Aaron Lewis Calls Luke Bryan, Sam Hunt “Mother$%ckers.” Again.
WARNING: Some Language
This is not the first time the misanthrope Staind frontman Aaron Lewis has spewed venom in pop country’s direction. Not even close. Lewis mouthed off on record to the Marion Star in early 2014 saying, “I think there’s enough beer on the beach, partying on the tailgate, driving around in a pickup truck, moonshine songs. I think that everything has been pretty well beaten to death.”
Then just a few days afterwards, Lewis put Tyler Farr and his song “Redneck Crazy” in his crosshairs. “I fucking hate this song,” Aaron Lewis told the crowd at a live show. “I just always thought the message of this song was pretty fucked up. But obviously, a lot of people related to it ’cause it went to #1, go figure.” He then went on to perform a parody version of the song by a songwriter named Zach Woods.
Now Lewis is at it again as he gets ready to release a new record on Friday, September 16th called Sinner. The lead single “That Ain’t Country” is a good ol’ fashioned country protest song. And since everyone likes a good artist on artist donnybrook, a bunch of noise is being made of comments from a recent Aaron Lewis concert at the Thunder Mountain Amphitheatre in Loveland, Colorado on September 4th where he said,
“Sometimes the things I say get me in trouble, and I don’t really give a fuck. That being said, I want to thank a few people for inspiring me to write this next song,” referring to “That Ain’t Country.”
Aaron Lewis went on to say,
“I’d like to thank Sam Hunt – oh, I know, he’s so pretty to look at. I’d like to thank Luke Bryan, for most of his stuff – he surprises me every once in a while. I would like to thank Dan + Shay. I’d like to thank Cole Swindell. And every other motherfucker that is just choking all the life out of country music.”
But this is nothing new either, even though it’s new to WhiskeyRiff and others who are looking to create a viral sensation on Facebook. Aaron Lewis says this type of stuff at every single country show he plays, and has been for half a decade. Every single show. The news would have been if he had NOT trounced pop country from the stage. It’s part of his repertoire. It just happened to be that someone was rolling on it. And actually, that happens all the time as well. There are many examples of this on YouTube. I get sent them all the time. It’s not news. It would be like reporting on each instance Luke Bryan shakes his ass provocatively on stage.
But this is the thing about Aaron Lewis and his anti-country stance: Normally this type of thing would solicit high praise from an outlet like Saving Country Music. And hey, I will give him credit for taking a stand. But Aaron Lewis, a dyed-in-the-wool rock gone country guy, is not the one to be delivering this message, I’m sorry. If he wants to perform and support real country music, or even criticize what today’s country has become, then excellent. But pardon me if I don’t ensconce him on top of a pedestal as some country savior, when every bit of his country criticism has been boring, canned, extremely predictable, and ultimately, aggressively pandering.
Watch him make his recent comments (video below), smugly puffing on a cigarette. He knows what he’s doing. He has the timing down perfect, because he does it all the time. He’s pandering to the crowd no different than when Florida Georgia Line raps about drinking beer on a dirt road—which is only appropriate seeing how Aaron Lewis is now signed to the same label as Florida Georgia Line, Brantley Gilbert, Thomas Rhett, Taylor Swift, and half a dozen other perpetrators of the erosion of authentic country music in Scott Borchetta’s Big Machine barn.
True country music Outlaws don’t just talk the talk, they walk the walk. Somewhere on Music Row as WhiskeyRiff and Rolling Stone dutifully report this story, the Country Music Antichrist Scott Borchetta is cackling. People criticized Big Machine for getting country listeners coming and going when Maddie & Tae released “Girl in a Country Song.” Well Arron Lewis is this instance times 20. It doesn’t mean it isn’t a positive thing he’s taking a stand, and it doesn’t mean what he’s saying isn’t right. It’s not the message, it’s the messenger.
But that’s another thing: For all the hatred I’ve sent in the direction of Florida Georgia Line and Luke Bryan over the years, I’ve never gone to the extent of calling them “motherfuckers,” which is what Aaron Lewis did. As I pointed out in a recent riff against Jason Aldean, generally, these folks aren’t bad people, they just make bad music. But why didn’t Aaron Lewis include Jason Aldean in his comments? It’s because he name-dropped Aldean in a song early in his “country” career when he was releasing pseudo-pop country music. Go listen to it; it’s called “Endless Summer,” as if Mr. Staind doesn’t have any skeletons in his country music closet.
Now all of a sudden Aaron Lewis has changed his tune. Well that’s great, but I would rather leave the strong country criticism to folks like Sturgill Simpson who’ve dedicated their entire lives to the genre, not just the last half decade, part-time. Again, that’s not a knock on what Aaron Lewis is doing, but I’m sorry, he’s just not the right messenger here. He doesn’t have the skins on the wall, he’s got baggage.
And as for his protest song “That Ain’t Country,” I can’t emphasize enough how I receive at least two of these songs every single week from people, thinking they’ve stumbled on to some genius idea where they’re writing a country song criticizing country songs. There are thousands and thousands of these songs at this point—probably more than there are Bro-Country songs. It doesn’t mean they aren’t cool, but it’s about the most stereotypical, pandering thing you can possibly do in REAL country in 2016.
Every once in a while, someone does a funny twist on the theme, like the recent parodies from the former Stryper frontman, or comedian Bo Burnham from earlier this year. Randy Rogers and Wade Bowen’s “Standards” is brilliant. But this? It is a paint-by-the-numbers anti country song. Hey, glad Aaron Lewis is on board and championing the message. But let’s just tap the brakes a little bit in anointing him anything but a rock music frontman that has a country music fancy.
