Turning Point Halftime Choice Tests Country Music’s Inclusive Reach

Billboard analyzes how Brantley Gilbert, Lee Brice and Gabby Barrett performing for Turning Point USA’s All-American Halftime Show—a rival to the NFL’s halftime act—could affect country music’s image and audience reach. Critics fear the TPUSA association may cast a shadow over an industry trying to broaden its appeal to minority fans, while others defend artists’ freedom of expression and point out country’s history of expanding its tent despite controversy. The piece notes the ongoing push for greater diversity in country and the tension between individual artists’ choices and the genre’s collective identity.