Country Music Artists, Ranked

The Man in Black defined outlaw gravitas and crossed into folk, gospel, and rock; his American Recordings revival with Rick Rubin proved his voice only deepened with age.

The template for the entire genre — 'Your Cheatin' Heart' and 'I'm So Lonesome I Could Cry' remain the gold standard of country songwriting despite his death at 29.

An outlaw-country architect and peerless phraser whose songbook (from writing 'Crazy' to Red Headed Stranger) spans seven decades and never stopped touring.

A once-in-a-generation songwriter ('Jolene,' 'I Will Always Love You,' 'Coat of Many Colors') and cultural institution who, by her own account, wrote her two biggest hits on the same day.

The King of Country holds the record for most number-one singles of any artist in any genre (60), anchoring neotraditional country for four decades.

The Bakersfield-sound poet laureate whose 'Mama Tried' and 'Okie from Muskogee' turned working-class hardship into indelible songs.

The Coal Miner's Daughter wrote unflinching, autobiographical songs about womanhood and poverty that broke ground for every woman in country after her.

Her lush, torch-singing voice on 'Crazy' and 'Walkin' After Midnight' made her the definitive crossover vocalist before her death at 30.

A harmony singer turned bandleader whose exquisite taste bridged country, folk, and Americana and mentored a generation of alt-country artists.

A soul-drenched voice and Nashville hit-machine songwriter whose Traveller reset expectations for what mainstream country could sound like in 2015.

A powerhouse vocalist with dozens of number ones across four decades who expanded into TV and Broadway without losing her country core.

The best-selling album artist in U.S. history (over 200 million certified) who brought arena-rock spectacle to country in the '90s, for better and (to purists) for worse.

Her Mutt Lange-produced Come On Over is the best-selling country album ever, fusing pop hooks into country and dominating late-'90s crossover radio.

A dependable neotraditionalist whose honky-tonk consistency and '9/11 song' 'Where Were You' kept traditional country on the radio through the '90s and 2000s.

The most awarded artist in ACM history (40 wins) with sharp, self-penned songs that gave 2010s women a fierce, unapologetic voice.

A witty, progressive songwriter whose Golden Hour won the Grammy for Album of the Year and pushed country toward dreamy pop territory.

A reliable hit-maker with a long string of number ones, though he leaned more on radio-friendly polish than distinctive songwriting.

A likable, party-anthem entertainer whose 'Country Girl (Shake It for Me)' typifies the interchangeable bro-country sound of the 2010s.

The duo behind 'Cruise' — the first country single to go Diamond — epitomized the tailgate/beer/dirt-road bro-country formula that flattened radio and drew heavy critical backlash.

Musically formulaic and defined more by the divisive 'Try That in a Small Town' controversy than by any songwriting legacy.