Jason Aldean’s controversial ‘Small Town’ video cut by CMT, song skyrockets to Number 1 amid backlash

Jason Aldean has lost the support of Country Music Television (CMT), with the network confirming to Fox News Digital it has pulled the musician’s “Try That in a Small Town” music video from circulation.

A representative for the network did not provide more context for the decision, but Aldean has received immense backlash from the public, with some suggesting it is a “pro-lynching song” — a narrative Aldean adamantly denies.

In the video, Aldean’s lyrics are sung while news coverage from the 2020 riots illustrates his message. “Cuss out a cop spit in his face / stomp on the flag and light it up,” Aldean sings, along with footage of the described instances.

Aldean’s tune has skyrocketed to success given all the controversy, sitting as iTunes’ No. 1 song at the time of publication.

TackleBox, the production company which produced Aldean’s music video, shared in a statement to Fox News Digital that the location is a “popular filming location outside of Nashville,” which Aldean did not select himself.

Several movies and music videos have been filmed at the location, including the 2022 Lifetime Original movie “Steppin’ into the Holiday” with Jana Kramer and Mario Lopez, the 2022 Paramount holiday film, “A Nashville Country Christmas” with Tanya Tucker and a Runaway June video for their 2019 track, “We Were Rich.”

“Any alternative narrative suggesting the music video’s location decision is false,” it added.

Throughout the video, Aldean can be seen singing in front of the Maury County Courthouse, which has an American flag hanging from it. The government building can be found in Columbia, Tennessee. It was previously the site of a horrific lynching of Black man Henry Choate, in 1927.

On Tuesday, Aldean addressed the controversial response to his song.

“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. These references are not only meritless, but dangerous,” he told his social media followers.

“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.”

Jason Aldean ‘Try That in a Small Town’ controversy proof of a ‘moral sickness’ in America.

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