Canada’s Country

Though Nashville remains the cradle of country, Canada has a pretty long history with it too, taking the styles and sounds of its Southern neighbours and applying its own rustic, regional spin. Honky-tonk, outlaw ballads, beat-driven pop crossovers—these songs represent a cross-section of Canada’s best modern country. This week, Josh Ross rustles up a dream collaboration with R&B/hip-hop star Akon, the catchy crossover party anthem “Drunk Right Now (Na Na Na).” Ross tells Apple Music that Akon’s music has long been a huge part of his life and that featuring him on this new single is a dream come true. “Growing up, his songs were always playing,” Ross says. “I’ve been a fan for a long time, and about a year ago I was messing around in the studio and reimagined his song ‘Right Now.’ On my last tour we started playing it before the shows and the crowd went nuts. I ended up sending him the original version of ‘Drunk Right Now’ not expecting much, and he actually loved it and said he wanted to jump on the track. It’s a full-circle moment I never saw coming.” Listen to it now and add Canada’s Country to your library to stay up on the songs shaping the future of country music.