country music continues to embarrass me

on jason aldean, etc.

Thank you for reading Hmm … That’s Interesting, a reader-supported publication! If you enjoy the newsletter, please consider becoming a subscribing member.

---

There are few things in this world more embarrassing than being a country music fan. I say this, sadly, with a certain degree of personal experience. The genre boasts artists like Dolly Parton, The Chicks, Chris Stapleton, Darius Rucker, Emmylou Harris, Willie Nelson,  Allison Russell, Garth Brooks, and my personal patron saint Kacey Musgraves, and still — its reputation continues to precede itself, over-represented with over-bloated figures like Blake Shelton and ... Jason Aldean. 

Now, fortunately, I don't think I've ever listened to a Jason Aldean song on purpose. This pleases me. Because his entire vibe — that bafflingly smug smile combined with the stunning lack of talent, perhaps — deeply turns me off. Alas, he remains, despite my personal discomfort, quite popular. 

It was Aldean who was headlining a Las Vegas festival in 2017, if you'll remember, when a shooter opened fire and killed 58 people in what remains the deadliest mass shooting in modern American history. You would think that might change a person. You would think that, after bearing witness to their atrocious, random, and fatal consequences, someone's position on guns might shift.  

Instead, Aldean — to speak his language — has hunkered down into the depths of ignorance and aggression. His newest song, "Try That In A Small Town," is an ode to, at best, small-mindedness.