Aaron Lewis is never afraid to make a political statement.
The former Staind lead singer began his foray into country music back in 2011 with an EP titled Town Line, followed by a full-length album titled The Road in 2012.
He’s had some high moments in his country career, but many, if not all, of them are very much politically fueled.
For example, he’s made political statements with songs like “Am I The Only One” and “If I Was A Liberal”, but he’s also unleashed many political rants while on stage, leaving the crowd absolutely certain where he lands on the political spectrum.
And just days ago, he made another major statement – and this one’s truly a sight to see.
Lewis went on a coyote hunt in Texas recently and he and his group bagged quite a few of these nuisance animals. Many state offer a bounty for hunters to try and remove as many as possible, and while Texas doesn’t have a statewide program, some counties do.
They bagged a total of 32 coyotes that night, which is truly an impressive haul. But instead of just placing them out in rows for the already controversial “Grip and grin” photo, Lewis decided to take it all the way to the max and use the carcasses to let people know who he’d be voting for in the 2024 presidential election.
Spoiler alert, it’s not Joe Biden.
Gotta say, that’s the first time I’ve seen coyote bodies used to make a political statement, so kudos to him for the creativity, but man, that made me even a bit uneasy to see, and I’m far from an animal rights activist.
Naturally, PETA got their hands on this and had some words to say…
Lisa Lange, PETA’s Senior Vice President, made the following statement to Billboard about the social media post.
“How vile and pathetic that a washed-up musician, desperate for relevance, terrorized and killed animals to get a brief taste of the attention he obviously craves.
Just like the dogs who share our homes, coyotes feel pain and fear and love their families, and because they’re one of the few species found in nearly every U.S. state, they’re beloved by many as America’s ‘song dog.’
PETA encourages Aaron Lewis to seek attention through some act of kindness, rather than slaughtering individuals who are simply trying to eke out an existence in an increasingly paved-over world.”
Honestly, everything about this story is incredibly on-brand. Aaron Lewis going above and beyond to support Trump and PETA saying that coyotes are beloved, despite farmers and hunters mostly hating these creatures for the damage they do to livestock and prey animals.
Just another day in this crazy world…
