A video by country singer Jason Aldean was pulled by Country Music Television after critics called it offensive and racist. Some Aldean fans have responded by calling for the “Bud Light treatment” of CMT and falsely claiming that, in solidarity, singer Luke Bryan removed his own videos from the channel. The bogus claim about Bryan originated on a satirical website.
Country singer Jason Aldean struck a discordant note with the July 14 release of a video of his song “Try That in a Small Town,” which includes a scene shot in front of a Columbia, Tennessee, courthouse where a Black teenager was lynched in 1927 and where a race riot occurred in 1946.
Aldean’s song and video — which shows images of Black Lives Matter protests in 2020 and demonstrations in other countries — warns that “city” crimes and disrespect for police or the flag won’t be tolerated in a small town. “Well, try that in a small town. See how far ya make it down the road,” Aldean says in the song.
Critics have said Aldean’s video and lyrics are offensive. Tennessee State Rep. Justin Jones, a Democrat, tweeted that it was a “heinous song calling for racist violence.”
The Country Music Television channel, CMT, stopped airing the video on July 17.
Aldean responded to the criticism of his video in a tweet on July 18, saying, in part: “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...
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