The hick hop renaissance (BigXthaPlug and Bailey Zimmerman)

Switched on Pop

Vox Media Podcast Network

Music Interviews, Music History, Music, Music Commentary

4.6 • 2.7K Ratings

🗓️ 24 June 2025

⏱️ 36 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

One of the biggest country hits of the year has been "All The Way," by Texas rapper BigXthaPlug and country rocker Bailey Zimmerman, which peaked at #4 on the Billboard Hot 100. The song is a perfectly mixed cocktail of trap sonics with country melodies, held together by a shared southern drawl between the two artists. As the genre of "country" expands and morphs to include different sounds, artists, and styles, "All The Way" serves as an exemplary example of the country-rap hybrid done right. But the song isn't the first to feature an unlikely collaboration across the genre aisle. This episode of Switched On Pop, we go deep on this collab and others, to see what works and what doesn't when the gates that keep the country music industry separate are swung wide open. Songs Discussed: BigXthaPlug, Bailey Zimmerman – All The Way BigXthaPlug – Texas War – Slipping Into Darkness BigXthaPlug – The Largest Bailey Zimmerman – Where It Ends Lil Nas X, Billy Ray Cyrus – Old Town Road Eminem, Rihanna – Love The Way You Lie Nelly – Country Grammar (Hot Shit) Nelly, Tim McGraw – Over And Over Florida Georgia Line, Nelly – Cruise - Remix Ernest, Snoop Dogg – Gettin' Gone Lil Durk, Morgan Wallen – Broadway Girls Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Transcript

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0:00.0	Support for Switched on Pop comes from Sonos.
0:03.5	There's so many moments in songs that blow your mind every time you hear them.
0:07.7	For me, one of them is the way that when you hear a snare drum, it tells you exactly what
0:13.2	decade the music was made in.
0:15.0	Like, if you hear that big gated reverb, it's obviously the 80s.
0:18.1	If it's super dry, it's the 70s.
0:20.6	Even the way that a drum machine snare drum is processed can tell you if it's like a early 2000s thing or something much more contemporary. And I feel like that kind of musical artistry deserves headphones that can keep up, like the Sonos Ace headphones. They deliver clarity on each note so you can dive deeper than ever before
0:38.8	into all your favorite songs. Hear the difference for yourself. Go to sonos.com to learn more.
0:48.8	Welcome to Switchdown Pop. I'm producer Rihanna Cruz.
0:55.9	I'm musicologist Nate Sloan. And I'm songwriter Charlie Harding.
0:59.3	And welcome back to what I lovingly like to call Switched On Country, where this week we're
1:05.4	looking at some of the biggest country songs on the Billboard Hot 100.
1:10.6	There's been one country song in particular that has captured my attention.
1:14.8	And it's called All the Way by Dallas rapper Big X the Plug featuring Bailey Zimmerman.
1:21.8	Take us all the way.
1:23.0	Don't let me down easy.
1:25.4	If you're going to leave me,, baby Go and leave me all the way
1:29.6	If it's over it's over so fucking
1:31.3	You don't act like my love wasn't nothing
1:33.0	Like I wasn't the one you was holding that night
1:35.1	Till I'm all of your secrets and hug
1:36.5	That is fun
	...

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