I call almost all non-Classical music Pop, except perhaps Jazz. Pop because the music is song-centric, all else flowing from that fact. Jazz is as much about the musicians improvising as it is about the song itself, more than Rock, and even Blues. Country too is Pop, especially these days, contemporary Country that enjoys mass popularity and consumption barely recognizable as true Country.
But there has always been, and continues to be, plenty of good, interesting songs and music being made that flies under the radar of commercial radio, television, and most print media. John Hiatt has been making great music for a long time, as have Loudon Wainwright III, Jim Lauderdale, Buddy Miller, Rodney Crowell, Emmylou Harris, Iris Dement, Patty Loveless, Gillian Welch, Danny Gatton, the two songwriters from Uncle Tupelo, NRBQ, Los Lobos, Nick Lowe, and hundreds of others. And that’s not even mentioning the younger, newer quality artists and entertainers.
The ability of singers and bands to record cheaply and self-release their music has ended the stranglehold the big record companies for decades held (since the end of WWII, at least) on the availability of recorded music. Free at last! You have to know where to look, but the good stuff is out there, and at less cost than ever before (except for those boutique-pressed 180g LP’s).