Shaboozey is responsible for one of the most successful songs in Billboard chart history. As of Monday night he's also responsible for the most notable event at the 2025 American Music Awards (though that's a much, much lower bar to clear). While presenting the award for Favorite Country Duo Or Group with pop-country crooner Megan Moroney, the "A Bar Song (Tipsy)" phenom gave her a side-eye glance after she read from the teleprompter that the Carter Family "invented country."
The Carter Family -- not to be confused with the same Carter family from whom we got Cowboy Carter -- were a group of folk singers/musicians who formed in the early 20th century and are widely considered to be the first country music stars. Though their recordings indisputably popularized the genre, they certainly didn't invent country, learning new influences and techniques from oft-overlooked Black musicians like the pioneering guitarist Lesley Riddle that would come to define the sound.
While presenting at the AMAs last night, Shaboozey and Moroney mentioned the show's first-ever country winners. "This award went to the Carter Family, who basically invented country music," Moroney read from the teleprompter. A puzzled Shaboozey gave a very telling facial expression, before shrugging it off and continuing.
This morning, Shaboozey elaborated in a series of social media posts. "Google: Lesley Riddle, Steve Tartar, Harry Gay, Defoe Bailey, and The Carter Family..." he wrote. "When you uncover the true history of country music, you find a story so powerful that it cannot be erased... The real history of country music is about people coming together despite their differences, and embracing and celebrating the things that make us alike."
See the AMAs moment and Shaboozey's posts below.
Google: Lesley Riddle , Steve Tartar, Harry Gay, Defoe Bailey, and The Carter Family…
— Shaboozey (@ShaboozeysJeans) May 27, 2025
When you uncover the true history of country music, you find a story so powerful that it cannot be erased…
— Shaboozey (@ShaboozeysJeans) May 27, 2025
The real history of country music is about people coming together despite their differences, and embracing and celebrating the things that make us alike.
— Shaboozey (@ShaboozeysJeans) May 27, 2025
