“I’m Voting for America and a Good Glass of Whiskey”: Chris Stapleton Shares His Thoughts on Politics, Culture Wars, and American Values

With the 2024 presidential election just around the corner, it seems that most celebrities are stepping up and letting the world know who they support and how they’ll vote. At the same time, many celebs are weighing in on hot-button topics and culture wars on social media. Chris Stapleton is one of the few who largely keeps his opinions to himself.

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Recently, Stapleton sat down with The Guardian to talk about his life and career. During the conversation, he revealed how he’ll be voting next month. He also shared how he feels about the ongoing culture wars surrounding hot-button topics.

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Chris Stapleton Shares His Political Opinions

Chris Stapleton spoke to the United Kingdom-based publication after playing five arenas across the UK on his All-American Road Show Tour. Because the United States’ forthcoming election has made headlines across the world, the interviewer wanted to know who Stapleton would vote for come November. “I’m voting for America and a good glass of whiskey,” he said, politely declining to reveal his political affiliation.

“I’m not saying celebrities shouldn’t endorse people—that’s American,” Stapleton said. “I also think the right to keep that private, and the right to let politicians be politicians, to let people make their own choices based on what politicians say and do—that’s American too,” he added. It seems he has chosen the latter.

When asked about the ongoing culture wars surrounding hot-button topics and the nearly unavoidable online discourse, Stapleton took a similar stance. “I don’t give a sh-t about any of that,” he said. However, he was more open when it came to questions of American values. “Fairness and defending those who can’t defend themselves, or standing up for each other,” Stapleton said, are among important values. “Coming together, understanding points of view that aren’t yours. American values would be someone who grows up in the city getting to sit down and talk with someone who didn’t, like myself. And then we can still find common ground,” he explained.

Stapleton was also a little more open about debates within country music. For instance, the interviewer asked him about intolerance and sexism within the genre. They specifically cited Maren Morris’ short-lived decision to leave the genre for those reasons. “There’s intolerance and sexism everywhere. You’re kidding yourself if you think those things don’t exist,” Stapleton said. Additionally, he weighed in on artists crossing over to country music from other genres. “The notion of drawing lines or saying you can’t participate because you’re not from somewhere, whatever, that doesn’t interest me,” he said.

Featured Image by Michael Loccisano/Getty Images

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