Willie Nelson is a music icon unlike any other, with an enormous discography and a career that has spanned the better part of a century without much in the way of “bad” work. And just as well, Willie Nelson defied expectations in country music and abroad. Let’s take a look at a few ways Nelson defied expectations and blazed his own trail as an outlaw country superstar.
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1. ‘Red Headed Stranger’
The 1975 album Red Headed Stranger was the record to put Willie Nelson on the country music map. The whole of the concept album was a noteworthy diversion from country music norms at the time, too.
This album boasts many of your typical country themes, from love to loss to redemption. However, the album itself was a bit more stripped-down compared to what Nelson’s contemporaries were doing at the time. In fact, Columbia Records was hesitant to release the record, fearing it lacked commercial appeal. However, Nelson was firm about maintaining creative control of the album. Red Headed Stranger was a massive commercial success, gave Nelson a huge career boost, and pioneered what would be known as the outlaw country movement.
2. His Work With NORML
NORML (The National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws) is just one organization that Willie Nelson has worked with through the years. The organization has been pushing for the legalization of marijuana in the United States since 1970. Nelson worked with the organization for decades, and he’s also been a longtime advocate of marijuana legalization on his own. Few country stars have done the same.
3. The Outlaw Country Movement
Willie Nelson is a pivotal figure in the outlaw country movement. A noteworthy subgenre of country music that is still beloved today, outlaw country came to be in the mid-1970s amidst the boom of polished and pop-leaning Nashville country music trends. Nelson, along with artists like Kris Kristofferson and Waylon Jennings, spearheaded the movement and rejected convention.
4. Founding Farm Aid
Probably one of the greatest things Willie Nelson has ever done that defied expectations has to be the founding of Farm Aid. Launched in 1985, Nelson co-founded the annual music festival with John Mellencamp and Neil Young as an offshoot of Live Aid.
Farm Aid, specifically, was designed to raise money for local American family farmers. The benefit concert has been going strong for decades, and it also broke a few stereotypes about country music. Rather than feature only country acts, Farm Aid has featured artists in the folk and rock categories as well. During a time when few celebrities were involved in grassroots efforts to help their fellow man, Farm Aid was a welcomed change of perception.
Photo by Gary Miller/Getty Images for Shock Ink
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