Headline Roundup • July 19th, 2023
Country Singer Jason Aldean Defends New Song Amid Racial Accusations
Summary from the AllSides News Team
Country music star Jason Aldean is defending his new song, "Try That in a Small Town," after Country Music Television (CMT) pulled the music video.
The Details: The song states, "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." The video features footage of riots, and is set in front of a courthouse. CMT confirmed Tuesday that it had pulled the video but didn't release a comment. Aldean has faced accusations that the song is racially-charged and divisive.
Key Quotes: Aldean called the accusations "meritless" and said there's "not a single lyric in the song that references race or points to it." Sheryl Crow criticized the song, saying "There’s nothing small-town or American about promoting violence."
How the Media Covered it: Variety (Lean Left bias) called the song "deeply divisive" and "hostile," and said "belligerent threats to outsiders make up most of the lyrics." Washington Times (Lean Right) said the song "says that the chaos you see in big cities wouldn’t happen in rural America." Fox News (Right) said it details how "small towns wouldn't put up with the kind of riots and lawlessness many cities across the country faced during the summer of 2020." Left-rated sources focused more overall on how the video's courthouse was the site of a 1927 lynching. Updated 7/19/23 with more media analysis.
Featured Coverage of this Story
Variety
CMT has confirmed that, after initially airing Jason Aldean’s highly controversial music video for “Try That in a Small Town,” the network pulled the contentious clip from the air on Monday, even before the furor over the tune grew greater on Tuesday.
A CMT spokesperson had no further comment on the video being yanked. Reps for Aldean’s label, BBR Music Group, did not immediately respond to a request for comment. Billboard was first to report the video being removed by the network.
Meanwhile, Aldean took to his social media Tuesday afternoon to defend the...
Country music singer Jason Aldean sought to defend his latest single “Try That in a Small Town” on Tuesday after Country Music Television (CMT) pulled the song’s music video from their air.
The song, which was released in May, has been heavily criticized in recent days after the release of the video, which was filmed in the front of a courthouse in Colombia, Tenn., where a Black man was famously lynched in the 1920s. In the video, the courthouse is projected with images of violent protests and criminal acts, including demonstrations from...
Amy Harris/Invision/AP, File
“Try that on CMT,” Jason Aldean just got told.
The country-music network pulled Mr. Aldean’s video for his latest hit ”Try That in a Small Town,” after days of accusations of racism and gun fetishism.
The network confirmed to Variety on Tuesday that it had pulled the clip effective the previous day, but it did not release a public comment.
The song, backed by a new video that went online last week, says that the chaos you see in big cities wouldn’t happen in rural America.
According to Vulture, the video features news footage projected on...
