“@Jason_Aldean I’m from a small town,” the 61-year-old tweeted July 18. “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.”
Jason was performing on stage at the Route 91 Harvest country music festival in Las Vegas in 2017 when a gunman fired down on the crowd and killed 59 people in what marked the deadliest mass shooting in modern U.S. history.
And while the “She’s Country” did not respond to Sheryl directly, he did address critics at large that same day.
“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,” Jason tweeted on July 18. “These references are not only meritless, but dangerous.”
He continued, “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,” he explained. “Because they were our neighbors, and that was above any differences.”
