Country pop is a subgenre of
country music and
pop music that developed as a result of the country genre's desire to reach a larger, mainstream audience. By producing country songs that employed many styles and sounds found in pop music, the country music industry was effective in gaining new listeners without alienating its traditional country audience. It is a continuation of similar efforts that began in the late-1950s originally known as
Nashville sound and later on
Countrypolitan. By the mid-1970s, many country artists were transitioning to the pop-country sound which led to some records charting high on mainstream
top 40 as well as country
Billboard charts.