Wasn’t expecting the right to be embracing that song.
Back in 2006, the Dixie Chicks (now just known as The Chicks) released “Not Ready To Make Nice,” the first single from their seventh studio album Taking The Long Way. The song was a defiant response to the backlash the band had received back in 2003 after lead singer Natalie Maines had criticized then-President George Bush over the Iraq war during a concert in Europe.
Maines proclaimed that she was “ashamed that the President of the United States” was from Texas, which may not seem like a big deal now, but at a time when the country was still reeling from the 9/11 attacks and patriotism was at an all-time high, it wasn’t exactly a popular opinion to express – especially overseas.
The result was a massive backlash that saw radio stations pull the song from their airwaves as fans destroyed their Dixie Chicks CDs and boycotted their music.
The band was essentially blackballed from country music for several years, until they decided to return and address the controversy head-on with “Not Ready To Make Nice.”
In the song, the band made clear that they stood by their statements and beliefs:
“I made my bed and I sleep like a baby
With no regrets and I don’t mind sayin’
It’s a sad, sad story when a mother will teach her
Daughter that she ought to hate a perfect stranger
And how in the world can the words that I said
Send somebody so over the edge
That they’d write me a letter, sayin’ that I better
Shut up and sing or my life will be over”
And reading that through the lens of everything that was going on at the time, it makes perfect sense. But now, 20+ years later, it seems a new group is trying to claim the song for their own – and fans of The Chicks aren’t happy.
After Donald Trump’s win over Kamala Harris in the 2024 presidential election last week, Trump supporters began posting the song as a sign they’re “not ready to make nice” with those who hate them simply because of their support for Trump:
@lifewithjess4 #trump #trump2024 #america ♬ Not Ready To Make Nice by The Chicks – Kylee
@krat4 Do better yall. #trump #maga #trump2024 #gaysfortrump🏳️🌈 #lgbt #fyp ♬ Not Ready To Make Nice by The Chicks – Kylee
@its_me____stefanie Facts over feeling #voiceover #america #cheers ♬ Not Ready To Make Nice by The Chicks – Kylee
@bsteele722 #trump2024🇺🇸 #maga #workingmom #country #fyp #fypシ #girlmom ♬ Not Ready To Make Nice by The Chicks – Kylee
@taylor_trodahlYup i said dixie Chicks♬ Not Ready To Make Nice by The Chicks – Kylee
@loren_elizabeth55Always did love this song…..♬ Not Ready To Make Nice by The Chicks – Kylee
@_itsbriannam Replying to @emilybrooke_83 maybe @The Chicks ♬ Not Ready To Make Nice by The Chicks – Kylee
And, well, fans of The Chicks aren’t happy that the song is being used by those on the other side of the political aisle. Let’s take a look at the comments:
“It’s not your anthem and never will be”
“You can claim it as a maga song and go on living the miserable life that you don’t have to”
“Maga always claims stuff they cannot do, grade school garbage.”
“Of course you do, y’all never are based in reality or respect other’s wishes”
“The chicks dont claim you. They are unapologetically liberal”
“I mean, you try always claim stuff that is actually directed right at you. It’s hilarious. I mean you did it with Green Day. You’re doing it with the chicks. It’s really pathetic.”
“Nope…this was created as a response to conservative hate being thrown at the Dixie Chicks. I feel certain it is anti MAGA too.”
“Hate to tell you Dixie Chicks didn’t make this song for you to use to promote Trump honey”
“So you’re mad that you are having consequences to your actions so you twist the song to make it fit your narrative?”
And a country singer named Austin Forman even recorded his own version of the song for anyone to use who didn’t want to support The Chicks’ version:
@austinformanusa Replying to @JJ777 ♬ MAGAs Not Ready To Make Nice – 𝘼𝙪𝙨𝙩𝙞𝙣ᶠᵒʳᵐᵃᶰ🅰🅵🅵🐓🇺🇲
Who would have thought that the internet would still be fighting over this song 20 years later?
(Not gonna lie, regardless of which side of the aisle you’re on, it’s a banger).
