Who is Shannon Watts? Moms Demand Action activist gets Jason Aldean's 'racist and violent' hit removed from CMT
LAS VEGA, UNITED STATES: A gun-control activist, Shannon Watts, is claiming credit for 'canceling' country music star Jason Aldean's controversial new song, which she alleges is 'racist and violent.' Over the weekend, Watts, the founder of Moms Demand Action, drew attention to the lyrics in Aldean's song titled 'Try That in a Small Town.' She wrote that the lyrics suggest "how he and his friends will shoot you if you try to take their guns."
Notably, Aldean was on stage during the tragic mass shooting at a Las Vegas concert in 2017, where 60 people lost their lives, and over 400 others were injured. Shortly after Watts raised her concerns, CMT decided to pull the song and its music video from airwaves. In response, Watts tweeted that she was "Proud to have had a hand in getting CMT to reject this racist and violent song."
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Watts made it clear: no racist and violent songs
However, despite CMT's decision, ABC aired a pre-recorded performance of the song during 'CMA Fest' on July 19. Watts also criticized Aldean's involvement in a star-studded August benefit for the Covenant School in Nashville, where another mass shooting had occurred earlier in the year.
Watts is a prominent American activist dedicated to preventing gun violence, well-known for being the founder of Moms Demand Action, an organization advocating for gun control measures. She has been actively involved in campaigning for various gun control candidates throughout the United States, including supporting President Joe Biden's candidacy in the past.
In 2016, Watts assumed a board member position at Emerge America, further extending her commitment to promoting change and progress in various areas. Additionally, she serves on the boards of Advance Peace and Urban Peace Institute, highlighting her dedication to fostering peace and safety in communities affected by gun violence.
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On July 14, Aldean, aged 46, released a controversial video featuring guns and a message critical of modern "woke" culture. The video strongly condemns violent and destructive behavior, particularly from antagonists whose actions would not be tolerated in the South. The lyrics and visuals in the video juxtapose clips of Black Lives Matter (BLM) protestors vandalizing cities with endorsements of traditional values and the concept of 'taking care of our own’.
Aldean denied any intention of promoting anti-black or pro-lynching sentiments’
Responding to the backlash, Aldean took to Instagram story on July 18 to address his detractors. He denied any intention of promoting anti-black or pro-lynching sentiments and pointed out that it has been two months since the song was released, yet the controversy only arose recently.
"In the past 24 hours I have been accused of releasing a pro-lynching song (a song that has been out since May) and was subject to the comparison that I (direct quote) was not too pleased with the nationwide BLM protests," he wrote. "These references are 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 added.