Country singer Jason Aldean has delivered his verdict on Donald Trump’s first month back in office, saying the president is “doing, I think, what a lot of us hoped he would.”
Aldean, a five-time Grammy nominee behind the controversial song “Try That in a Small Town,” is a longtime Trump supporter who performed at one of the President’s Inauguration Balls.
Speaking during an Instagram Q&A this week, per country news site Whiskey Riff, Aldean responded to a question about Trump’s performance so far by saying: “I’m actually excited, honestly.”
He continued: “Obviously you guys know this, we’ve been a fan of his for a long time and he’s doing, I think, what a lot of us hoped he would, what he said he was gonna do, and he’s doing that.
“I think at the end of the day, it seems he’s going to save taxpayers a lot of money, he’s saving a ton of our tax dollars that are going to waste.”
Aldean’s wife Brittany added that she believed Trump had tightened security around the country’s borders, saying: “This is what I voted for.”
Aldean also weighed in on Trump’s advisor Elon Musk and the widespread cuts he’s been making to government spending under the auspices of DOGE.
“I watched his whole speech… I thought it was amazing,” said Aldean. “He, to me, is coming in and doing everything he said he was going to do, which is going in and start trying to get us back on the right track, and I truly feel like that’s what’s happening. I think Elon’s doing a great job, and I dunno, we’re excited.”
Brittany added that, since Trump returned to office: “I sleep way better at night.”
In 2023, Aldean hit back against criticism of his song “Try That in a Small Town”.
The song ignited furore among listeners, especially after Aldean released an accompanying music video which featured images of protesters fighting with police officers.
After being accused of “promoting violence”, the video was quickly pulled from rotation on Country Music Television, though the broadcaster did not provide a reason for its decision.
Critics also called the song “racist” and a “lynching anthem” after learning that the music video was filmed outside the Maury County Courthouse in Columbia, Tennessee, where 18-year-old Black teenager Henry Choate was lynched in 1927.
Appearing on the Coop’s Rockin’ Country Saturday Night podcast, Aldean said it was “not saying anything that’s not true” in the song.
“Country music is blue-collar music, man, it’s for the everyman. I’ve got eyes, I can see what’s going on,” Aldean said. “I don’t care which side of the political fence you want to stand on.”
