Jason Aldean dedicates ‘Try That in a Small Town’ performance to Trump after assassination attempt

Country musician Jason Aldean performed his 2023 hit “Try That in a Small Town” on Saturday, dedicating it to former President Donald Trump after he narrowly survived an assassination attempt hours earlier.

The shooting occurred during a rally Trump was holding in Butler, Pennsylvania , when gunshots were suddenly heard and the Secret Service quickly surrounded the president to give him cover. Aldean, a friend of Trump, relayed the news to the crowd he was performing for in Nashville and then dedicated his next performance, “Try That in a Small Town,” to the former president.

Aldean’s audience responded by chanting “USA.”

The song, released in May 2023, is an anthem for how small-town residents protect and help one another and that random acts of violence seen in major cities do not fly in small towns. It generated controversy after Country Music Television pulled the song from its network , resulting in the song going viral after its censorship.

Aldean has defended his song in the wake of the controversy, arguing it is about a desire to return to a time “where we go at least a day without a headline that keeps us up at night.”

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He has also posted the now-iconic photo of Trump raising his fist after surviving his assassination attempt on social media, writing that “this is what a warrior looks like” and calling Trump “my guy.” He also mourned the victims of the shooting and their families, writing, “They are the ones left to pick up the pieces of this cowardly act.”

A post shared by Jason Aldean (@jasonaldean)

Trump is set to deliver a speech at the 2024 Republican National Convention on Thursday, less than a week after surviving the assassination attempt. He told the Washington Examiner’s Salena Zito that his speech has been rewritten after his near-death experience to promote unity within the country.