I’m really looking forward to the new Aaron Lewis album and hope that it’s good. But Aaron Lewis needs to prove his country music loyalty with his music, not his between-song banter. There’s people with a lot more cred, and a lot more creativity, and much less baggage that got this.
September 14, 2016 @ 8:18 am
We appreciated the SCM word-of-the-day: “donnybrook”! You sent us scrambling to Google to discover the meaning of it… The More You Know!
July 1, 2017 @ 4:11 pm
This piece of dogshit country music is like hearing nails on a chalkboard. This shitty Sam Hunt wants to be a fucking rapper and pimp instead of being a country singer. His latest Body Like A Backroad has been on the new pop and rap radio station. This shit needs to stop and he needs to chose between a good country singer with worth listening to lyrics or be a pimp that will get shot in the head by some nigger for sagging his pants.
September 14, 2016 @ 8:28 am
Agreed. it’s why Maddie and Tae are a farce. Aaron Lewis and Maddie and Tae are both on the same label, so their criticisms ring a little hollow since the same label produces FGL and Tyler Farr.
Protest songs just don’t do anything for the listener after the first couple listens… We’ve heard it before. A protest song about keeping Country Music real just… falls flat after a couple listens. Not because the message isn’t there, but because the songs just aren’t always well written.
For instance, I love “Hank.” I feel like the first verse and chorus are really strong. But the second verse doesn’t do anything, I’m not even sure it makes sense. (personal opinion) and I think a lot of protest songs fall into the same vices of just… not being consistent.
and at this point it doesn’t matter what’s Country or not anyway since the argument has been so public and so media-driven at this point and everybody knows about it. It’s not like we’re trying to wake people up. They already now about it, and most of them have already chosen sides.
but Luke Bryan is just awful.
And when you get right down to it, what does it matter what Aaron Lewis thinks? it’s not like three years ago when the bros were making headway and we were desperately grabbing quotes from Mark Chestnut and Clint Black because they were the only people speaking out… Now the bros are stumbling, and Sturgill Simpson is on the war path, and he’s got the “Street cred” we’ve been looking for. He’s walked the walk and means business and is a total outsider finally getting an inside label and mounting a full scale assault on the industry, and even though Chris Stapleton practically gave Sam Hunt the keys to Nashville with his “I think everybody should make their own music because it means more music is being made” kind of “opt out of the controversy” quote, he’s still making the points by winning every effing award every time.
I falsely predicted that Sturgill Simpson had reached his peak, and I never would have predicted that he’d go on the attack against the system. and thank God I was wrong…
September 14, 2016 @ 9:31 am
It might just be me, but covering pop/grunge songs, throwing in Motown elements that mostly drown out the country sounds, and your new label stocking your album in the indie rock section at stores isn’t my idea of country music “street cred.”
September 14, 2016 @ 10:13 am
Did you even listen to “Sailor’s Guide?” It maybe isn’t Country by a whole lot of standards, but come on bro give the man credit for 2 out of 3. High Top and Metamodern were solid Country efforts even if Metamodern pushed the envelope a bit. and Sailor’s Guide has some of the best work of his career on it, and again, we’re faced with two ends of a Country Music spectrum.
On one end, Luke Bryan and Jason Aldean making poorly written hip hop and calling it Country.
on the other hand we’ve got Simpson and Stapleton doing well-written motown, some hipster rock, and some r&b AND still some Country Music, and calling it Country.
even if it isn’t pure Country Music anymore the writing is solid.
and on the street cred thing:
Simpson lived the life, he worked on a railroad, he toured the “underground” using the term loosely. He isn’t some college educated frat-boy who wanted to be a football star and got handed a major label deal. He is the read deal because he put in the time and the effort and the soul into his craft.
I’ve seen him live, and let me tell you, you can tell when a performer treats a show like work, and a performer who treats a show like they want to be there.
Simpson was making money on the railroad and he tossed it all on a dream to make music, and he didn’t start out getting handed formula stuff that guaranteed him a hit like Sam Hunt did.
He’s put in the mileage and demonstrated a concern for the quality of his art and for art as a whole.
Where were the people sticking up for Merle Haggard when he got replaced by Stapleton?
oh. that’s right. nobody did.
except Sturgill Simpson.
Except. Sturgill. Simpson.
So go back to your hole and complain about pop-country for a while, complain that it doesn’t sound Haggard, complain that the drums and rock and roll guitars are mixed up in your face.
but when you complain about the Spirit of Merle Haggard award (which, by the way, Garth Brooks’ toilet deserves that award before Miranda Lambert does… Brooks could shit a better song that she’s ever written.)
but when you complain about that award being a money-grab, and not representing Merle Haggard, you remember the only voice who stood up for Ol’ Hag.
Because it was Sturgill Simpson.
September 14, 2016 @ 3:33 pm
Yes, I listened to A Sailor’s Guide to Earth — I’ve bought all three of his albums outright based on the recommendations of this site and his many fans, and have even own his album To the Wind and On to Heaven with Sunday Valley. As far as I’m concerned each one is weaker than the last, and Sailor’s Guide was the final straw for me. I’m not buying anymore of this guy’s records unless he releases something that REALLY blows me away, and I doubt that he will. I listen to him and I just don’t hear anything special at all, nor anything I feel like I haven’t heard better takes on elsewhere. It’s simply a difference of opinion, here, but he’s the one guy who otherwise preaches a message I agree with (most of the time) that I just can’t get behind. I don’t find his actual music to be all that stimulating and I consider him too inconsistent in his mission and statements to support him as an entity. That he’s always touted as independent country’s white knight around here has been grating on my nerves for a while. I’m not trying to be a troll about it and there’s some pop country and other music that many people hate that I consider among my favorites — I’m not judging, just venting frustration with the fact that I just don’t hear the “genius” everyone keeps swearing is in this caboodle of hypocrisy and left-field influences that is Sturgill Simpson.
