Ted Nugent rips ‘idiots’ attacking Jason Aldean’s ‘Small Town’: ‘They’ve got no soul’

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Detroit’s Motor City Madman Ted Nugent is jumping to Jason Aldean’s defence amid controversy over his Try That in a Small Town video, calling critics of the country star “idiots.”

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“I know there’s a bunch of idiots out there, but you need to learn to get a kick out of the idiots. The idiots hate this Jason Aldean song because they hate when we push back against violence,” Nugent told Fox News’ Jimmy Failla.

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“They always get it 180 degrees wrong. This song is against violence. The song is about self-defence. The song is about protecting your loved ones in your neighbourhood. If you find fault with a song that celebrates protecting your loved ones, your neighbourhood, you might be going down to Target to the Satan display and get down on your knees.”

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The rock legend added: “These are just weird people. We dismiss them because they’ve got no soul. I laugh in their face.”

Nugent, who has referred to current U.S. President Joe Biden as a “soulless zombie,” applauded Aldean for not caving to the cancel culture crew who have accused the Grammy nominee of being “pro-lynching” and blowing “racist dog whistle.”

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“I’ve always stood up radically — really extremist — for God, family, country, Constitution, Bill of Rights, Ten Commandments, golden rule, work ethic, law and order, all that really radical stuff, and that represents the heart and soul of the best, most passionate, most cocky, most fun people in the world,” Nugent said.

At a concert in Cincinnati Friday night, Aldean thanked fans for their unwavering support as he promised not to back down.

“I gotta tell you guys, it’s been a long-ass week,” Aldean told the crowd at the Riverbend Music Center. “It’s been a long week and I seen a lot of stuff, I seen a lot of stuff suggesting I’m this, suggesting I’m that. Hey, here’s one thing I feel: I feel everyone’s entitled to their opinion. You can think something all you want to, it doesn’t mean it’s true, right?”

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Aldean continued, “What I am is a proud American … I love our country, I want to see it restored to what it once was before all this bulls— started happening to us. I love my country, I love my family, and I will do anything to protect that, I can tell you right now.” As chants of “U.S.A.” erupted from his supportive fans, he said he wasn’t going to apologize for the song.

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“Here’s what I want to say … cancel culture is a thing, it’s something where if people don’t like what you say, they try and make sure they can cancel you, which means try to ruin your life, ruin everything,” Aldean said. “One thing I saw this week was a bunch of country music fans that can see through a lot of the bulls—, alright? I saw country music fans rally like I never seen before, and that was pretty badass, I gotta say. Thank you guys so much.”

On social media, critics and supporters continued to debate Aldean’s motives behind the song’s lyrics and its video, which was filmed outside a Tennessee courthouse in which a Black man was lynched in 1927.

Former president Donald Trump called Aldean “a fantastic guy who just came out with a great new song,” while Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis tweeted, “When the media attacks you, you’re doing something right.”

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But as the firestorm swelled, Aldean’s video was dropped by Country Music Television. Sheryl Crow branded the song as “lame,” while Grammy winner Jason Isbell took a swipe at the singer for not writing his own songs, tweeting, “Dare Aldean to write his next single himself. That’s what we try in my small town.”

On YouTube, where the video has been viewed more than 16 million times and generated nearly a million likes, fans have been effusive in their praise for the sentiment of the lyrics and its imagery, which includes news footage of a flag burning, rampagers confronting police, Black Lives Matter protests and stores being robbed.

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“How this song and video became racist to some people is beyond me,” one person wrote, with another adding, “It stands up against all the riots and violence that went on in the big cities. He’s saying if you try that stuff in a small town you won’t get by with it.”

Aldean’s wife, Brittany, backed her hubby, sharing a glammed-up photo of herself with her 2.4 million Instagram followers and captioning it: “Free thinkers, lions not sheep … thankful for the support, always!”

Aldean himself waded into the fray, calling accusations that he’s a racist “not only meritless, but dangerous.”

“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,” he wrote on Twitter.

Meanwhile, the production company behind the video, Tacklebox, said in a statement to the Associated Press that it picked a ”popular filming location” that had been used on numerous productions, including holiday films starring Tanya Tucker and one starring Mario Lopez and Jana Kramer.

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Twitter: @markhdaniell

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