Johnny Van Zant of Lynyrd Skynyrd and brother Donnie of 38 Special wrote a new song, “Sweet Florida,” for Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis.
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Born and raised in Jacksonville, Florida, the Van Zant brothers said that DeSantis stands for everything that they believe in. “We got to thank Governor DeSantis for standing and believing for what he believes,” said Johnny Van Zant in an interview. “He’s been a great governor for us.”
In the lyrics to “Sweet Florida,” the Van Zant brothers reiterate their support for the Florida governor singing He stands up for what he believes / So don’t come down here trying to change things we’re doing all right in the Sunshine State / Stay out of our business / Leave our governor alone / Down in sweet, sweet Florida our governor is red, white and blue…he’s shooting us straight, telling us the truth.
Once the brothers found out DeSantis was running for a second term, the Van Zant’s wrote the song along the lines of the 1974 Lynyrd Skynyrd hit “Sweet Home Alabama,” for the governor to use during his upcoming campaign.
DeSantis has been outspoken against the COVID-19 pandemic since its onset in 2020. Most recently, the governor, who banned the use of masks in schools and has been avidly against enforcing CDC recommendations and other safety protocols within the state of Florida, downplayed the pandemic in 2021, calling the coronavirus a “very minor risk,” and said that other respiratory illnesses posed greater risk. “RSV [respiratory syncytial virus] is a little more serious and it just shows certain things that are focused on versus not,” said DeSantis. “I’ve had doctors tell me that parents have come in with kids who were sick that have gotten a negative COVID test and a positive RSV and the parents were relieved at that.”
To date, Florida has the third-largest number of cases of COVID-19, behind California and Texas, according to the CDC, and accounts for nearly six million cases and more than 73,000 deaths within the U.S.