Never said he wasn’t a nice guy or that he didn’t pay his dues, nor that he doesn’t deserve credit for defending Merle Haggard (I also don’t recall complaining about drums or guitars in country music, either, but I gather that it was just an example, among others). But again, the majority of what you just rattled off to me was more indicative of the man’s musical politics than his art. So he had a dream that he took a chance on, so he likes playing his shows, so he’s a real country boy — do you HONESTLY think that none of these principles (if not all three) don’t also apply to some mainstream performers? Or am I just the only dumbass in town? We always talk about the music of pop country artists in tandem with their appearances and ideals — those press photos that Simpson put out in support of his third album make him look like a damn hipster. Instead of mainstream hip he’s underground hip and he’s attracted the appropriate fanbase to go with it. That this fanbase seems to mix with the traditional country fans about as well as oil and water seems to bother no one but me.
One more thing: Sturgill Simpson ain’t no Merle Haggard, and his defending of Haggard, while totally admirable, isn’t going to suddenly convince of anything relating to his actual music. It only makes me question why he chose to cover Nirvana and When In Rome rather than Haggard himself or somebody similar. I’ve no doubt that he greatly loves and respects classic country music, but hell, so do Big & Rich and most people around here wouldn’t give them the time of day. I don’t feel comfortable writing off Sturgill’s stylistic choices as some sort of extreme artistry, like he’s above us all — if we’re pursuing that line of logic Sam Hunt and Taylor Swift would be the epitome of country music art.
But again, his artistry is not just what I find hard to swallow about him. Aside from the lack of true country showmanship on Sailor’s Guide, he just strikes me as plain boring from head to toe. I’m not begrudging your right to like him and I’m very much in the minority, I just tend to balk whenever you and others try to hand him the keys to the city on SCM.
September 14, 2016 @ 5:56 pm
^ the truth
the best thing about simpson is still his band, and his taste in music
he’s still a workshop writer, he has a lot of anger to work out, and somebody needs to teach him how to sing through the notes, legato like, instead of squeezing em shut all the time
he never seems to enjoy himself, which to me makes him less enjoyable
ymmv
September 14, 2016 @ 7:39 pm
I think High Top was his weakest album. I know it’s an unpopular opinion, but I think Metamodern, though inconsistent, was just a little bit more innovative. and Sailor’s Guide is a concept album, which makes it a unique animal.
and Corncaster: I’ve seen the man live, he enjoys performing a lot. He’s a lot of fun and if the audio engineers hadn’t overloaded him to the point of being unintelligible I’d have called it one of the best concerts I’ve ever seen, right up there with Dailey and Vincent.
as for covering When in Rome instead of Haggard… Well, I looooove Green Day, and most people who know me know that I loooove Green Day, and Foo Fighters, and Guns’N’Roses. Not what you’d expect from a diehard Country traditionalist who grew up idolizing Porter Wagoner and Buck Owens.
Rock is good, Metal is good, and when a good Country performer does a good performance of a good Rock song, the end result is good.
I’ve always said that the Country Music Jesus we’ve been waiting for with an Ira Louvin belt buckle, who can play Charley Pride’s repertoire from memory and does impressions of Lefty Frizzell and Tom T. Hall just doesn’t exist. the hero I wanted, who brings twenty protest songs to the table, cusses out Luke Bryan during the CMAs, etc etc. It’s wishful thinking. Sturgill Simpson is what we got. and it looks like we’re stuck with him.
Because he’s the only one standing up right now. Stapleton keeps winning, but he won’t pick a fight.
Simpson picks all the fights.
and good God we need someone to fight for Country Music.
and I guess Sturgill Simpson is our only hope.
September 17, 2016 @ 4:40 pm
Fuzzy: Lou Reed’s Metal Machine Music was a concept album and pretty much any fan of music will tell you that it’s a pain to listen to. There you go again with that “Sturgill is such an ARTEEST” talk that you seem to think absolves him of any and all questioning.
I find your point about what rock bands you like to be missing my point a bit. Likely to Trigger’s chagrin, I have gone on at length in the comments sections on SCM about AC/DC and Creed in the past, not to mention Alice In Chains. I looooove all of them. I also haaaaate Nirvana and Lynyrd Skynyrd, though more for the over-saturation of their brands in pop culture than the music itself, which I find to be decent. You might say Sturgill hit a nerve with me by choosing to cover “In Bloom” — I freely admit that bias, but I still think that my point is valid. What’s the difference between Sturgill covering these pop/rock songs and Luke Bryan doing the same thing in concert while he shakes his ass? The fact that people think Simpson sounds like Waylon? All of this hair-splitting is driving me nuts. Cue comment about how Luke Bryan covering pop songs is different than Sturgill because people around here like the latter and hate the former.
I just don’t think that Sturgill is fighting for country music the way you think he is or interpret his actions as being. He’s said he doesn’t want the label, his sound is moving away from that traditionalist wheelhouse, and he’s covering songs that aren’t country. I find this “he’s a warrior” talk to be neither here nor there. Merle Haggard was his friend first and an icon second to him. I have a feeling that if Hag were a famous rapper that got a bum rap with a magazine instead Sturgill would still stick up for him. Not a problem in the world with that, the point is merely that Sturgill was sticking up for a friend more than he was the friend’s music, though that definitely was a part of it.
Again, call me more conflicted that opposed on this matter. If he were running for Country Music President he’d probably get my vote. But here’s the thing: he’s not. I’ll stick with Chris Stapleton, myself.
