Brad Paisley on the set of "Welcome To The Future". Photo courtesy of Sony Music Nashville.

As a kid growing up in Altoona, Iowa — a very white suburb of Des Moines, I had almost no firsthand exposure to the racial divide that newspapers and the TV news regularly referenced in the 1970s.

Until I began working in Des Moines at the age of 16, the main way I learned about the issue was through Stevie Wonder albums. In songs such as “Living For The City,” “You Haven’t Done Nothin’” and “Cash In Your Face,” Stevie described the unfairness of being denied work or shelter because of an arbitrary physical trait — skin color — and I got an education through music that was not present on the street where I lived.

Tuesday was the anniversary of Rosa Parks’ refusal to give up her seat on a bus to a Caucasian man. The date went by with little fanfare, though the results of her noble revolution can now be seen in country music, where she’s referenced in not just one, but two hits from the last six months: Brad Paisley’s “Welcome To The Future” and Tim McGraw’s “Southern Voice.”

“Welcome To The Future” has brought me close to tears on numerous occasions, including the first time Brad played it publicly: for President Barack Obama at the White House. Brad wrote the song after seeing the celebration in New York’s Times Square over the election of America’s first black commander in chief. The moment came more than 50 years after Rosa Parks’ daring personal stance, but it was — as Brad noted in the song — a direct result of her decision.

Tim’s nod to Rosa is a mere four words — “Rosa Parks rode it” — but it comes in the middle of “Southern Voice,” a veritable laundry list of Dixie-bred public figures. What’s particularly satisfying about the song is that in the middle of its simple construction, it makes its own statement about the progress of race relations. It’s loaded with Caucasian names such as William Faulkner, Billy Graham, Paul “Bear” Bryant and Charlie Daniels. But it also includes a bevy of African-Americans such as Rosa, Martin Luther King and Henry Aaron (who received a ton of hate mail when he pursued Babe Ruth’s career homerun record in the 1970s) — and does so without making a big deal about the fact that they just happen to be black.

All of that comes at a time when Darius Rucker is ironically lodged in country’s Top 15 with “History In The Making.” That song itself has nothing to do with issues of discrimination or fairness, but Darius got a lot of ink just last month when he became the first African-American ever to win the Country Music Association’s New Artist of the Year award.

Reporters, always looking for an angle, have focused heavily on Darius’ pigmentation over the last year and a half, though in the several times I’ve seen him perform over the last 18 months, I’ve not heard a single concert-goer even comment on his skin. Because it doesn’t matter.

Which is what’s particularly heartening about the Rosa Parks anniversary. “Welcome To The Future” recognizes her contribution. “Southern Voice” matter-of-factly — perhaps accidentally — tips its hat to the change she influenced in the cultural landscape. And Darius’ ascension in a medium with an audience that is primarily (though not exclusively) white validates the view that race doesn’t have to be the divisive issue that it once was.

Thanks to Rosa for the effort. Thanks to Stevie for the education. Thanks to Brad, Tim and Darius for the confirmation.

ShareThis