Super Popular Country Artists That Somehow Aren't Super Famous 

"Baby lock them doors and turn the lights down low." If this song comes on, everyone knows that line by heart.

I wouldn't recognize Josh Turner's face, but his voice is probably the most iconic out of the lot (in my humble opinion)

Sara Evans is suuuuupeeer underrated. Born to fly gets stuck in my head weekly.

I love Randy Houser. Anything Goes is a song I will never get tired of. I just love his voice. I feel like he belongs on this list.

Jo Dee Messina, Terri Clark, Lee Ann Womack are probably my favorite female country artist.

Gary Allan would be a perfect addition to this list! 👌 He’s never been a trend on his own, but he’s got a string of hits that most of us forgot we loved and sing along to every word.

Could not agree more about Chris Young - his voice has such a gorgeously warm tone, it could toast a marshmallow

I hated "must be doing something right" but "good directions" and "people are crazy" always make me smile. "Born to Fly" is one of my life songs, it sums me up so perfectly and "Suds in the Bucket" was how I thought my life would be at 18. Josh Turner is one of my favorite male vocalists ever, his voice is just *chefs kiss*

If there’s ever a part two I recommend including some of these fine artists: Gary Allan, Brett Eldridge, Mark Chesnutt, Mark Wills, Randy Houser, Brantley Gilbert, Kip Moore, Phil Vassar, Terri Clark and Jo Dee Messina. Edit: Also maybe John Michael Montgomery

Other possibilities; Brantley Gilbert, Kip Moore, And Gary Allan.

I saw Billy Currington back in 2014 and was surprised at how many songs he had that I knew but didn’t know was him.

One of my favorite of these under-the-radar consistent hit makers is Diamond Rio. They had big hits for a solid decade and when you consider how the band actually got together, their success is astounding. I would love to see you do a Diamond Rio video.

Id like to see a video on Alison Krauss' influence on country music.

I was literally just thinking about this the other day with Josh Turner and Billy Currington! Crazy how they’ve had such huge songs, but aren’t as “big”.

I’m actually not sad that Josh Turner isn’t as famous as others Because I can still afford to go to his shows 🤣 seeing him in 1 week

Gary Allan is another good example. He has a back catalogue better than many top country artists - but never got the respect.

“Suds in the Bucket” is definitely my guilty pleasure song I sing along to every…single…time.

I have said for years that I never see Chris Young, Justin Moore, Kip Moore, Randy Houser, Lee Brice or Jake Owen get nominated at the big awards shows, and it's ridiculous!! They all have great voices and great songs... for crying out loud, give other singers a chance!

Justin Moore is the most underrated country artist out today!!! Dude just makes hits and probably has the most Hank Jr style of anyone on country radio. We need more Justin Moore!!

I know they're a good bit older but Aaron Tippin, Sammy Kershaw, Lonestar and Terri Clark definitely fit in this category

Definitely kip moore, he's an underrated gem👌

Sara Evans might be one of the finest women to ever grace this world my lordee

Gary Allan has to be one of the most underrated artists of all time. Hits from 1996 to 2013 and still no awards and a horizon awarfd nominee around 2003 which caused him to title his new album "See If I Care"

Justin Moore baffles me! Dude packs out arenas and puts out great music that people love. He and Joe Nichols are 2 of my favorites

Me just waiting for Grady to rip apart Fancy Like by Walker Hayes

I would add Kip Moore. I feel like he is not nearly recognized enough!

The whole time I was just thinking, "Terri Clark!" So good live too!

I’m obsessed with Chris Young and went to his concert with a friend who told me “I don’t really know him but I’ll go” and then she sang along to almost everything.

The most underrated and under radar is Gary Freaking Allan! That smoke rings in the dark album🤤🤤🤤…… on vinyl!!!!🤤🤤🤤🤤🤤🤤🤤

Josh turner was really my introduction to country music as I grew up in the low country of South Carolina. Backwoods Boy, Lord Have Mercy on a Country Boy, and Long Black Twain are all distinct memories from baling hay with my dad.

