A group of protestors burned the American flag outside of Jason Aldean’s concert in Chicago.
Revolution Club Chicago, which is a far-left group that calls for a revolution against capitalism, brought together 20 people to protest Aldean’s show in Tinley Park, Illinois, on Saturday, September 9, according to the Chicago Tribune.
While outside the venue, the group set the American flag on fire. According to the Tribune, there were not any physical altercations between concertgoers and protestors as members of the group attempted to use Aldean’s “Try That in a Small Town” lyrics against him.
“Guess what Jason?” protestor Rafael Kadaris said to the outlet. “We will try that in a small town. We will try that in a big city. And we will try it right in front of your concert.”
Aldean has yet to address the incident outside his concert.
The protest comes after Aldean, 46, received backlash for his song “Try That in a Small Town,” which first dropped in May. Two months later, the song made headlines in July for its controversial music video. The song has been accused of having pro-gun messaging and seemingly warns individuals in urban areas to be careful of sharing their beliefs while in a small town.
“Got a gun that my granddad gave me / They say one day they’re gonna round up / Well, that s–t might fly in the city, good luck,” Aldean sings in the track. “Try that in a small town / See how far ya make it down the road / 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.”
Aldean’s polarizing message gathered intense debate across both sides of the aisle. Sheryl Crow, Maren Morris, Cassadee Pope and others slammed Aldean for his lack of sensitivity on the issue.
“@Jason_Aldean I’m from a small town. Even people in small towns are sick of violence,” Crow, 61, wrote in July. “There’s nothing small-town or American about promoting violence. You should know that better than anyone having survived a mass shooting.”
Following the backlash, Aldean doubled down by standing by his lyrics and the choice of imagery he used in the music video, despite the video being altered to remove some images of violent Black Lives Matter protests from 2020.
“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 claimed in a Twitter statement at the time.
Meanwhile, Jason’s wife, Brittany Aldean, has been his biggest supporter since the controversy began. When the song hit No. 1 on the charts, Brittany, 35, took to social media to celebrate the accomplishment.
“Well, yesterday was a monumental day for @jasonaldean ❤️,” she captioned an Instagram post on Tuesday, August 1. “#1 on the Billboard Hot 100 Chart!! … A career first🙏🏼 That sure did backfire, didn’t it?? The best fans EVERRRR❣️❣️❣️❣️.”
