There's an African influence in most things southern, particularly music. The banjo originated in Africa. Both country music and blues spun off of Gospel, as did rock and roll. I know plenty of rural black folks, farmers, who quietly appreciate country music. Hold to the tradition and play the music; if you're good, appreciation will follow. There's an audience, and always has been, stereotypes of urban would-be "change agents" notwithstanding.
I remember reading one of the history of rock-n-roll books around 1970, I can't recall the author; but when he came to "I Can't Stop Loving You" he was so outraged that you would think that Ray had killed Kennedy. In a similar vein regarding racial stereotyping, a Chuck Berry Anthology CD liner notes compare Chuck and Elvis by saying (pardon the political incorrectness-these are the printed quotes) that Elvis was "a hillbilly who sang with that colored feeling" while asking about Chuck's fondness for country music, "Who is that black hillbilly?"