Spot on about Chris Young. Wish he stuck with the traditional sound from his first 3 albums.

God Chris young in his cowboy hat days was sooooo good

Sara Evans is my absolute favorite, and I’ve always thought she didn’t get the hits she deserves. I’m glad to see her represented here. She and Josh Turner are my dream duet!

My mom actually met Chris Young when he was first getting into the music industry. She was a nurse taking care of his dad and while making small talk asked him what he did for a living. She said she hoped the music career works out for him which is funny looking back on it now.

Justin Moore is so underrated imo. He has an unreleased song from before his first album called A Long Way From Home that I absolutely love. Also that duet with Miranda Lambert "Old Habits" is amazing

I would say that Lee Brice has a huge catalog of songwriting credits to his name that make him seem even more overlooked as an artist.

Chris LeDoux was very underrated. R.I.P and God Bless

There were quite a few artists who fit this profile in the 90s. Collin Raye, Sammy Kershaw, Tracy Byrd, and Mark Chesnutt come immediately to mind. A very successful decade-long stretch of uninterrupted hits on country radio but were never anything close to being superstars.

One of my personal favorite underrated artists and one I was hoping to see is, Phil Vassar. Love the guy, Carlene is such a good song, one of my favorites!

If you go back to the '90s (when country radio still played female singers,) Jo Dee Messina, Lorrie Morgan, Terri Clark, Pam Tillis and Patty Loveless would've fit this category. All had good careers in country music but never became household names outside the genre.

Justin Moore was my neighbor while I was in high school. Super nice dude.

Spot on about Chris Young! His older albums are fantastic but he lost me at his Losin’ Sleep album and haven’t been too fond of him since. Another I would say is Brett Eldredge!

I’m pretty sure Kip Moore came and did a concert at our high school at one point. Probably when he was really early in his career.

So right on Chris Young. His voice is right up there with some of the greats, but he absolutely is a trend chaser. Josh turner underrated hit: “never had a reason”.

As a fellow deep voice, southern guy. My man Josh turner needs more recognition. Also, easton corbin

I’ve always said Sara Evans is underrated. One of my favorite country female artist of all time!

Discovered this channel a couple weeks ago, and it is my new favorite thing on all of RU-vid. I wish the business of country music promoted actual country music like you do

Really well done video man! Keep it up! Such a creative idea here!

Between Chris Young's voice and Josh Turner's... I'm not going to stop listening to country music for a while

Back in the 90’s I thought Daryle Singletary was overlooked! His voice was so traditional and authentic. Once you’ve heard him sing ‘I let her lie’. You’ll never forget it.

Your content always brings music from my high school days back to life. Thanks man!!!

Love the video idea. Interestingly your list has many of my favorite artists (turner and evans especially), so most I recognize instantly but still get what you’re talking about with them. Keep up the great work, I like some of these fun (and reminiscent) videos. Never will get tired of reliving the early 2000s country music I grew up on. Also found it interesting that Young and Turner were on the list, two of the most iconic deep voices. As a man with a deeper voice I feel the pain - so much music is tenor heavy, not a lot of solid baritone or bass voices in popular music.

This video is fascinating as a non American. We don't get news or anything of country stars so you telling me that lee bryce and Josh Turner and Chris Young are not huge stars is nuts to me. As for me their music feels as big as other people's.

Kip Moore for sure. One of my favorites Craig Morgan I think would fall into this category too!

The fact I knew everyone of those songs but had no clue what the artist's looked like, just shows that you're right on all of them. Good job man

So glad you talked about Billy Currington hes seemed to disappear from the scene since his last album and he has been releasing clips of songs from the next album on his instagram but haven't seen anything in 2021 yet. His hugely underrated and never chosen for awards or to perform at award shows even though he's consistently amazing!

