Poor Jason Aldean. The country singer definitely can't catch a break. The 2024 CMT Awards was a chance for Aldean to bury the hatchet with CMT following last year's controversy. But the performance is proving controversial thanks to Aldean's or CMT's choice of venue.
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Aldean performed in front of The University of Texas Austin's main building. It's also known as the Tower. According to Billboard, it was also the site of a deadly shooting. A student opened fire and shot and killed 14 people in 1966. The venue is unfortunate for several reasons. For one, Aldean drew controversy thanks to his choice of local for a music video last year. For another, Aldean was caught in a deadly mass shooting himself. The singer performed at the deadly Route 91 music festival in Las Vegas. A gunman killed 60 people in the event.
Several people online realized the connection, calling out both Aldean and the CMTs. One wrote, "Jason Aldean performing at the site of a famous mass shooting is definitely a choice, but you do you cmas." It's actually CMTs, obviously.
Another wrote, "Also, why have Jason Aldean, a guy who made a song that was basically a gun nut's wet dream about an excuse to shoot someone, and who was performing during a mass shooting, perform in front of the University of Texas tower, from which another mass shooter killed several people?"
It's unfortunate that some should blast the country singer and single him out when Aldean didn't play a role in choosing the venue. It's likely related to the singer's past controversy.
Jason Aldean's Controversy Explained
Aldean drew controversy thanks to "Try That in a Small Town." The track proved controversial thanks to its lyrics as well as its filming location. Aldean filmed the song at the Maury County Courthouse in Columbia, TN. It was the site for the lynching of an 18-year-old in 1927 and a race riot in 1946.
Aldean has since tried to defend himself and the video following the controversy. "You've got common sense, you can look at the video and see, I'm not sayin' anything that's not true," Aldean told Billboard. "The biggest issue, I think, people had when we released the song was that it mentioned 'having a gun that my grandfather gave me.'"
He continued, "I mentioned a gun, that's a no, no right now and I just remember thinking, 'Man, you guys haven't even seen the video yet,'" he said. He also said the video did not promote violence. "Between mainstream media and social media, things kind of take on a life of their own. They start making the song and the video into something that it's not. It's fine, we just live in a world that does that right now, and I'm not gonna go out and explain myself every time somebody gives their own opinion of what my song or video means."
