Jason Aldean is defending his newest single, which some have described as a “modern lynching” song.
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00:00Jason Aldean is shutting down claims that his new song and accompanying music video
00:04promote lynching and gun violence.
00:06In May, Aldean released the song Try That in a Small Town, which is about how protests,
00:11violence, and upheaval in cities would not pass in small towns.
00:20On July 14th, Aldean released the music video for the song, which splices together news
00:24clips of protests, fires, and crimes.
00:27The video was filmed in front of the Maury County Courthouse in Columbia, Tennessee,
00:31the site of the 1927 lynching of Henry Choate, an 18-year-old black man.
00:35The song and the video sparked controversy online, with critics saying the song strikes
00:39a threatening tone while criticizing gun control and protests against police, and country music
00:44television has since stopped airing the music video.
00:46Fellow country music singer Sheryl Crow called the song's messaging lame, writing on Twitter,
00:51quote, I'm from a small town.
00:53Even people in small towns are sick of violence.
00:55There's nothing small town or American about promoting violence.
00:58You should know that better than anyone, having survived a mass shooting.
01:01Aldean was the artist on stage at the 2017 Route 91 Harvest Music Festival, where 60
01:06people were killed and over 800 were injured in a mass shooting.
01:10On Tuesday, Aldean hit back at what he calls meritless and dangerous claims, saying that
01:14none of the lyrics reference race, and that all the news footage is real.
01:17He says the song is about the sense of community he had growing up, where, quote, we took care
01:21of our neighbors, regardless of differences of background or belief.