Episode 15 - Singer/Songwriter Will Hoge on Making Country Music With Progressive Politics

Conscience or Commerce? Sometimes the choice is a difficult one, especially as a songwriter, and particularly in a mostly country genre, where political music (especially with an unapologetically progressive message) risks turning off some fans, and certainly record labels. Luckily for Grammy-nominated singer-songwriter Will Hoge, being an independent artist has allowed him to make a good living doing what he loves and to speak his mind about the issues of the day when the occasion calls for it. For nearly 20 years Will has been touring non-stop, churning out album after album of live and studio work, building a huge fan base and tackling topics including the plight of the poor, immigration, religious phoniness, the killing of Trayvon Martin, the confederate flag and the power of the gun lobby in the face of mass killings—all this, in between the necessary and also excellent songs about love, loss, whiskey and regret, which so often define the genre in which he operates. On this episode, Tim speaks to Will about his more political work, what inspired him to take risks in crafting those songs, how he developed his own consciousness around these issues, and how a near-fatal accident in 2008 impacted his mentality about the career he chose, as well as his outlook on family and life in general.