NASHVILLE (CelebrityAccess) – Country Music Television (CMT) confirmed today (July 19) it has yanked Country music singer Jason Aldean’s music video for his controversial single, “Try That in a Small Town,” off the air.
The song was released in May of this year, but according to Billboard, the video was released on July 14 and had been in CMT’s video rotation as recently as Sunday but was pulled on Monday (July 17).
The lyrics, critics say, are remindful of racism, vigilantism and “sundown towns” that practice a form of all-white segregation in which people of color and others considered outsiders knew they faced violence if they were not out of an area before the sun went down. All of this was before the video was released.
The controversy’s flames turned into a 5-alarm fire with the video release. CNN reports some viewers noticed scenes in the video that were shot in front of what appears to be the Maur County Courthouse in Columbia, TN. The courthouse has been the site of several incidents of racial violence, including the 1927 lynching of a Black man named Henry Choate. It also was the site of the Columbia Race Riot in 1946. The video includes footage from police brutality protests and shots from surveillance cameras showing looting and robbery.
Aldean had something to say and took to Twitter on Tuesday (July 18), writing, “There isn’t a single video clip that isn’t real news footage.” A sample of the lyrics includes:
Sucker punch somebody on a sidewalk / Carjack an old lady at a red light / Pull a gun on the owner of a liquor store / Ya think it’s cool, well, act a fool if ya like / Cuss out a copy, spit in his face / Stomp on the flag and light it up / Yeah, ya think you’re tough / Well, try that in a small town / see how far ya make it down the road / Around here, we take care of our own / You cross that line, it won’t take long / For you to find out, I recommend you don’t / Try that in a small town
Aldean continued, “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. Because they were our neighbors, and that was above any differences.”
Singer/Songwriter Sheryl Crow tweeted Aldean with her thoughts on the single.
@Jason_Aldean I’m from a small town. 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. this is not American or small town-like. It’s just lame.”
Crow was born in Kennett, Missouri (pop. 10,000). Aldean is from Macon, Georgia (pop. 153,000).
TN State Representative Justin Jones took to Twitter with his opinion of Aldean’s single.
As Tennessee lawmakers, we have an obligation to condemn Jason Aldean’s heinous song calling for racist violence. What a shameful vision of gun extremism and vigilantism. We will continue to call for common sense gun laws, that protect ALL our children and communities.
— Rep. Justin Jones (@brotherjones_) July 19, 2023
Some media outlets (like Crow) have pointed out Aldean’s mention of his granddaddy’s gun in the lyrics, given his experience with gun violence. Aldean was performing at the Route 91 Music Harvest Festival in Vegas in 2017 when a gunman shot into the crowd, killing 58 people and causing injuries in the hundreds. It is the deadliest mass shooting in American history.
Aldean also addressed that in his message via Twitter. You can read the statement in full below.
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. These references are not only meritless, but dangerous.…
— Jason Aldean (@Jason_Aldean) July 18, 2023
FULL MESSAGE:
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. These references are not only meritless, but dangerous. 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.
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.
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. 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.
