Sacred and Profane: Roots Music USA

09/04/2026

Carl and Pearl Butler Know the Sacred and Profane . "Don't Let Me Cross Over."

tres belle chanson de Carl and Pearl Butler

09/04/2026

Belle Frantz's album "Hymns From a Barstool" certainly captures the Sacred and Profane. Frantz recently had her Grand Ole Opry debut.

Frantz indicates: "“Where No One Stands Alone” is out today! And I am beyond thrilled to announce that my debut album, Hymns From A Barstool, comes out November 6th!

Gospel and country have been intertwined since the Carter Family and the Bristol Sessions of 1927. All of my heroes have made a hymnal album and held gospel so near to their hearts. What better way to build my foundation in country music than to start with a gospel record? To me, hymns are country music. They’re part of my heroes story, and now they’re part of mine.
Hymns are timeless—songs that never get old and that I’ll always be connected to. When I sing them, I feel closer to my gift, closer to God, and closer to my grandparents.

Hymns From A Barstool is about the in-between. About being a trier. About there not being one specific formula for where to find God.

I grew up hearing these songs in church pews, but I’ve also sung them with a b**r in my hand. That doesn’t make them any less holy.

This title just felt right. It tells the truth of who I am, and maybe the truth of a lot of other people, too. People have found God in places they weren’t “supposed” to—but that’s where He’s looking.

Faith and brokenness can live in the same room. And that’s what this title represents.

As a little girl, my grandmother was the one who always made sure I had my butt in church. She used to tell me at five years old, “If you don’t go to church, you got a spot in hell.” So I knew I best have my butt there!

We had 13 people in our church, and I was the only kid in Sunday school—the only kid in the whole church. But I loved to sing, and I loved singing along to those hymns. That was when I truly felt closest to God.

I remember how hopeful those songs made me feel, even though I didn’t understand all the words. They remind me so much of my grandparents."

08/16/2026

"Faith Family Flag" about Branson is reviewed in the July 2026 Church History Books of the Month. The review suggests that the Sacred and Profane fits into the analysis.

Joanna Dee Das, Faith, Family, and Flag: Branson Entertainment and the Idea of America, University of Chicago Press, 2025
Branson, Missouri, the Ozark Mountain mecca of wholesome entertainment, has been home to countless stage shows espousing patriotism and Christianity, welcoming over ten million visitors a year. Some consider it “God’s Country” and others “as close to Hell as anything on Earth.” For Joanna Dee Das, Branson is a political, religious, and cultural harbinger of a certain enduring dream of what America is. She takes Branson more seriously than the light-hearted fun it advertises—and maybe we should too.

For Das, Branson’s performers offer visions of the American Dream that embody a set of values known as the three Fs: faith, family, and flag. Branson boosters insist that these are universal values that welcome all people; the city aims to capture as many tourists as possible. But over the past several decades, faith, family, and flag have become markers of contemporary conservatism. The shows and culture of Branson, for all their fun and laughter, have been a galvanizing political force for white, working-and-middle class, Christian Americans. For social and economic conservatives alike, Branson is practically proof-of-concept for America as they want it to be.

Faith, Family, and Flag is a comprehensive history of the Branson entertainment industry, within the context of America’s long culture wars. Das reveals how and why a town known for popular entertainment, a domain associated most often with the political left (“Hollywood liberals”), came to be so important to the political right and its vision for America.

08/14/2026

Lust, Sin, Booze, and Jesus help make the Sacred and Profane important in Country Music.

James Akenson Once upon a time in a galaxy long ago I wrote a piece about Tennessee Tech University PhD student Randy Williams. The title “Randy Williams: Just for the Hell…Or The Heaven…Of It” fit nicely with what Randy Williams thought would be the focus of his PhD research. Turns out he w...

08/14/2026

This article deals with the Sacred and Profane in current Country Music. Artist such as Mary Kutter and Carter Faith keep the Sacred and Profane a significant element in Country Music.

James E. Akenson Mary Kutter, Carter Faith and AI Over the years discussions of the Sacred and the Profane in Country Music have been seen in journals, books, conferences, and social media. My friend and colleague Randy Williams and I have labored in the Sacred and Profane vineyard for quite a while...

08/14/2026

Jordi Guasch of Barcelona, Spain writes about "The Devil's Box." Note the Sacred and Profane nature of the graphic that accompanies the article.

Jordi Guasch Barcelona, Spain Editor’s Introduction – James E Akenson Years ago, disapproval of the fiddle ran deep, particularly in Evangelical Protestant Christianity common in the southern United States. “The Devil’s Box” could cause the faithful to stray. “The Devil’s Box” could ...

08/04/2026

The Birthplace of Country Music Museum shares the 1927 Bristol Sessions. The Carter Family and Jimmie Rodgers recorded in The Bristol Sessions. Rodgers is symbolically viewed as the Profane representative of Country Music. The Carter Family are viewed as the Sacred representatives of Country Music.

06/22/2026

Kind of Like Charlie Daniel's, Justin Mychals uses a Sacred and Profane Theme with "Sold His Soul."

Provided to YouTube by CDBabySold His Soul · Justin MychalsSold...

06/15/2026

Tori Rose is "South of Southern" which means she's definitely into the Sacred and Profane.
Country Ain't Country Anymore Country Rebel Country Music Nation

subscribe for your daily country fix 👢https://www.youtube.com/cha...

06/07/2026

Trey Pendley becomes a "Family Man" and finds salvation through the love of a good woman and some implied religion. There are varied sub themes common to Country Music, but the S and P definitely comes through. Country Rebel Country Music Nation The Country Music Times

The official visualizer for Trey Pendley's debut radio single "Family Man" from his debut album, Signs Of Life.Get it here: https://leo33.lnk.to/signsoflifey...