Country music artist Jason Aldean has lashed out at allegations that his hit song “Try That In A Small Town” and its music video contain racist and pro-lynching messages. Denied.
Aldean posted a lengthy statement on his Instagram story on Tuesday, telling fans that while he disagreed with the Black Lives Matter movement, he didn’t call for the extrajudicial killing of black people.
“In the last 24 hours, I have been accused of releasing a pro-lynching song (which has been out since May) and (direct quote) being compared to the nationwide BLM protests for not being very happy. became,” Aldean wrote. “These references are not only worthless, they are dangerous.”
“There is not a single lyric in this song that refers to or points to race, and there is not a single video clip that is not actual news footage. You can try to respect having your own interpretation, but a song with music, this is going too far,” Aldean wrote.
The music video includes multiple clips of protesters clashing with police, as well as CCTV footage of carjackings and armed robberies. The lyrics tell people who “taunt the cops,” “spit in their faces,” “step on flags and light them up,” “try it in a small town, and see how well it works.” Please take a look,” he warns. ”
“As many have pointed out, I was on Highway 91 where many people lost their lives, and our community recently suffered another heartbreaking tragedy. Including me. No one wants to keep seeing nonsensical headlines and families being torn apart,” he continued, recalling the 2017 Las Vegas shooting. His reference to “another heartbreaking tragedy” seems to allude to the shooting in March that killed three children and three adults at a Christian school in Nashville where Aldean lives.
The country star then explained what his song represents.
“For me, ‘let’s do it in a small town’ refers to the sense of the community I grew up in that cared about our neighbors, regardless of their background or beliefs, because they are our neighbors. , because it mattered more than any difference,” he wrote. “I have never hidden my political views. Many of us in this country disagree on how to get back to a sense of normalcy, going at least one day without a headline like this.” I know that’ keeps us up at night. But wanting it, that’s the theme of this song. ”
Comments on social media suggest that the location he chose to shoot the video may have messed up his wings in relation to the context of the song.(Related: Coretta Scott King’s Cousin Joins Thousands Outraged by $10 Million MLK Statue)
Aldean reportedly shot the video outside the Morley County Courthouse in Columbia, Tennessee. There, in 1927, 18-year-old African-American Henry Choate was lynched for assaulting a white girl. TMZ.
Aldean’s statement came a day after CMT removed his music video from rotation.
