Question: When did one of the singer-songwriters of Heartland rock rise to fame? 
Context: John J Mellencamp (born October 7, 1951), previously known as Johnny Cougar, John Cougar, and John Cougar Mellencamp, is an American musician, singer-songwriter, painter, and actor.  He is known for his catchy, populist brand of heartland rock, which emphasizes traditional instrumentation.  Mellencamp rose to fame in the 1980s while "honing an almost startlingly plainspoken writing style that, starting in 1982, yielded a string of Top 10 singles", including "Hurts So Good", "Jack & Diane", "Crumblin' Down", "Pink Houses", "Lonely Ol' Night", "Small Town", "R.O.C.K. in the U.S.A.", "Paper in Fire", and "Cherry Bomb".  He has amassed 22 Top 40 hits in the United States.  In addition, he holds the record for the most tracks by a solo artist to hit number one on the Hot Mainstream Rock Tracks chart, with seven.  Mellencamp has been nominated for 13 Grammy Awards, winning one.  Mellencamp released his latest album, "Sad Clowns & Hillbillies", on April 28, 2017, to widespread critical acclaim. Danny and the Champions of the World are a heartland rock and soul band.  Formed in London during the summer of 2007 by Danny George Wilson, the band have since released six studio albums and one live album.  The band's name is an allusion to the novel "Danny, the Champion of the World" by Roald Dahl. Larry Crane (born October 8, 1956) is an American rock musician and songwriter from Seymour, Indiana.   From 1976 until 1991, he appeared alongside John Mellencamp as guitarist and contributor to the arrangements and production of the Mellencamp sound (often labelled as "heartland rock.") BoDeans is a rock band formed in Waukesha, Wisconsin in 1983.  In 1985, the band signed a contract with Slash Records and recorded their critically acclaimed debut album, "Love & Hope & Sex & Dreams".  Early on, the BoDeans' sound was largely influenced by roots rock and heartland rock, but they began to move more into the genre of alternative rock by their second album.  In the late 1980s and early 1990s, the band had several singles in the top 40 mainstream rock charts.  In the mid-1990s, the band had two top 10 songs in the adult contemporary charts.  In recent years, the band has made a return to their roots rock origins.  BoDeans have a permanent installation at the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame Museum in Cleveland. This is the discography of Bruce Springsteen, an American songwriter, singer and musician.  Springsteen has released records steadily since 1973, and is widely known for his brand of heartland rock infused with pop hooks, poetic lyrics, and Americana sentiments centered on his native New Jersey.  The E Street Band have been Springsteen's primary backing band since 1972 and have appeared on a majority of his studio albums and live releases.  Springsteen also released one studio and live album with The Sessions Band. Alternative country (sometimes alt-country, insurgent country, or Americana) is a loosely defined subgenre of country music, which includes acts that differ significantly in style from mainstream country music and pop country music.  Alternative country artists are often influenced by alternative rock.  However, the term has been used to describe country music bands and artists that have incorporated influences ranging from alternative rock, indie rock, roots rock, bluegrass, neotraditional country, punk rock, rockabilly, punkabilly, honky-tonk, outlaw country, progressive rock or progressive country, folk rock, indie folk, folk revival, hard rock, R&B, country rock, heartland rock, Southern metal, Southern rock, experimental music, electronica or folktronica, and psychedelic rock. Emil & the Warmlanders is a Swedish heartland rock/revival rock group, consisting of ordinary rock band set plus a brass section and a violin.  The leadsinger and songwriter, Emil Karlsson, is strongly influenced by such artists as Bruce Springsteen and Stefan Andersson. Heartland rock is a genre of rock music that is exemplified by the commercial success of singer-songwriters Bruce Springsteen, Bob Seger, Tom Petty, and John Mellencamp.  It is characterized by a straightforward musical style, a concern with the average, blue-collar American life, and a conviction that rock music has a social or communal purpose beyond just entertainment. Michael Stanley (born March 25, 1948 as Michael Stanley Gee in Cleveland, Ohio) is an American singer-songwriter, musician, and radio personality.  Both as a solo artist and with the Michael Stanley Band, his brand of heartland rock was popular in Cleveland and around the American Midwest in the 1970s and 1980s. John Brannen (born March 19, 1952, Savannah, Georgia, United States) is an American roots rock/ heartland rock, singer-songwriter whose song, "Somebody," appeared on the Eagles album, "Long Road Out of Eden".  Brannen is heralded as an "underground legend," and has been active as a songwriter and performer since the early 1980s.
Answer: 1980s