You missed the biggest famous/not famous person… Gary Allan, he has a long career with many hits and sells out his venues.

I’ve often wondered why Gary Allan never became a huge star. He has so much good music.

Great video! I love all of the artists you mentioned. Joe Nichols' 'Brokenheartsville' and Billy Currington's 'People are crazy' are two of my favorite songs.

You do a fantastic job of quantifying and establishing criteria for wildly subjective matters within our genre. Big ups.

I feel like Jon Pardi should be on this list as well.

I've loved Chris' music - sound and lyrics- since I first discovered him. He has such a swoon-worthy voice, so warm and dynamic with such soul. I support him even when his music changes however I definitely appreciate and prefer his earlier albums. Neon is my favorite. And "Tomorrow" is probably one of the most beautiful and poignant country songs I've ever heard. Chris is so talented and seems like such a great guy. I met him at a meet-and-greet several years ago and he was so sweet. To this day he's still my favorite country artist. I wish him all the best. God bless!

I used to watch a lot of CMT. Especially the weekly top/hot 20 on sat/Sunday. But Grady Smith have filled this void since I don’t have cable any more. Thank you Grady for keeping me in the loop!

Trace Adkins is another addition to this list. He's had some hits here and there over the years and won some awards. However he has mostly stayed out of the spotlight.

I feel like you could have a whole 20 minute video about Chris Young, when he hit the scene with “Tomorrow” and “the man I wanna be” I thought he was going to be THE BIGGEST thing in country music I rooted pretty hard for him but here we are 11 years later with so so singles

I had such a huge crush on Sara Evans, she is so attractive and has a great voice

I’m glad someone else had this thought because I’ve always felt out of my friend group, I’m the only one to think this! I was turned on to Josh Turner when I was 4 years old because I loved trains and Long Black Train came on the radio a few times and I clicked with it. Ever since Josh has been my all time favorite artist. However, a lot of my friends always ask who that is when I play his music. Thanks to technology and music being easily accessible growing up I’ve tried to continue to listen to all of these artist alongside what is considered popular. Great video as always Grady, but this one sticks with me deep!

Lyle Lovett, Steve Earle, Robert Earle Keen, Radney Foster (who actually co-wrote Sara Evan's hit: "A Real Fine Place to Start"), Mary Chapin Carpenter, Vince Gill, Junior Brown, Br5-49, David Ball, David Lee Murphey and the now late-great Hal Ketchum (Who passed away last year from Alzheimer's Disease) are all amazing artists that I've grown up listening to, that I feel could also be in this category. I would love it if you did a part 2 to this and talked about some of these guys. Honestly I could probably add plenty more. I kind of feel like most country artists are at least somewhat underrated unless their the mega-stars like: George Strait, Alan Jackson or Garth Brooks. Another great video Grady. I love your channel. You make so many interesting videos and have turned me and my family onto a lot of great artists. Keep up the great work man. : )

I remember watching when Justin Moore won New Artist of the Year, about 5 years after he came on the scene. Didn’t like that he was still in that category, but I did legitimately laugh out loud when he opened his acceptance speech with “I was beginning to think there was a height requirement for this award!”

One thing that Josh Turner had and other artists didn't have was a somewhat international success. From where I'm from, Josh Turner's Your Man is still being played by some random people on their personal vehicle.

I’m here for that sketchy award show file turning into a video. Also, thank you for praising Chris Young’s Neon album! It’s been a reliable friend through many seasons of life.

I would have never thought about this. Every one you mentioned are some of my favorites. I was shocked to see you mention Lee Brice until you explained the criteria (that's because right now his album "Hey World" is my go to listen at the moment). After you explained, I was like oh yeah I see where he's coming from now. I'm not sure if he would qualify for this list or not but another one of my favorites you don't hear a lot from is Eric Paslay.

Yes Rodney Atkins is so underrated! Has so many great songs you can't help but sing along with.

