When you get together to listen to the musings of some of the great cowboy poets and musicians of the West, it’s easy to find yourself carried away to another place or another time, moved by the power of these artists’ thoughtful words and the pictures they paint for us through their verse. But how does an artist protect themselves from another coming along and taking credit for the work they’ve so thoughtfully crafted over the years? Well that’s the question our friend Jacqueline sent in to us from Facebook this last month, looking to get a better understanding of the way these poet masters operate. It sure intrigued us, and we hope you enjoy what they each had to say in return.

Don’t forget you can follow us on Facebook and Instagram to send in your own questions to ask our cowboy poets! Email submissions can also be sent to media@westernfolklife.org.

This month’s question is one I think we’ve all wanted to ask the poets we’ve seen perform at one point or another over the years. It gives us all a unique opportunity to remember why we come to the Gather year after year to watch these artists and others perform their craft, what it means to them, and how it translates back to us in our lives. Our friends at Buckaroo Bling submitted their question through Instagram:

“I'd like to ask your advisors how/why they became poets. Is it to make the hard ranching life easier by putting their feelings down on paper? Or is it to prove that country folk are as articulate and talented as anybody else? Or for some entirely different reason?" - @buckaroobling