Samic, I am happy to hear your wife is a country fan.
I am incredibly analytical so maybe I make it more difficult than it has to be.
When I listen to artist like Martina McBride, Faith Hill, Sara Evans, Ashley Monroe, I could go on and on... I think that they each have their own incredible talent. Martina has an incredible range that she contributed to listening and singing along with Pat Benatar on a crossroads show on CMT. My favorite Croosroads by the way. LOL! I guess I can only speak from my experience of trying to sing cover songs by these types of women. Ashley Monroe has incredible diaphragm control. I really have to work at singing her song Satisfied. Not that there aren't other genres out there that one could struggle with, I guess it is just that I have more experience with this one.
I also feel that you are right Samic, a small portion of country music is laid back, but ,to me anyway, it is so full of emotion which affects me and I don't feel laid back, whether it is because I want to go out with Carrie Underwood and take the bat to her cheating boyfriends truck or to try and protect the little girl in Martina's Concrete Angel, or even get inspired by Martina's new song Anyway. She says in the song, " You can chase a dream that seems so out of reach you know it might not ever come your way
Dream it anyway" I try to live my life by this motto.
I can site one example off the top of my head of a male vocalist with incredible range. That is Chris Young. He won nashville star and his first release was a song he co wrote with a friend. Drinkin me Lonely. In that song, he talks about the hurt of losing someone. And he hits some high notes that I think, wow, that is amazing.
Well Samic, ask your wife, I am sure she can site some of her favorite singers/songwriters! But I hope these examples maybe in the most minute form help let you know where I am coming from.
V&B age ain't nothin' but a number!

And that is exactly what this forum is for, sharing your opinions and I guess a little gossip if that is what you want to share. haha.