Navajo Country Music Shatters ‘Cowboys and Indians’ Stereotypes
At highway honky-tonks, casino lounges and far-flung dance halls, a form of music that many associate with rural white America is flourishing in the heart of Indian country. Dozens of bands vie for shows on the circuit each week, reflecting how one of the largest tribes in the United States is shattering long-held stereotypes of “cowboys and Indians.”
While other Native American tribes have long put their own stamp on country music, none have done so quite like the Navajo, who have forged a constantly changing genre that chronicles life on the reservation and beyond.
One factor nurturing the music’s vibrancy here is the sheer size of the Navajo Nation, spreading over 27,000 square miles in Arizona, New Mexico and Utah. The Diné, as many Navajo prefer to call themselves, number more than 330,000 on reservation lands and beyond.
Tanya Paul at the ticket counter at the Redd's Event Center, where the 2nd Annual Bad Country Music Festival took place in Shiprock, New Mexico.
Navajo country band Sateline plays at the Club Red in Mesa, Arizona.
A couple embraced at Stateline’s show at the Shalimar Lounge and Dance Hall in Gallup, N.M
Five dollar cover charge for Sateline’s performance at the Shalimar Lounge in Gallup, New Mexico.
Fans took selfies in the bathroom during a break in Stateline’s show.