Country music is an essential part of southern culture. Step one foot in Southern America and you’re bound to hear this song playing in any football game, barbeque, or restaurant you enter. However, despite its widespread popularity within the diverse South, the country music scene remains homogeneously white.

In reality, country music's origins were dependent on the transcendence of cultural and national border lines. Let's explore John Denver’s song as an example, a song often regarded as fundamentally country, painting an idyllic view of the South. It's a timeless classic, a powerful cultural symbol, and has even taken on international reign, taking on new adaptations and meanings in countries like Japan and Jamaica.