BigXthaPlug sold out the Ryman Auditorium in Nashville. However, not every country music fan was excited to see a rapper dancing shirtless on stage.
His 90-minute set sparked widespread outrage amongst the uninformed.
The folks who were most upset with the performance must not be aware of recent history. It is not only country music artists who are invited to play at one of the most famous venues in the world!
What is the Ryman Auditorium?
There is no place more important to the popularization of country music than the Ryman Auditorium. Located right in the heart of downtown Nashville since 1892, it is known as the Mother Church of Country Music and the Birthplace of Bluegrass. You might also hear it referred to as the Carnegie Hall of the South.
Regardless of what you choose to call the Ryman, it was designated as a National Historic Landmark in 2001. The venue is best known for its near-perfect acoustics and became a cornerstorne of American music history when it began hosting the Grand Ole Opry radio show in 1943.
Since then, its stage has launched or solidified the careers of legends like Johnny Cash, Dolly Parton, Hank Williams and Elvis Presley. The list of incredible performers is endless and it goes beyond country.
Bruce Springsteen, R.E.M, Adele, Coldplay, Harry Styles and Jack White are some of the many names.
Who is BigXthaPlug?
Xavier Landrum, best known as BigXthaPlug, is a Dallas-born rapper. He is best known for blending more traditional rap production with country-inspired instrumentation and themes. His music can be classified anywhere between Southern hip-hop, trap and the fast-emerging subgenre of “country rap.”
BigX does not want to sound like a cowboy, so he often taps other more cowboy-like artists to join him. Take ‘Hell at Night’ with Ella Langley as one of many examples.
Some people love the crossover. Country music traditionalists hate it.
The latter were especially abhorred to see BigXthaPlug dancing on stage at the Ryman without a shirt during his 90-minute set last week. They called it a “disgrace” and said the “Ryman has been disrespected,” among other things.
To be fair, it is something I would never expect to see at the Mother Church of Country Music. However, those same people must’ve forgotten that both Nelly and Wu Tang Clan performed there in the past.
BigXthaPlug was not the first rapper to play the Ryman. He might be the first over 300 pounds to take off his shirt.