Country music maven Sara Evans isn’t happy with the current state of country radio and how it’s been treating female artists over the last several years. The star released “Marquee Sign” last summer as the lead single from her album Words. The track failed to chart for the first time ever in her long and successful country music career.
“I grew up on country music and I made my whole, entire career on country radio and contributed what I believe is a lot of great music to the country genre. So for my family to watch me sobbing at home because [radio] refused to play the single I released when I’ve worked my ass off and gone to visit every country programmer in America and I feel like I deserve a spot … they’ve grown up with it, watching it, and it’s devastated all of us,” Evans shared with Billboard while standing beside her two teenage daughters, Olivia and Audrey, during the recent all-female CMT Artists of the Year event.
Following her red carpet interview, Evans further explained her position via social media, “There has been a lot of reaction to my recent comments about country radio. I am, and have been for several years, devastated to see how the genre I grew up on and made my career on has changed. The obvious and most maddening change to me has been the blatant stonewalling of female artists. One day I’m a country artist with hits on country radio and the next, I can’t even get one spin on ANY of my new music. It’s so frustrating and I don’t know what genre my music belongs to now. But the other major disappointment is the lack of creativity and lyrical sophistication that is being played now. (Not all, but most). Country music used to be known for its amazingly true to life, heartfelt lyrics. With sweet sounds like steel guitar and fiddle surrounding those lyrics. It used to be true stories told of unrequited love, or lost hopes and dreams, and sometimes fun down-home good ole party songs, but it was great music. When I signed my record deal with RCA, country airwaves were full of amazing females like Reba McEntire, Patty Loveless, Trisha Yearwood, Martina McBride and so many more. It’s time for a change.”
Agree with Sara’s assessment? Be sure to share her words with other country music fans, make requests to your local country radio station, and keep supporting talented artists!
“Marquee Sign” Lyrics
I wish you were a pack of cigarettes
Cause you would of come with a warning
Before I let you steal my breath
I woulda known how bad you were for me
Some people lie
Some people trust
Some people hide
What they’re made of
If you woulda been lit up like a marquee sign
Coulda saved myself some wasted time
From the minute I found you
If it’d been written out in black and white
Maybe then I would have told my mind
Not to get wrapped around you
I should have known it from the start
You were only here to break my heart
If you had just been tequila
I would’ve known when to stop
Woulda been so easy to leave ya
Never even woulda taken a shot
But people lie
And people trust
And people hide
What they’re made of
If you woulda been lit up like a marquee sign
Coulda saved myself some wasted time
From the minute I found you
If it’d been written out in black and white
Maybe then i would have told my mind
Not to get wrapped around you
I should have known it from the start
You were only here to break my heart
Lit up like a marquee sign
Lit up like a marquee sign
If I could have seen right through ya
Known ya before I knew ya
If you woulda been lit up like a marquee sign
Coulda saved myself some wasted time
From the minute I found you
If it’d been written out in black and white
Maybe then i would have told my mind
Not to get wrapped around you
I should have known it from the start
You were only here to break my heart
Yeah, you were only here to break my heart
Lit up like a marquee sign
Woah, oh
Lit up like a marquee sign
Woah, oh
Lit up like a marquee sign
Woah, oh, hey
Lit up like a marquee sign
Woah, oh