September 14, 2016 @ 8:31 am
“Oh he’s pretty to look at” Fuck Aaron Lewis. Washed up wannabe. He’s just salty cause he sucks ass and no one wants to listen to him. By name dropping ppl like Sam, Luke etc you making ppl curious to go look up their music and give them views and they get paid on that so keep bitchin Aaron. That’s why you were only good for ShitMachine records and Sam Hunt is good enough to be on the same label as George Strait.
September 14, 2016 @ 9:38 am
Here’ the thing, at least Lewis is writing and playing Country music. Sam Hunt is about as Country as the Spice Girls, and as for Luke Aldean, and those Florida Georgia rejects and all of the other Bro-Country douchebags their music has absolutely no substance nor resemblance to Country music other than maybe a fiddle or steel guitar way down in the mix under the edm drumbeats. Hence the reason there audience is the 18-35 year old air heads that believe Garth Brooks is Classic Country and wouldn’t know Country music to hear it. In my opinion Staind was an awful shitty pussy rock band but Lewis’ efforts so far for in Country are not really all that bad, even if he still has a way to go earning the respect of the diehard Country fans.
September 14, 2016 @ 10:01 am
I think Aaron Lewis would be a lot better off letting his music speak for itself. For the folks that have been following SCM’s covering of him over the years, they can attest there has been a wide arc. At the beginning, I thought his music was awful, and it pretty much was. Since then, he’s shown solid improvement, and I suspect his newest record will be the best one yet.
I love it when folks speak out about Sam Hunt and Luke Bryan, but in the case of Aaron Lewis, all it’s going to do is cause people to dig into his past and start asking questions.
September 14, 2016 @ 12:30 pm
My problem with Aaron’s comments aren’t that he used to play in a rock band. My problem with his comments are that they are douchey. And they are douchey in the same way (or more so) as other artists you have called out in the past for douchey comments. Chris or Sturgill could’ve said this, and it still would have been a problem for me.I just don’t think you should behave like an ass.
September 14, 2016 @ 6:00 pm
agreed, and it’s why i’ve always wished dale watson would’ve dropped the hero worship and diatribe earlier on and let the music speak for itself
but eh, let the boys be boys and start a fight now and then
September 14, 2016 @ 8:37 am
I was thinking about buying the new album, he has a concert in my area I was thinking about attending. I won’t be doing either now. Recently this site called out Jaosn Aldean for making boorish comments, and we all agreed. To me these comments are worse. And making good music doesn’t excuse bad behavior. You can dislike someone’s music, make your name by making good music. Do you bro. This name calling, making it personal etc isn’t about music, it’s about being a douche. And in this case he’s doing it (and I’d guess quite happy it’s getting noticed) because his new album is coming out, and controversy sells. And I’m not down with that.
September 14, 2016 @ 8:55 am
Once again this all proves that Dale Watson is the king. He was writing that’s not country songs when Arron Lewis was still harvesting cash from third-rate grunge-rock.
The first first in particular almost could be about Mr. Staind…
“He ain’t even near twenty, but he says he’s seen plenty of hard times,
‘Cause he’s been on his bus for five days and in his hotel for five nights.
And his satellite dish is broke and the new band is treatin’ him mean. (Yeah, I know.)
And there’s still another week to go: he misses that karaoke machine. “
September 14, 2016 @ 9:04 am
I enjoy Aaron’s music, but he’s in the same boat as the people he is dissing, just going down a different river. Their boats are powered by pop beats and lyrics that pander to some people, while Aaron’s boat is powered by pandering to the people that dislike the other guys. Like another poster stated, he needs to make a name for himself by releasing good songs, not by dissing other artists. I can almost see him thinking that he will get fans by singing about how he misses good music, when he would be best just making good music. You don’t see guys like Chris Stapleton out there dissing others, guys like Chris just make good music, and that is how they get fans.
September 14, 2016 @ 10:09 am
I like many of the protest songs. They’re funny, and fun to listen to. But then you move on. “Murder On Music Row” had a lasting impact, but that was 16 years ago. Hank3 released an entire protest album in “Straight to Hell.” But that was a decade ago. It’s been done. You’re not being crafty, you’re just being predictable. So either say something unique and lasting, or leave it to someone who can.
September 14, 2016 @ 4:20 pm
Totally agree, and to add something, basing a career on it is a fast way to end that career quickly.
September 14, 2016 @ 9:11 am
Has anyone ever been to a show and have the performer go on a type of rant like that and it makes you feel sort of weird and awkward? And then everyone cheering and yelling for it just makes the feeling worse?
September 14, 2016 @ 9:13 am
The only true pop country protest song is a pure country song.
September 14, 2016 @ 9:51 am
You nailed it Boots . ” Be the change “
September 14, 2016 @ 10:07 am
Yep.
September 14, 2016 @ 9:16 am
It’s the equivalent of Brantley Gilbert clamping brass knuckles onto his microphone stand, or an eleven-year boy sneaking onto Facebook and dropping the F-bomb in a post as though it’s a milestone in his coming of age.
It’s all power but no purpose.
It’s also precisely why I just can’t get into Wheeler Walker Jr’s songwriting. Musically he’s crowd-pleasing, but let’s be frank: most of his popularity stems from the camaraderie he inspires by bashing pop-country routinely. Part of it is understandable, but it nonetheless also comes across as calculating and no less creatively bankrupt than who they’re bashing.
I’d much rather hear Wheeler Walker Jr. record an album of non-gimmicky songs and Aaron Lewis continue to build upon the relative goodwill he received with “The Road” as a serious long haul artist.
September 14, 2016 @ 10:11 am
But Wheeler Walker Jr. doesn’t have any protest music. When he wrote that record, he had no idea what was going on in mainstream country. It wasn’t until after he realized it had been taken over by Sam Hunt and Florida Georgia Line, and then he went on the warpath on social network.
