A day after CMT pulled Jason Aldean’s controversial new video “Try That in a Small Town,” Sheryl Crow also shared that the song and video promote violence and have nothing to do with living in a small town.
Videos by American Songwriter
“Jason Aldean, I’m from a small town,” wrote Crow on Twitter. “Even people in small towns are sick of violence. There’s nothing small-town or American about promoting violence. You should know that better than anyone having survived a mass shooting.”
Crow continued, “This is not American or small town-like. It’s just lame.”
The video for his single, which features Aldean and his band performing in front of the Maury County Courthouse in Columbia, Tennessee, the site where 18-year-old Henry Choate was lynched in 1927, is also interspersed with protest footage and lyrics on gun use that some people suggested promotes violence.
Aldean received a heap of backlash on social media, following the premiere of the video. Like Crow, some people also referenced that Aldean was promoting gun violence in the song after he survived the mass shooting at the Route 91 Harvest music festival in October 2017.
Aldean responded to the reactions, and to the festival tragedy nearly six years ago, in a statement.
“In the past 24 hours, I have been accused of releasing a pro-lynching song (a song that has been out since May) and was subject to the comparison that I (direct quote) was not too pleased with the nationwide BLM protests,” said Aldean in a statement. “These references are not only meritless, but dangerous.”
He added, “There is not a single lyric in the song that references race or points to it — and there isn’t a single video clip that isn’t real news footage — and while I can try and respect others to have their own interpretation of a song with music, this one goes too far.”
On the Harvest Fest shooting, Aldean added, “As so many pointed out, I was present at Route 91-where so many lost their lives and our community recently suffered another heartbreaking tragedy. No one, including me, wants to continue to see senseless headlines or families ripped apart.”
Defending her husband, Brittany Aldean also took to social media. “Never apologize for speaking the truth,” she captioned along with a photo of them on the beach.
In his statement, Aldean shared his interpretation of “Try That in a Small Town.”
“‘Try That In A Small Town,’ for me, refers to the feeling of a community that I had growing up, where we took care of our neighbors, regardless of differences of background or belief,” said Aldean. “Because they were our neighbors, and that was above any differences. My political views have never been something I’ve hidden from, and I know that a lot of us in this country don’t agree on how we get back to a sense of normalcy where we go at least a day without a headline that keeps us up at night. But the desire for it to, that’s what this song is about.”
Photo: Derek White/Getty Images for ABA
