Jason Aldean denies his lynching song is a lynching song

Country singer Jason Aldean is denying that his vigilante violence anthem “Try That in a Small Town” is specifically an ode to lynching after filming the video for the song outside a courthouse that was the site of a brutal lynching in 1927. According to Aldean’s video production team, the Maury County Courthouse was merely a “popular filming location outside of Nashville” with no historical reference intended. But go figure, when a rabidly right-wing musician stands in front of the site of a lynching and sings about using his granddad’s gun in response to a litany of offenses including, “Cuss out a cop, spit in his face/Stomp on the flag and light it up,” he doesn’t get the benefit of the doubt.

Despite his various protestations of innocence, Aldean is likely thrilled with how this whole thing is going as he gets to play the victim while watching a frankly terrible song shoot to the top of the country charts. (It’s one of the less rousingly anthemic anthems you’re going to find—the tone is more of a whine. Honestly, when I first read about it I was imagining a much better, if still repugnant, song. Songs that make you want to sing along and simultaneously make you feel dirty about that are well within the wheelhouse of country.) Aldean and his wife have repeatedly sought right-wing hero status, with his wife posting social media pictures of herself and their kids wearing anti-Biden clothes. In today’s political environment, with the Republican base defining itself through “own the libs” politics and flagrant bigotry, a song threatening violence in response to protests against the police is a sure winner, and one that almost guarantees Aldean a role at an inauguration concert if a Republican wins in 2024. He’s already drawn a defense from Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis.