Jamey Johnson Walks Off Stage After Crowd Won’t Shut Up During “Lead Me Home”

Jamey Johnson country music
@candacechristine

Jamey Johnson doesn’t play games.

One of the premiere singer songwriters in country music, and one of traditional country music’s greatest champions, Jamey has never been one to hold back when it comes to speaking his mind.

Just last month, Jamey made headlines for telling radio DJs to stay the f*ck off the stage.

When some local pop country radio DJs from KX96.9 took the stage between sets at a show in Lincoln, Nebraska, Jamey let them know that they were not welcome.

He said:

“There was a radio station that came out on this stage uninvited to run a little pep rally before I came out. I feel like I oughta tell you, I don’t really care what radio station you listen to in the morning, they’re all good.

They’re all good, that one ain’t no better than any of the other ones. And the thing is, none of them play my music, so why should they be up on my stage talking to you?

I thought we had a good deal worked out. Y’all don’t play my music, and I don’t play yours, so stay the fuck off my stage.

‘Kix’ whatever the fuck your name is… who gives a shit…”

And while Jamey’s team did reach out to the station for an apology, it’s just an example of the “take no sh*t” kind of attitude we’ve come to know and love from Jamey (who also happens to be one of the nicest and funniest guys in the business).

But last night in Baton Rouge, nobody was laughing when Jamey decided to call the show in the middle of a performance of “Lead Me Home.”

Written by Randy Houser and Craig Monday, “Lead Me Home” is the final track from Johnson’s 2006 album, The Dollar, and a song he frequently plays to close out his show.

But when the crowd wouldn’t get quiet, he just said… “goodnight.”

“Goodnight…

I love performing with y’all but I cannot express crying while conversations are going on, and it’s time we go home anyway. I love you, y’all have a good night.

If you think I’m wrong come up here and talk to me about it.”

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Can’t blame him…

A few fans took to Twitter to offer up an apology on behalf of the crowd.

Here’s a performance of “Lead Me Home” from Farm Aid 2021:

If you remember back to a few years ago, Aaron Lewis tried closing out shows during his acoustic State I’m In Tour with an unplugged version of “Thank You.” 

No microphones, no amps, just Aaron and a guitar. And while an unplugged performance like that does require the crowd to shut up, it can be a pretty tall order in a room of a thousand people.

Aaron’s exit was a little more colorful…

Jamey Johnson On Covering The Country Music Greats

Talk about wisdom from a legend.

Jamey Johnson is about as real as they come, as he prides himself in writing songs about real life, everything from hardships growing up, to personal experiences.

Recently, he sat down for an interview with the Country Music Hall of Fame, discussing the importance of carrying on the legacy of country stars who both inspired and came before him.

In the video, he talks about how many of the all time greats in country music have passed on, from Merle Haggard, to Johnny Cash, to George Jones.

His biggest fear is that shallow songwriting about “beer” and “partyin'” could erase the memory and importance of the true country music legends.

“Without people like me out there covering their songs, they just stop. If nobody was singing Johnny Cash, there’s a whole generation that would grow up without Johnny Cash. And if you ask me, that’s not gonna be a good world.

The young artists today… it’s important they learn those songs, it’s important that they pass it along. That you pay respect but that you also pass along the ministry of those important singers.

They had a lot to say that matters.”

He also discussed how he didn’t realize the importance and relatability of those songs until a little later in his music career:

“You don’t realize that until you get some age to ya… when I was young, I didn’t understand Merle Haggard lyrics, the same way that I did when I got to be 25, 30, 40 years old.

Those lyrics hold more truth, and more wisdom, and more meaning than you could possibly realize.

I just view myself as a torch that’s passing down (music) from one generation to the next, and if I could be used in that way, maybe that’s a good purpose.”

Real recognizes real.

All I gotta say is, we need some new Jamey Johnson music soon. It’s been way too long.

Unfortunately, we got a false alarm here recently as one of Johnson’s bandmates told the world there was a new album in the works, but Johnson declined the rumors.

And speaking of covers, check out this badass video of Jamey covering a George Jones medley:

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