Country music singer Jason Aldean may be having the last laugh after facing a wave of criticism for his song and recent music video for "Try That in a Small Town."
In May, Aldean released the song and this month an accompanying music video. However, he faced backlash for the song's lyrics and the video, with many saying that they promoted gun violence.
"Cuss out a cop, spit in his face. Stomp on the flag and light it up. Yeah, ya think you're tough," Aldean sings. "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."
Aldean also mentions a gun his grandfather gave him and sings, "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."
Many Twitter users also criticized Aldean's music video as it was filmed outside of the Maury County Courthouse in Tennessee, where a Black man was killed by a white mob in 1927. A spokesperson for Country Music TV (CMT) previously confirmed to Newsweek that it was no longer airing Aldean's video.
Despite the criticism, Aldean's song reached number one on U.S. iTunes, according to Billboard. Additionally, according to the Hollywood Reporter, streams for "Try That in a Small Town" increased 999 percent, reaching 11.7 million for the week following the backlash, citing data from Luminate.
The song's sales also increased from 1,000 units in the week before the backlash to 228,000 units the following week, according to the Hollywood Reporter.
Newsweek reviewed data from Social Blade, an analytics tool that tracks social media followings, and found that over the last 30 days, Aldean's Instagram following rose by more than 175,000 followers, an increase of more than 590 percent.
Aldean responded to some of the criticism in a Twitter post in which he said: "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.
"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."
Newsweek reached out to Aldean's team via email for comment.
