
It might be an exaggeration to say he was the “first guy,” but he was certainly a key figure in the popularization of country music.
It might be an exaggeration to say he was the “first guy,” but he was certainly a key figure in the popularization of country music.
Not an exaggeration. Total fact. Every country music station before Brinkley jumped in was local to regional only. He was the first person to take country music national, then international. This was later on, when he built his border blaster in Mexico, but he did it. He’s the guy.
Of course we should remember that’s not what he cared about. All he was interested in was casting a wider net for suckers, and spreading country music was a means to that end.