Americana traditionalists come in a variety of flavours, from acoustic purists who think the music died when geetars went electric to those who believe it reached its apogee during the countrypolitan era of the early ’60s. But they’re all clear on one thing: what’s coming out of Nashville today sounds a lot more like classic rock than anything Mother Maybelle Carter would have known and loved.

Martina McBride doesn’t disagree—and, more to the point, she doesn’t think there’s anything wrong with that.

“I’m a big fan of ’80s rock music,” says the singer, who counts working with Pat Benatar as one of the highlights of a career that has also generated nine gold albums, five number-one singles, and enough industry awards to fill a long-box Ford.

“Country music is so much different than a lot of people have the stereotype of it being, you know,” she continues, on the line from Music City. “A lot of artists and producers and musicians who make country records grew up listening to all kinds of music”¦.People tend to think of country music as being about a certain thing or a certain kind of style, and it’s really much broader than that.”

For proof, she cites her latest release, Shine. Coproduced with session guitarist Dan Huff—whose credits include hits with Michael Jackson, Céline Dion, and Paula Abdul—it’s full of rock and pop references, from the Bob Ezrin–influenced production touches on “I Just Call You Mine” to the George Harrison–style slide solo on “Wrong Baby Wrong Baby Wrong”.

“My hope was that Dan would bring out something different in me, and something new and fresh,” says the 43-year-old singer, who’ll guest at this weekend’s Canadian Country Music Awards gala. “And I really have loved his work. He’s an amazing musician, and somebody I really respect and trust. So, really, it was just putting my music into his hands to see what he would do with it—and then, obviously, putting my stamp on it as well.”

From a purely sonic perspective, McBride’s Kansas twang is one of the few things that links her music to old-school country. But she has the final say when it comes to choosing her material, and she tends to go for songs that reflect those age-old country-music staples: love and heartache.

“Country-music fans listen to country music for expressions of real life, what they’re going through—songs that they can identify with, and songs that make them feel better,” she notes. “And for me, it’s pretty simple, really: I have to love the song. It has to hit me emotionally and melodically, and it has to feel like something that I want to live with.”

Which, in the case of Shine, can mean everything from catchy jingles (McBride’s own “Sunny Side Up”) to brutal tales of family dysfunction (“Wild Rebel Rose”).

“I think there are songs on here for everybody,” says McBride. “There are songs about being happy, there are songs about heartache and hurt, there are songs about hope and love. One thing about country music is it really embraces and expresses the emotion of whatever feeling you’re trying to get across.”

Martina McBride headlines the Canadian Country Music Awards gala at GM Place on Sunday (September 13).