Country music, always a strong genre in the recording and concert industry and in consumer products, has been having a moment in pop culture. Collaborations between country musicians and artists from other genres are topping the charts, as are country songs from soloists known for other styles of music. Meanwhile, country singers are increasingly breaking out from the country charts to the broader bestseller lists.
With this bump in mainstream interest—along with the continued strength of the cowboycore trend in fashion—has come even more licensing and collaboration deals involving country musicians than usual. These examples from the past year show the wide range of categories, deal scopes and structures, and artists involved:
- Lainey Wilson paired this month with Wrangler for a multi-year apparel deal resulting in a collection described as feminine with vintage elements, consisting of items such as embellished and printed denim jackets and bell bottom jeans.
- Jelly Roll (who began as a rapper but is now multi-genre and a big star in country) collaborated this month with Hey Dude for a limited-edition black suede shoe with a tattoo-inspired pattern, available on Hey Dude’s e-commerce site and the TikTok Shop. The singer also launched a greeting card collection with American Greetings in October 2024.
- Sara Evans partnered with Porch and Parlor, a luxury home goods brand, for a Christmas tree skirt that launched in December.
- Kane Brown partnered in August with Guy Fieri’s Flavortown brand for a Tennessee-style barbecue sauce (manufactured by licensee Litehouse), to be added to the existing Flavortown sauce and condiment line-up.
- Kelsea Ballerini partnered with The Original Donut Shop in June for a limited-time K-Cup coffee dubbed Ballerini Blend.
- Last May, Ernest worked with Ranger Station on a limited-edition unisex perfume and scented candle to promote his latest album, Nashville, Tennessee.
- Also in May, Walker Hayes, JCPenney, and iHeart Radio announced an exclusive limited-edition menswear collection encompassing 25 classic pieces such as shorts, shirts, jackets, and hoodies, described as simple and down-to-earth.
- Josh Abbott debuted a branded combo menu item with a limited-edition drink cup at DQ restaurants in April, inspired by his favorite childhood DQ meal and featuring a steak finger basket, mini M&Ms milk chocolate Blizzard, and iced tea.
One of the most prominent examples is Dolly Parton, a relatively new entrant into licensing, given her long career. She has been expanding her range of products significantly in the past year, adding several items to her ranges of baking mixes and frozen mac and cheese with ConAgra, debuting her kitchen line at Dollar General in July followed by an expansion this spring, and signing with Kendra Scott for a jewelry collection in November, to name a few of her recent ventures.
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