On Risocast it sits with americana, bluegrass, alt-country, country rock, country pop and chamber folk.

Risocast is free. Install it once and it logs everything you play.

Download for WindowsFree · v4.0.9Open RisocastRight here · Spotify or Last.fm

Updated 6 October 2026

Risocast Help

A music log that fills itself in. It records the songs you play on your computer and your phone, turns them into your top songs, stats and a public profile, and finds people whose taste overlaps with yours.

Yes. The app and the website are free.

A song counts once half of it has played, or four minutes — whichever comes first. Songs of 30 seconds or less, and videos or podcasts over 20 minutes, never count.

On Windows, anything that shows up in Windows' media controls: Spotify, YouTube Music, Apple Music, Deezer, browsers, foobar2000, Windows Media Player and more (VLC, iTunes and MusicBee through their free media-controls plugin). On Android, any music app — it reads the same now-playing info your lock screen shows. You can also connect Spotify or import from Last.fm.

Yes. Plays are counted on your device and sent when you're back online, and the phone app opens without a connection.

It does the same core job — scrobbling, automatically — without plugins per player, and adds taste matching: see who listens like you and how much your taste overlaps.

Your profile and listening are public so people with similar taste can find you, unless you make your profile private (then only your buddies see it); your email never is. Nothing is sold and there are no ads; anonymous usage analytics (Microsoft Clarity, Google Analytics) show what to improve. See the privacy policy for the details.

More in Help, the guides and the privacy policy.

Welcome to Risocast
Risocast

Your music, logged. Your people, found.

A small player that sits in your tray, writes down every song you play, and shows you who listens like you.

243 songs logged today

Download for WindowsFree · v4.0.9Open RisocastRight here · Spotify or Last.fm

Android is coming to Google Play. Get notified

How logging works

On Windows, Risocast reads the system media controls, so any player counts: Spotify, YouTube Music, Apple Music, Deezer, browsers, foobar2000. No plugins.

On Android the app reads what any music app is playing (it's coming to Google Play). Anywhere else, connect Spotify or a Last.fm username.

When a song countsAfter half its length, or four minutes, whichever comes first.Tracks under 30 seconds are ignored.Offline plays are counted on the device and sent later.

More on automatic logging · Risocast vs Last.fm

Taste twins

See how much your taste overlaps with anyone's, and find the people who listen most like you. The match comes from what you both actually play, not a list of favourites.

Open People

How the match works

Weekly Disc and Taste Map

Every week becomes a disc of your top songs. Every record you play goes on a map, grouped by genre.

Weekly DiscTaste Map

Real ones, from the maker's own listening.

Download Risocast

Risocast is free for Windows 10 and 11. Android is coming to Google Play; on any other device, use the web app with Spotify or Last.fm.

Download for WindowsFree · v4.0.9Open RisocastRight here · Spotify or Last.fm
  • Version 4.0.9 · Windows 10 and 11 (64-bit) · about 100 MB
  • Updates itself: new versions download in the background and install on restart.
  • Every installer is published with its SHA-256 checksum on the releases page.

All platforms and questions

Features
Automatic loggingWeekly DiscTaste MapTaste matchProfiles and statsMusic windowsBPM, key and soundSong stripLikes that syncPlay in your appFindPeople and buddiesCompare tasteAnthemsGenre labelsAndroid appImport and connectWindows 98 look
18 object(s)Open as a list
Guides
Track music on WindowsLog YouTube MusicApple Music statsFind people like youPlayers that workLog VLCLog foobar2000Log MusicBeeiTunes on WindowsLog DeezerLog TidalLog SoundCloudAmazon MusicWindows Media PlayerSpotify historyTop songs of all timeWhat genre is it?Describe your tasteExport your dataComing from Last.fm
20 object(s)Open as a list
Compare
Risocast vs Last.fmLast.fm alternativesRisocast vs stats.fmWrapped any time
4 object(s)Open as a list
243 logged today