Totally understand that Wheeler Walker Jr. is not for everyone, and his shtick against pop country can come with its own criticisms. But I think they’re two completely separate cases, especially since Wheller Walker Jr. is a fictional character. Who knows where the entertainment value of Wheeler ends, and his true hatred for pop country begins.
September 14, 2016 @ 9:20 am
I’m not taking up for Aaron Lewis, trust me. However, being a reformed rocker doesn’t negate one’s opinion. Cody Jinks was once a rocker. Also, a guy named Waylon Jennings once played with Buddy Holly. That being said, I’ve had enough with Aaron Lewis!
September 14, 2016 @ 10:15 am
Hey, ultimately it should come down to the quality of the music. If Aaron Lewis is putting out great country, who cares what he used to do in the past. But when he tries to take the point of criticizing modern country, it comes off a little bit hollow.
And also in fairness to Lewis, he didn’t say these things in a calculated manner in an interview, he did it from the stage and it happened to be captured on tape. It’s the media that decided to make a big deal about it. Like I said above, he’s been saying this stuff for years.
September 14, 2016 @ 9:42 am
Yeah, part of me wants to cheer his sentiment, but as they say, talk is cheap. Actually, people who go on and on about their outlaw credentials always kinda bother me, even if they are really legit. Just be the real deal and others will put that label on you is my preference.
Trigger, how do you think Wheeler Walker Jr. compares to Aaron Lewis as a messenger on the attack against metro-bro country? I think some of the same criticisms could be applied to him, but I dunno. He seems more clever and perhaps more self-aware to me. Or maybe I just like his music better?
September 14, 2016 @ 10:17 am
Wheeler Walker Jr. is a fictional character that is doing a bit. It doesn’t mean that the man pulling the strings doesn’t hate Sam Hunt’s music, but you always have to take that into account. Wheeler Walker Jr. is out there purposely trying to push buttons and get under people’s skin. Aaron Lewis was just riffing before a song, and WhiskeyRiff and Rolling Stone decided to make a big deal out of it for clicks. Overall, I just don;t think it’s fair to either to compare the two.
September 14, 2016 @ 10:15 am
Some people have to have someone to blame for their lack of success!!! May be it’s their attitude or personality!!!
September 14, 2016 @ 10:50 am
Here’s the thing: Yes, aside from the cliche ridden, banal “Country Boy” and the annoying “Endless Summer” (and the cringe-inducing Miley Cyrus name drop), Aaron Lewis has made decent country music. “That Ain’t Country” is a good song. I also enjoyed “Grandaddy’s Gun”. “Forever” is awesome. The truth is that Aaron, like the artists he is bashing, is also a country “carpetbagger”. He is a washed-up rock singer whose career went into the toilet with the demise of rock music. However, Aaron, although a former rock star who “went country”, does seem to have a base knowledge of the roots of country music, unlike Sam Hunt, Luke Bryan, Dan + Shay, and Cole Swindell. Sam Hunt, although talented, IS NOT COUNTRY AT ALL. He is a pure pop singer in every sense of the term. Luke Bryan, the king of bro country, is a farce. He is a forty year old man child who creepily shakes his ass for horny teenage girls and their mothers. He needs to grow the fuck up. Dan + Shay are also very talented, but belong in pop. Basically, in country, all they are is a two man Rascal Flatts/Rascal Flatts wannabes. Shay Mooney is Gary Levox with a much better voice and vocal range. Cole Swindell is the most untalented human being I’ve ever seen in all of my twenty years on earth. Seriously, Cole, go back to your merch table. Unlike these artists, Aaron actually tries to make country music, incorporating a country sound into his songs (the steel guitar in “Forever” is incredible), but I feel as if Aaron went a bit too far this time.
September 14, 2016 @ 12:00 pm
Dan + Shay can sing? Since when? Did they finally hit puberty or something?
September 14, 2016 @ 1:27 pm
I actually think Shay can sing fairly well (I have no clue about Dan, because he never sings.). But those two have absolutely no business in the country genre. One Rascal Flatts is enough, thank you.
September 15, 2016 @ 7:19 am
Dan Smyers is to Dan + Shay what Brian Kelley is to Florida Georgia Line. Forgot to put that in my last reply, stupid me lol
September 14, 2016 @ 11:24 am
This coming from the dude who put out Country Boy & Endless Summer. Nah, i’ll pass on this dude.
September 14, 2016 @ 11:45 am
Not much I can argue with here, hoss. Good message, bad messenger. I heard “That Ain’t Country” and thought it was pretty good, honestly, but the lyrics did leave a bit to be desired. He’s got the sound down. He just needs to work on his lyrics and get a couple more good albums under his belt.
September 14, 2016 @ 11:55 am
The Aaron Lewis comments are just like when the Dixie Chicks made that devil horn poster of Donald Trump and when the public generalized Taylor Swift’s fandom as teenage girls, except even worse. As much as I dislike Florida Georgia Line and Luke Bryan, I’m willing to give them credit where credit is due just like with every other musician I dislike. This is exactly what Kacey Musgraves meant when she said “Taking down your neighbor won’t take you any higher” in Biscuits.
September 14, 2016 @ 12:58 pm
I’ve seen Aaron Lewis a bunch of times with the country band and I really enjoyed it. I’ll go see him again. I missed him and Willie last week because of another commitment.
I’m not too keen on this new song. I was really expecting something more from him.
He has all the tools, I am not giving up.
Not sure if he meant this to get this attention, or if it was just him bantering at his shows. He does talk a lot and tell stories.
I do get a feeling of a marketing initiative her though, product placement, etc. Look who he’s signed with. That is a bit disheartening to me.
Also, I am not one to name drop if you are in the spotlite. Say what you want about the state of music, etc. But the name dropping isn’t doing anything for me, especially when you’re a performer.
