Country music gets documented better than most people expect, partly because the stories are genuinely good and partly because Nashville has always understood that its own history is an asset.
The most useful starting point is not a feature film at all. Ken Burns’ Country Music is an eight-part series with enough room for the genre’s major shifts, institutions and contradictions. From there, the recent Netflix profiles offer narrower stories and more immediate access to the artists themselves.
Recent artist profiles offer a more intimate counterpoint, especially when they move beyond campaign polish and let the subject’s contradictions remain visible.
A film earns its place here by explaining something about the genre rather than merely celebrating it.
Everything on this page, at a glance
The full list with credits, so you can scan it before committing to eight hours of Ken Burns.
| Film | Year | Director |
|---|---|---|
| Country Music, Ken Burns | 2019 | Ken Burns |
| Heartworn Highways | 1976 | James Szalapski |
| Dolly Parton, Here I Am | 2019 | Francis Whately |
| Shania Twain, Not Just a Girl | 2022 | Joss Crowley |
| Lainey Wilson, Keepin’ Country Cool | 2026 | Amy Scott |
| Lainey Wilson, Bell Bottom Country | 2024 | |
| Jason Isbell, Running With Our Eyes Closed | 2021 | Sam Jones |
| They Called Us Outlaws | 2026 | Eric Geadelmann and Kelly Magelky |
| Johnny Cash, American Rebel | 2015 | Jordan Tappis and Derik Murray |
Start here
Country Music, 2019. Ken Burns, eight episodes, the full story from the Carter Family through the present. It is a commitment and it is worth it. What makes it work is that Burns takes the music seriously without ever getting reverential about it, and he lets the artists contradict each other.
Trailer for Country Music, from PBS.
Heartworn Highways, 1976. James Szalapski shot it in Nashville and Austin when outlaw country was just people drinking on porches and playing each other songs, and it is the one that belongs on any list, including our seventies list.
Trailer for Heartworn Highways, from Kino Lorber. It sat unreleased for years and it looks it in the best way. Guy Clark, Townes Van Zandt, Steve Earle, all young and none of them famous yet.
Dolly Parton, Here I Am, 2019. Francis Whately directs, and it is Dolly on her own terms, which is the only way Dolly does anything. Good on the business mind behind the persona, which is the part casual fans miss.
The modern profiles
Shania Twain, Not Just a Girl, 2022. Joss Crowley directs and it is better than the title suggests. It is honest about the period when she lost her voice and her marriage at the same time, which she had never talked about at length.
Trailer for Shania Twain: Not Just a Girl, from Shania Twain.
Lainey Wilson, Keepin’ Country Cool, 2026. Amy Scott directs, and this is the newest on this list and one of the better artist profiles in a while. Wilson is unusually candid about the economics of modern songwriting, including the line about how nobody can make a living on streaming fractions alone.
Lainey Wilson, Bell Bottom Country, 2024. The earlier Lainey Wilson film, made for ABC before her current run. Worth watching alongside the newer one to see how much changed in two years.
Jason Isbell, Running With Our Eyes Closed, 2021. Sam Jones directs what is essentially two songwriters married to each other making a record together. Uncomfortable in the way that real relationships are uncomfortable, and neither of them flatters themselves.
Trailer for Jason Isbell: Running With Our Eyes Closed, from HBO.
The ones with history behind them
They Called Us Outlaws, 2026. Eric Geadelmann and Kelly Magelky spent years on the movement itself, from Willie Nelson and Waylon Jennings outward, with Jessi Colter involved as an executive producer. It runs to ten parts, which sounds like a lot until you see how much of this had simply never been filmed, and it is the widest available picture of a movement the main list keeps bumping into.
Johnny Cash, American Rebel, 2015. Jordan Tappis and Derik Murray build it around twelve Cash songs, each one standing for a chapter of his life. The standard Cash documentary, and it works because Cash’s life needs no embellishment.
Ken Burns’ three part approach to American roots music in general is worth seeking out if you like the Country Music series, since Burns returned to the broader subject more than once.
Where to watch
Availability moves constantly, so check your region before you plan an evening around anything here.
Netflix carries Dolly Parton, Here I Am, Shania Twain, Not Just a Girl, and Keepin’ Country Cool. It adds country profiles faster than any other service, usually timed to album cycles.
Hulu has Bell Bottom Country and several concert films.
Amazon Prime has Jason Isbell, Running With Our Eyes Closed and a rotating selection of rentals.
Ken Burns’ Country Music is a PBS production and has historically been available through PBS streaming rather than the big commercial services, so check there first.
Frequently asked questions
What is the best country music documentary? Ken Burns’ Country Music, 2019. Eight episodes covering the full history. For a single film, Heartworn Highways, 1976.
Where can I watch Ken Burns’ Country Music? It is a PBS production, so check PBS streaming first rather than Netflix or Amazon. Availability elsewhere has varied.
What is the best country music documentary on Netflix? Dolly Parton, Here I Am, 2019, for the definitive subject. Lainey Wilson, Keepin’ Country Cool, 2026, for something new.
Are there good country music documentaries about the outlaw movement? Yes. Heartworn Highways, 1976, is the outlaw film to start with, and They Called Us Outlaws, 2026, runs to ten parts if you want the movement explained properly.
Is there a documentary about the Grand Ole Opry? Several have been made over the years. Check the main best music documentaries list for current availability since these rotate often.