That cursed opening

On this topic...Grady Smith is an underrated review channel. This guy puts in the work to make superb, data driven content meanwhile most videos focus on dumb drama and things that anyone could Google in 2 minutes. Great work!!!

I love all of these artists and loved this video!! Great job Grady!! Fun fact, Joe Nichols did a countrified version of "Baby's Got Back" and I thought it was hilarious. One of my all time favorite Chris Young songs is "I Can Take It From There"

Grady smith is the best

You know whom I think fits this description that I haven’t seen mentioned in the Comment Section? Clay Walker, the guy who sang songs such as Fall, This Woman and His Man, She Won’t Be Lonely Long, Then What, and I’d Love to Be Your Last, among others.

Hey, Grady, congratulations on your move. When you're settled in, could you do an episode about songs about Country Music and its sub genres like Folk and Blue Grass? Thanks a heap!

This was an interesting video topic and I enjoyed your examples.

I love Sara Evans, it’s crazy how underrated she is.

I think Chris Young made a huge mistake losing the cowboy hat and stop singing traditional sounding country. He started off that way and seemed to drink the bro country Kool-aid and lost it all in regards to traditional country. I keep hoping that he'll go back to his roots.

Great job on this one. Keep on keeping on!

I love all these people you have named they are awesome and I have some of the cds withthese songs and listen to them I'm glad you made this video of all these

I think the thing for billy currington that helps me at least recognize him is his hair: the curly perm look is a dead give away every time :)

Billy Currington has some great songs in his catalog ("Walk a Little Straighter"), but I think a lot of the reason he isn't on the "A List" is because he isn't in Nashville that much and doesn't tour as much as his peers. I also really like the current Justin Moore single "We Didn't Have Much" (which is very similar to Runaway June's "We Were Rich"). Side note on Josh Turner, but "Another Try" is so underrated. And the production on that song is perfect in my eyes (thank you, Frank Rogers).

This is why I like watching your videos. Cheers to your objectivity.

Bought my first Josh Turner single about 15 years ago, finally got to see him live when he toured the UK in 2019.

These are "on tour with" artists. When you look at a tour, It's always "insert A list artist here" on tour with "insert artist here" featuring "insert 1-2 smaller artists here". They fill the on tour with slot every time. (Except Chris Young) Also Eli Young Band could fit pretty well, although they aren't super basic (that was painful to write I love them so freaking much)

One could throw in Gary Allan into this list. Very consistent, quality songs, but never really got the recognition he deserved during his heyday.

Love u grady!!! Joe nichols was my first concert at DTE pine knob in clarkston, mi!!! Good times

Very interesting concept for a video 👌🏼

I'm basically the same age as Josh Turner. I remember thinking back in the 2000s that he would be a big star one day. But, having seen him a couple of times in concert, I think he's kind of a mellow, low-key person who happens to have an amazing voice. So it makes sense to me that he's "popular," but not a "star."

Bro anyone know/remember “David Nail” if he’d gotten propped up better, like he should of. Country music today would still be as great as it use to be. His song “what ever she’s go” for 2013 was so innovative. Up beat but low-fi at the same time ¿? original lyrics that where the right blend of being able to understand the moral, and just catchy enough to get you to sing along but not to drive you insane because it stuck in you head. And a tempo and beat to perfectly match it.

one of my favorite songs from Billy Currington: Town with a Football Problem! For A Guy from Germany like me, where Football isn´t the National Sport it´s a good vibes song!

Love your content!

I was thinking Craig Morgan. He mad a shirt that includes the guy that sings….. (then lists all of his hits).

Chris Young, Easton Corbin, and Dustin Lynch are the kings of wasted potential. I blame their management and producers.

Grady, you absolutely nailed this list. You had everyone I was hoping would be on this list....on this list!! Chris Young, Billy Currington, And Joe Nichols, one of my favorites.

Love the vids Grady!!!!