President Donald Trump’s inaugural ball was chock full of country music artists, and Jason Aldean (who is good friends with Trump) made the most of his moment during the inauguration celebration.
What do I mean by that? Well, Jason Aldean cued up “Try That In A Small Town.” Remember how divisive Aldean’s anti-violence and anti-theft single was back in 2023? If there was a “Most Controversial Song” award, there wouldn’t have even been nominees for the category last year. They would have just simultaneously announced the category and given the title to Jason Aldean.
Now reflecting back on the song, it’s wild to think that it gained so much buzz that it became a national talking point. The country music star was just trying to share his view on some of the rampant lawlessness that was happening in America, and accidentally landed himself right in the middle of a political debate.
In an interview with Hook & Barrel Magazine, the country singer suggested that they just crafted the song around how they were feeling in that very moment. Aldean never expected to – or wanted to – start an internet firestorm:
“I don’t think that song came about because we were trying to step out there and do something that really moved the needle. It was never intended to go in and specifically write something that was gonna stir the pot. It just came from a place of, this is on our mind. I’m 47 years old now, things change. If you got it, you got it. And if you didn’t, you didn’t. But to me, it is exactly what I wanted it to be.”
That’s why he didn’t have a problem playing it when it came to celebrate Donald Trump being sworn in once again as the President of the United States. And to be honest, the people that did have a problem with it when it first came out might have overreacted a bit. There wasn’t a lot in the track that was far-fetched, and I’ll be the first to tell you that it’s okay to listen to a song and not like it. But people were trying to straight up cancel Jason Aldean for “Try That In A Small Town.” How crazy is that?
Before he got going with the performance at the Liberty Ball, Aldean told the crowd that Trump called him and let him know that he believed in the message of “Try That In A Small Town” as the country star was in the midst of fighting off the outrage:
“He called me when this thing came out and told me he liked the song and what a great song it was. That kind of thing. You all ended up making it a big hit for us.”
That’s gotta be reassuring from Aldean to get a call from the former (and now current) president encouraging him to stand by his song. And being asked to be a part of the Liberty Ball and then choosing to play the 2023 track that got everyone fired up had to be a cool, full-circle moment for Jason Aldean.
Check it out:
Jason Aldean playing Try That in a Small Town at the Liberty Ball.
Proud to have Jason and the Aldean family as part time FL residents. #trythatinasmlltown #jasonaldean #countrymusic #LibertyBall pic.twitter.com/L2zqOc7WDo
— FL-Native (@FL_Native21) January 21, 2025
