A presidential candidate giving out an endorsement of his own.
Jason Aldean has drawn a lot of controversy over the last couple of days for his newest single, “Try That In a Small Town.”
Released in May and written by Kelley Lovelace, Kurt Allison, Neil Thrasher and Tully Kennedy, the song takes a direct shot at rioting and looting in big cities while also taking a strong stance on gun control:
“Got a gun that my granddad gave meThey say one day they’re gonna round upWell, that sh*t might fly in the city, good luck
Try that in a small town
See how far ya make it down the road
‘Round here, we take care of our own
You cross that line, it won’t take long
For you to find out, I recommend you don’t
Try that in a small town”
He released a video for the song last week that features imagery of riots and looting from around the world, while Aldean sings in front of the Maury County courthouse in Columbia, Tennessee.
But many online have accused the outspoken country singer of featuring racist lyrics and imagery in both the song and video, with the outcry leading CMT to pull the video from their rotation. And still others cried foul on a pro-gun anthem coming from the headliner of the Route 91 Harvest Festival, after Aldean was on stage when the massacre broke out in Las Vegas in 2017.
In a statement released on social media, Aldean called the accusations “not only meritless, but dangerous,” pointing out that the video features real news footage and none of the lyrics reference race.
In the past 24 hours I have been accused of releasing a pro-lynching song (a song that has been out since May) and was subject to the comparison that I (direct quote) was not too pleased with the nationwide BLM protests. These references are not only meritless, but dangerous.…
— Jason Aldean (@Jason_Aldean) July 18, 2023
The song has climbed to the top of the iTunes charts amid the controversy, and many high-profile voices have jumped into the conversation.
Yesterday, Sheryl Crow tweeted her thoughts on the song, calling it “lame” and “not American or small town-like.”
.@Jason_Aldean I’m from a small town. Even people in small towns are sick of violence.There’s nothing small-town or American about promoting violence. You should know that better than anyone having survived a mass shooting.
This is not American or small town-like. It’s just lame https://t.co/cuOtUO9xjr
— Sheryl Crow (@SherylCrow) July 19, 2023
And now the debate has entered the political arena.
Vivek Ramaswamy, a presidential candidate who’s seeking the Republican nomination, posted to Twitter in support of Aldean and the song – and even promised to play it at his rallies going forward:
“Jason Aldean writes a song defending the values that ALL Americans used to share – faith, family, hard work, patriotism – only to be immediately sacrificed at the altar of censorship & cancellation.
These are the same people who cheer songs like “Cop Killer” & the glorification of sex and violence in hip-hop. Stand strong against these hypocrites and opportunist frauds, Jason Aldean. It’d be a real shame if the song hits #1. We’ll do our part & play it at our rallies.”
Jason Aldean writes a song defending the values that ALL Americans used to share – faith, family, hard work, patriotism – only to be immediately sacrificed at the altar of censorship & cancellation. These are the same people who cheer songs like “Cop Killer” & the glorification… pic.twitter.com/WJ5s3MOI4p
— Vivek Ramaswamy (@VivekGRamaswamy) July 19, 2023
Now that the song has become a political issue, I guess we’ll have to wait and see if any other candidates or politicians feel the need to jump into the debate.