Sturgill had the best rant going, but it was not calling someone out, just comment on the state of things and the VMA.
Let the public (and us SCM followers) rant about specific artists. LOL
September 14, 2016 @ 2:58 pm
“Not sure if he meant this to get this attention, or if it was just him bantering at his shows.”
This was just him bantering at shows. I’ve been sent probably a dozen of these videos from Aaron Lewis and never felt the need to write an article about it. But WhiskeRiff got passed it, saw dollar signs in their eyes, then Rolling Stone saw the need to jump on the action lest they lose out on all those hits, and next thing you know it’s dominating the day’s news cycle. Aaron Lewis has said similar things at every single country show he’s played in the last few years. This is not news. And anyone actually paying attention to his career would know this.
September 14, 2016 @ 1:19 pm
Go Aaron lewis…. sometimes this site also irritates me bunch of whining hipsters that cry so much they may as well listen to sam hunt and luke bryan!!!
September 14, 2016 @ 2:54 pm
Sometimes issues are not black and white. You can be for what Aaron Lewis said, but point out that he might not be the individual in the best position to deliver this sentiment. Or you can be against what Aaron Lewis said, and not be fore Sam Hunt and Luke Bryan.
September 14, 2016 @ 1:31 pm
I would also like to point out that Aaron didn’t call them motherfuckers he dropped a few names and then said every other motherfucker… did u used to work for cnn trigger cause you sure can twist the shit out of things
September 14, 2016 @ 2:53 pm
“I would like to thank Dan + Shay. I’d like to thank Cole Swindell. And every other motherfucker…
That would state that “every” person he was referring to was a motherfucker.
September 14, 2016 @ 4:18 pm
You have a point I will give you that, But you most definitely turned a statement into a SCREAMING HEADLINE!
September 14, 2016 @ 1:48 pm
I hate Milli Vanilli…one used Sensodyne toothpaste and his favorite TV show was St. Elsewhere. The other (RIP) was 6′ 2″ and preferred redheads until his Jr year in high school. He then dated blondes exclusively. Blame it on the Rain was a pandering, weak song. And their follow up albums really fell off. I really hate those guys and can’t understand why anybody would pay them a bit of attention. So, all you haters, who can’t stand the thought of Luke Brian, Jason Aldean, Sam Hunt or FGL…feel free to obsess some more on this stuff that YOU would never admit listening to…
September 14, 2016 @ 3:02 pm
I like his song Country boy, Peace!
September 14, 2016 @ 3:24 pm
Fuck him. I love me some Luke and Sam and Cole music.
September 15, 2016 @ 11:32 am
Haha! I’m hoping you are bursting with sarcasm. If not that is just…….very sad.
September 15, 2016 @ 2:36 pm
Nope I’m not. sorry honey!
September 15, 2016 @ 2:51 pm
I’m a guy so the honey comment is just plain gay, but gay does describe Luke, Sam and Cole so I guess you are kind of right.
September 18, 2016 @ 2:20 pm
It was meant to be condescending, not a term of endearment.
And no, those guys are far from gay. You know the ones who are the biggest homophobes are the most likely to be gay themselves. You should do some soul searching.
September 14, 2016 @ 5:36 pm
Cole Swindell co-writes most of his songs, is a highly talented songwriter, and works endlessly performing and getting out new music. When I drive, I listen to Cole Swindell.
Cole Swindell, Florida Georgia Line, and Sam Hunt are hugely successful because people LOVE their music.
I see no value in Aaron Lewis’ going out of his way to knock hard working country music artists whose music people love. Aaron should focus on improving his own music.
September 14, 2016 @ 6:04 pm
Cole Swindell, Florida Georgia Line, and Sam Hunt are hugely successful because people Love to be spoonfed mindless, talentless pop garbage wrapped up in a nice, cute little package called “Contemporary Country Radio”.
There, I fixed that for ya.
September 14, 2016 @ 6:57 pm
So agree Lynne
September 14, 2016 @ 7:03 pm
You do understand that his record label pairs him up with a staff writer to um…. co-write witch in reality means, Here kid is your song about trucks beer and girls, I put your name on it go record it quick it fits the format the radio consultants are wanting right now so we should have a hit
September 14, 2016 @ 7:26 pm
Don’t underestimate Cole Swindell.
September 14, 2016 @ 8:25 pm
Not even remotely true. His biggest selling songs prior to You Should Be Here which was a written with one other, Ashley Gorley were Chillin It (written by he and Shane Minor) and Ain’t Worth the Whiskey (written with Adam Sanders and Josh Martin both of whom barely had a publishing deal at the time). But by all means, don’t let the hate cloud your narrative
September 14, 2016 @ 9:14 pm
Hate? I do not know what you think I hate. I listen to music that I love, and I presume that you listen to music that you love.
September 15, 2016 @ 7:24 am
I was speaking to Dave.
September 15, 2016 @ 8:41 am
Thanks, Ballgame, for the clarification and message.
September 15, 2016 @ 3:54 pm
@ ballgame Trust me my hate for bubblegum pop country is not clouded…. All these dipshits music is pretty much the same you cant tell one from the other and anyone who likes thes dumb dound auto tune bro formula music is tin eared and tone deaf
September 14, 2016 @ 7:30 pm
“Cole Swindell co-writes most of his songs, is a highly talented songwriter, and works endlessly performing and getting out new music. When I drive, I listen to Cole Swindell.”
Sigh. where to begin.
He co-writes most of his own songs? CO-WRITES??? Does he also need help taking a shit? because that’s what his songs are. and the fact that it takes 2 people makes him even less appealing.
