Country music originated in the southern United States in the 1920s where it evolved as a fusion of Appalachian music and Blues largely through the efforts of commercial record producers who sought to popularize traditional folk melodies from the rural United States.
[2] Country was introduced to Nigeria in the middle 20th century by a combination of visiting American Christian missionaries from the southern United States, by returning Nigerian expatriates, and by a Don Williams-owned radio station that operated in the nation.
[6] By the early 2010s, interest in country music had lessened in major metropolitan areas, but continued to enjoy popularity in Middle Belt states, notably including Plateau, whose state capital Jos has been described as Nigeria's "home of country music".
[3] American country singer Jim Reeves, who died in 1964, has had a special staying power as a cultural icon in Nigeria and, as of the early 2010s, his recordings continued to be popular as a form of comfort music listened to in familial settings.
[7] However, a small number of Nigerian country and country-western musical acts have gained varying levels of popularity including Emma Ogosi, Ogak Jay Oke, Bongos Ikwue, and Poor Charley Akaa.