Country Music Star Jason Aldean Fires Back at Critics After CMT Pulls ‘Try That in a Small Town’ Music Video

Country music star Jason Aldean defended the lyrics and music video for ‘Try That in a Small Town’ as the song was removed from CMT’s rotation.

CMT confirmed to media outlets that they’ve stopped airing the video, though they haven’t given a reason why, and it’s currently unclear how many times they showed it since it was released on YouTube four days ago. The lyrics convey that close-knit, small-town communities won’t take kindly to riots, violence, and criminal misbehavior seen in America’s cities.

Here’s a portion of the lyrics:

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 cop, 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

The ‘Try That in a Small Town’ music video shows Aldean and others performing the song in front of a courthouse, though the video is spliced with news clips of flag burnings, anti-police protests, and footage of various crimes. Aldean celebrated its release on Instagram, saying, “When u grow up in a small town, it’s that unspoken rule of “we all have each other’s backs and we look out for each other.” It feels like somewhere along the way, that sense of community and respect has gotten lost. Deep down we are all ready to get back to that. I hope my new music video helps y’all know that u are not alone in feeling that way. Go check it out!”

On Tuesday, pushed back on those who’ve accused the song of carrying threatening undertones concerning race:

“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. “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.”

Aldean also gave a reminder that he was performing at the Route 91 Harvest music festival in Las Vegas when it was attacked by a gunman in 2017.

“NO ONE, including me, wants to continue to see senseless headlines or families ripped apart,” he said. “‘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.”

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