And he’s not a hugely talented songwriter. Because he’s not talented, and he’s not a songwriter.
and he doesn’t “work endlessly performing and putting out new music.” Because he doesn’t put out new music, he puts out the same dumb kind of music that Luke Bryan and Chase Rice puts out. Bro-Country about beer and trucks. How is that new music if it just rips off what equally untalented people are doing
And if you listen to Cole Swindell while you drive, I’m willing to bet that you also don’t use turn signals and like to pass in no-passing areas
September 14, 2016 @ 9:33 pm
I am interested only in the truth, and I believe that Cole Swindell plays a major role in the writing of his songs because there are similarities which carry through from song to song even though he co-writes with different songwriters.
On the driving side, I follow the rules of the road.
September 15, 2016 @ 5:08 am
” there are similarities which carry through from song to song”
Of course there are. Beer, trucks, girls, misogyny, electronic drum beats, completely void of anything sounding like Country Music…
lots of similarities to Luke Bryan, Sam Hunt and FGL too.
September 15, 2016 @ 5:56 am
I am speaking of similarities in songwriting technique.
September 15, 2016 @ 6:17 am
It’s not a complicated technique:
“Let’s rip off whatever sells and just use the magic of marketing to fool people into thinking this is quality original music!”
September 15, 2016 @ 6:56 am
Cole’s success is based on unique songwriting technique.
September 15, 2016 @ 10:26 am
Dumb. just dumb.
You keep using the word “unique” wrong.
The word you want to be using is “derivative.”
But I doubt Cole Swindle knows what “derivative” means.
September 15, 2016 @ 3:09 pm
Cole RULES!
I am gearing UP for Florida Georgia Line’s DIG YOUR ROOTS Tour with the amazing Cole Swindell, The Cadillac Three, and Kane Brown this Saturday, Sept 17 at the Hollywood Casino Amphitheater in Tinley Park (Chicago) IL!!! … so no more time right now to further enlighten!
There will be thousands of people there … maybe 20,000!
This is how we roll … This is how we do …
September 15, 2016 @ 4:12 pm
@Lynne big F#$CKING deal Chris stapleton who has basically no radio support and Hank Williams Jr. who radio has not really played in 25 years just finished up a sold out amphitheater tour with very simple stageiing no theatrics, they had 20,000 plus every show of the tour and there not corporate yes people they are true artists that do there own thing musically…. That’s how we roll…. Real country music will survive!!!
September 15, 2016 @ 2:32 am
All I am gonna say is that is highly subjective on Cole Swindell. I find him decently talented and I honestly don’t mind his music (also saying that Cole Swindell is not talented is highly subjective).
September 14, 2016 @ 6:05 pm
I like Aaron Lewis and Staind.
But I concur that this sounds like rather shameless pandering.
He needs to shut up and sing.
September 14, 2016 @ 7:26 pm
Maybe Aaron Lewis isn’t the most qualified person in the world to call out the Bros out there for staining the reputation of country music, especially given the ‘R’-rated language that he uses. But are those who defend those very same Bros any more qualified to defend THEIR position with the canard “Country music must evolve”? I would have to say No. Call this a wash.
Setting aside Lewis’, how shall we say, colorful language, the point he’s making, is, in my opinion, is a legitimate one. Do the people in rural and small-town America, be it in the South, the Midwest, the Northeast, or the Far West, really do nothing in their spare time but screw girls on the tailgates of their pickup trucks, or guzzle enough beer to be legally drunk within thirty minutes while driving down dirt roads at dangerous speeds? Absolutely not. But you’d never know it to listen to what passes for country radio nowadays, where guys like Aldean, Bryan, Swindell, Shelton, FGL, sing/rap about these things and turn them into a brand-new form of stereotyping of country living. Compounding this is the fact that so many of these “songs” bury whatever country instrumentation there would otherwise be under walls of electronic drumming, Autotune, and screeching arena-rock guitars. And then to have Bobby Bones and all the Bro Defenders out there in corporate radio defend this as country music “evolving” is extremely insulting.
Lewis perhaps isn’t the one to defend the position of, let’s say, the traditionalists. But I don’t think the Bros and their fans (who don’t seem to be nearly as secure about their favorites as they may want the rest of us to believe, if reacting the way they do to even the *mildest* form of critiquing is an indication) have much of a legitimate position to defend either.
September 14, 2016 @ 10:55 pm
I’m sorry, notice the TWAAAAANNNNG he’s affected since his ‘country’ transformation? The plaid shirts? He’s a nice Jewish boy from MA that wore Dickies, Vans & backward caps & who needs a second act. And don’t think for 2 seconds he’ll reform Stayi-ned (!) if his casino bookings dry up. Which is all fine, but he always needs to take a shot at others because of some bitter rage. Sad!
September 14, 2016 @ 11:14 pm
This just reeks of an opportunist jumping in while the gettin’s good. How convenient. Chris Stapleton opened the flood gates built by the Sturgill’s and Isbell’s of the world, only to have the Aaron Lewis’s cheapen the movement with their not so subtle attempts at relevancy. This macho man talk is cheaper than Jason Aldean’s next Halloween costume.
September 15, 2016 @ 5:58 am
Yawn….. the irony with all this “fuck Nashville” talk at concerts is that it sounds great and fires fans up but then they sober up and realize there were 1,000 people in the theater and 20,000 (or more) at a Luke Bryan show.
These artist need to let their music talk….. and like Jason Aldean, shut up.
September 15, 2016 @ 6:58 am
Jeff Walker from Carcass made a pretty good country music album. Granted, it is covers, but I have more respect for him than I have for Aaron Lewis. He just seems like a guy who got all he could out of the nu-metal scene and is jumping on the bandwagon to be a rebel.
September 15, 2016 @ 12:50 pm
Tough words from a member of what is basically less successful version of Nickelback.
