‘Cold War Country’ garners international acclaim for MSU historian
Contact: Sarah Nicholas
STARKVILLE, Miss.—Mississippi State faculty member Joseph Thompson continues to earn widespread recognition for his groundbreaking work on the intersection of music and military history, earning an international award for his acclaimed book “Cold War Country: How Nashville’s Music Row and the Pentagon Created the Sound of American Patriotism.”
The International Country Music Conference recognized Thompson, an assistant professor in MSU’s history department, with the 2025 Belmont University Curb Music Industry Award for Country Music Book of the Year, showcasing the global impact of his research on the cultural and political forces that shaped this genre.
Held annually in Nashville, Tennessee, the ICMC is a global gathering of scholars, historians, journalists and musicians dedicated to examining the past, present and future of country music. Since its founding in 1983, the conference has highlighted research on the genre’s influence across both American and international landscapes.
Thompson’s book, published in 2024 by the University of North Carolina Press, traces the ties between the country music industry and the U.S. Department of Defense, revealing how this alliance helped construct a particular image of American patriotism through this music.
“The ICMC’s commitment to fostering country music scholarship is unparalleled, so it’s an incredible honor to receive this award,” Thompson said. “‘Cold War Country’ reveals how Nashville’s music industry joined with the Defense Department to sell country music as a particularly patriotic genre to listeners at home and around the globe. In fact, the U.S. military is one of the main drivers for country music’s popularity with international audiences. I’m grateful that the ICMC saw the value in analyzing music and politics in this way.”
Drawing on extensive archival research—from the National Archives to the Smithsonian and Country Music Hall of Fame—Thompson illustrates how artists like Roy Acuff, Elvis Presley and George Strait became part of a broader ideological project that linked music, nationalism and military power.
Earlier this spring, Thompson’s book also was named a finalist for the Los Angeles Times Book Prize in history, placing him among just five authors nationwide to be recognized in the category.
For more information about MSU’s College of Arts and Sciences and the Department of History, visit www.cas.msstate.edu and www.history.msstate.edu.
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