I wouldn't say "abused" as much as laughed at and ignored. It shows that you really don't know what the town is. It's the same as people who come in and talk about "country western" music. "Country and Western" was never a Nashville thing. It was a Hollywood thing with the Saturday morning serials like Roy Rodgers and Gene Autrey.
It's kind of the giveaway that you are out of touch and out of date.

What it IS, is a RED FLAG you are waving for sharks, Charletons, etc. trying to throw schemes and scams to take your money. Why don't you just put a big bullseye on your back, and hang some hundred dollar bills out of your pockets? Be about the same thing. The "Hat acts" of the 80's and 90' have given away to "cap acts" (frontward and backwards), sunglasses, (Eric Church) and LOTS, LOTS, LOTS, LOTS of FLANNEL. I think they all hit the bargain bin sales from the Seattle guys getting RID of their's.

Now you see the "BEARDED WONDERS" who all are wearing the same flannel shirts, beards down to their stomach (do these guys get beard extensions?) and all are trying to sound like pale imitations of CHRIS STAPLETON and JAMEY JOHNSON. All they do is remind us how much they are NOT CHRIS STAPLETON AND JAMEY JOHNSON.

Most of all it is just people being who they are NOT. You should be yourself, everybody else is taken.

There is not, and has never been, a dress code. There are just people being people. Now it's June, and HOT AND MUGGY! A huge thunderstorm is blowing through and I'm playing in a couple of hours. So a lot of shorts are around, even onstage. But if you are having actual MEETINGS, you should dress like you are going to a meeting. But be casual. And the thing is this. Most people are not going to even meet with you until they know you a bit. So the dress code will pretty much be a moot point by the time a meeting comes up.

Be yourself.
MAB