September 15, 2016 @ 3:07 pm
Luke Bryan and Sam Hunt and Dan + Shay and Cole Swindell are not Motherfuckers
September 15, 2016 @ 3:59 pm
@ T.J. you sir are correct they are corporate yes men that that bring shit music to a bunch of sheep that depend on country radio to tell them what they should listen to.
September 15, 2016 @ 10:05 pm
Just look at this guy’s posturing. Such a bad ass, right? Wasn’t he choking the life out of rock 20 years ago with his pisspants whining about his Daddy issues? Who the fuck died and made him the spokesman for country? I can’t stand the sight of this assclown. GTFO, poser.
September 16, 2016 @ 10:54 am
HA HA Adrian are you sure your really not Cole Swindell or his Publicist!!!
September 16, 2016 @ 11:28 am
Making hate your “brand” makes you just as bad as the brands you claim to hate.
September 19, 2016 @ 9:25 am
Florida Georgia Line’s DIG YOUR ROOTS Tour on Sat Sept 17 at the Hollywood Casino Amphitheatre, Tinley Park (Chicago) IL was SOLD OUT with almost 30,000 people attending!!! Officially the count was 28,191!
This show had the highest attendance of ALL shows at this venue this season. It was STUNNING to see all of the people. They were all ages but predominantly YOUNG people.
The crowd went CRAZY over “H.O.L.Y.”, a totally top-notch song, and when the applause got louder and louder, and the crowd kept cheering, Tyler extended the song. That was a moment.
Can you imagine what it must be like to take the stage with almost 30,000 people all over the place jam packed looking at you, loving you, and singing your songs!
I got first row, front of the pit, and the singers—Kane Brown, The Cadillac Three, Cole Swindell, and Florida Georgia Line were a few feet in front of me. I saw every detail in four great shows.
Gotta Love Cole Swindell, who is bringing his Down Home Tour to Joe’s Live, Rosemont (Chicago) IL on Wed Nov 30 and to Joe’s Bar on Weed Street (Chicago) IL on Thu Dec 1 … Tickets go on sale this Fri Sep 23 … plus many other cities.
Cole just released his sophomore album YOU SHOULD BE HERE on May 6 and will release his DOWN HOME SESSIONS III EP on November 13 to kick off this tour!
Doug Crane states it perfectly when he posts that the reason people love Florida Georgia Line, Cole Swindell, and others is because their music makes people happy: “They make me feel good, they make me dance, they make me smile, they make me enjoy life!!! ….in the end that’s what I want music for!!!” Exactly.
September 19, 2016 @ 10:48 am
Correction: It looks like the release of Cole’s DOWN HOME SESSIONS III EP is Oct 28, not Nov 13. The DOWN HOME Tour kicks off on Oct 26.
September 23, 2016 @ 8:52 pm
Really?? Traditional country? With his tattoo sleeves and baseball cap he has a lot of nerve to talk. why did you come over to country music if you wanted to complain? Stay in the world you were in. Hell you didn’t even know what country was five years ago! I hate when washed up grunge singers start giving their opinion. They need to shut up instead of opening their mouth and inserting foot.
September 26, 2016 @ 12:08 am
This writer is great. He has a personal grudge against Aaron for some reason and won’t stop whining about how Aaron has only been in country for a short period of time. This Record is better than 95% of the music on country music radio and just because Aaron was in staind, that doesn’t mean he doesn’t have the credentials to be a good country singer.
September 26, 2016 @ 7:01 am
Oh, quit your whining and go read my review of the record:
https://savingcountrymusic.com/album-review-sinner-by-aaron-lewis/
September 26, 2016 @ 3:53 pm
I’m personally a fun of modern country. I’ll admit it. I enjoy dumb music that’s shiny on the surface and doesn’t have deep layers to it. But I enjoy the REAL stuff too. And I personally think there’s room for both. While I rarely agree with Saving Country Music, I almost always respect your opinion because it’s stated in an intelligent manner and doesn’t rely on cheap blows to artist’s appearance or mannerisms to drive your point home. That being said, I wholeheartedly agree with this article. It’s disgusting to see people eat up Aaron Lewis’ schtick, and not just because I personally enjoy the artists that he’s criticizing. Also, thank you for at least briefly addressing the fake outlaw phenomenon. I can’t count how many modern outlaw bands I’ve seen/heard that have laundry lists as bad as any Bro-country (although the list is different) song, and make their fans simply by trashing the country on the radio. And so many people eat it up. So thank you for hitting on that topic, even though it was brief. You are never hypocrites, and that’s why I respect your opinions, whether we agree or not.
October 10, 2016 @ 3:13 pm
Wahooooo!!! October 9, 2016 – Cole Swindell WINS Songwriter/Artist of the Year 2016 presented by the Nashville Songwriters Association International (NSAI) during the 46th Anniversary Hall of Fame Gala, Music City Center, Nashville TN!!! SO deserving!!! I rest my case! Thanks to all those who voted for Cole!
Cole is nominated for 2016 CMA New Artist of the Year!!! CMA Awards Show is on Tue Nov 2 at 8 pm ET/7 pm CT on ABC. It is held at the Bridgestone Arena, Nashville TN and hosted for the ninth consecutive year by Brad Paisley and Carrie Underwood.
May 17, 2023 @ 12:35 pm
Wow, I just looked up Endless Summer and I thought I was listening to a Darius Rucker song It’s so cookie cutter it’s ridiculous. Just shows that most human beings have some level of hypocrisy in them. As far as the first commenter, way to go throwing in racial slurs you POS. lastly Jesse James do pre of Jackyl was doing a similar country music protest before playing their new cut (at the time) Just Because I’m Drunk (Don’t Mean You’re Right)