"I'm a little bit country..." "I'm a little bit gangsta..."

There's so much division in this country. Politics, religion, class, and the big one - race.

Racial tension is running high these days. Just look at the controversies surrounding the George Zimmerman trial and the Supreme Court's Voting Rights Act decision.

Well...I'm going to do it. I'm going to bridge the widening gap threatening to tear our great nation apart. I'm going to show how two distinct subcultures of this country have more in common with each other than they think.

I know nobody asked me to do this, but I'm going to anyway.

You're welcome, America.

How will I accomplish this? Simple: with the power of music!

Music is often a strong identifier, sometimes even creator, of many subcultures. What would hippies listen to without The Grateful Dead or Phish? How else would punks, goths, and emo kids know how to dress and accessorize without inspiration from the latest alternative rockers? Where would a hipster be without his/her indie bands you've never heard of?

These are all small examples compared to the two groups I'm going to attempt to bring together; to illustrate the basic similarity of their fundamental beliefs/behaviors/attitudes.

I'm talking about urban vs. rural. Black vs. white. Inner city vs. never-seen-a-real-city. I'm talking about rap vs. country.

Let's face it - these two genres of music, generally speaking, have very different stars and usually attract two very different kinds of audiences. Race is just one difference, but it is a big one.

There are examples to the contrary, obviously. But I bet Darius Rucker doesn't see a lot of similar faces when he plays a concert (though he probably does see a few very confused Hootie and the Blowfish fans at every show). Hip-hop as a whole does include many white faces these days. But hardcore rap remains a genre dominated by and associated with African-Americans.

However, there are strong similarities between country and rap, and within the subcultures they fall under.

Turn on the radio. Whether it's country, hip-hop, or gangsta rap, what do you hear? What are they singing about? What are the biggest hits?

Whether it's "U.O.E.N.O", "Rich as Fuck", "Boys 'Round Here", or "Red Solo Cup" the theme remains the same. Parties, alcohol, sex, and drugs. The preferred alcohol may vary, the party locations differ, the drugs often illicit in one (cocaine, marijuana, ecstasy) and legal in the other (tobacco, nicotine), but the overall story remains the same. Loose women, hot guys, and wild times for all involved.

I realize, of course, this is nothing new. Rock 'n roll, before becoming the name of a music genre, was a euphemism for sex. That genre has long been blamed as the instigator for decadence and sin (to which I ask, what do you think Frank Sinatra is singing about in "Strangers in the Night"?).

Along those lines, love and sex are two common themes in country or rap/hip-hop. Male country singers seem obsessed with girls in denim short-shorts, and rappers don't mind turning their attention in that direction either (I'm looking at you, Sir Mix-A-Lot!). But you can find the softer ballads of love and desire in both as well.

However, country and rap/hip-hop are full of douchebags. Grade-A assholes. Men (and some women) who are looking to flaunt what they got and take whatever they need. There are plenty of country and rap artists willing to fulfill that role.

People love a bigshot, a braggart. They may not want to admit it, but they do. People aspire to have money, fame, wealth, and legions of men/women flocking toward them. The people singing onstage have that already - the common man/woman wants a piece of it, too. That's why popular music trends toward songs that glorify a bigshot lifestyle, regardless of genre. Many country and rap artists exploit that to the fullest.

Doesn't matter if it's Lil Wayne or Toby Keith. Rappers may be obsessed with "swag," but it was cowboys who invented swagger.

And don't get me started on guns! On one hand you have the fanbase that will cling to their guns at the expense of law, order, and human lives; and on the other you have the group that applied the rules of gang warfare to the music industry (sorry, folks; Tupac really is dead). As antagonistic as these two subcultures can be toward one another, the one thing they can agree on - keep the guns!

That's what makes this so funny. Rap and country are two sides of the same coin. Rap and country artists, and the subcultures surrounding each, revel in their differences from mainstream society.

Lots of country singers have proclaimed, in song or otherwise, how they are different politically and socially from the rest of America (see "Boys 'Round Here" ... God, that song is pretentious!). And their fans agree. Country music, rural America, and conservative politics are like connecting pieces of the same jigsaw puzzle.

In the same vein, rap artists and fans identify with a mindset in which the American government and people have treated them horribly for generations. Naturally, there would be a backlash. African-Americans came to this country as slaves and have faced treatment as second-class citizens (to varying degrees depending on time and location) ever since. No wonder rap takes shots at the system; at white people! No wonder a song like "Fuck tha Police" exists! No wonder there is a mutual distrust going on.

Now I know a lot of this blog has been generalizations and stereotypes. There are plenty of meaningful country and rap songs. Not all country singers and fans are ignorant rednecks and not all rap artists and fans are thugs. But there are enough that fit each stereotype, or at least pretend to for the sake of appearances within their subculture, that the generalizations contain strong elements of truth.

Each genre represents their unique subculture, yet do so in surprisingly similar ways. The similarities are so apparent yet the relationship so frayed that if it weren't so funny, it would be really sad.

There has been crossover between the two genres. Justified may have the greatest theme song of any show on TV right now. Blake Shelton claims to not know anyone who can do the dougie, but that sick beat suggests he's been hanging out at clubs where the people do.

However, if the Brad Paisley-LL Cool J controversy and criticism is any indication, there's a long way to go.

This blog has merely been a lighthearted attempt to encourage more crossover; not just between music, but between people. To point out the sameness of two unique sections of the American social landscape. While also taking cheap shots at both (because that's how I roll).

Because at a basic fundamental level, everyone is the same. Country or rap. Black or white.

So if you're a fan of country music and start ragging on how rap music objectifies women, take another listen to "Honky Tonk Badonkadonk" or "She Cranks My Tractor." And if as a rap fan you start degrading all country singers and listeners as bigoted, ignorant rednecks, take another listen to any Jay-Z album and count the number of times he uses the N-word because it's probably more than any country album.