Jason Aldean’s Wife Does a Victory Lap Over ‘Small Town’ Success: ‘That Sure Did Backfire’
Never one to stay tight-lipped on her political views, Jason Aldean's wife Brittany has been vocal about her support of "Try That in a Small Town" from the start — and now she's celebrating the controversial song's status as Aldean's first-ever Billboard Hot 100 No. 1 hit.
"Well, yesterday was a monumental day for [Jason Aldean]," Brittany wrote on Instagram, alongside a string of photos and video from what appears to be a small gathering to celebrate the song's success. "#1 on the Billboard Hot 100 Chart!! ...A career first."
In her celebration post, Brittany also did a little bit of gloating at the expense of the song's critics.
"That sure did backfire, didn't it??" she continued. "The best fans EVERRRR."
The Aldeans' two young children, Memphis and Navy, were both there for the party, according to the photos Brittany posted. In one shot, both kids are hanging out in their country star dad's lap; another video shows Aldean holding Memphis as "Try That in a Small Town" plays in the background.
Over the course of the past few weeks, the song has faced significant criticism as many listeners interpreted its message as racist dogwhistling and glorification of gun-based vigilante justice. Those comments heated up after Aldean released the song's music video, which features shots of him performing it in front of Columbia, Tenn.'s Maury County courthouse, where the body of a Black man was hung after being lynched and murdered by a mob in 1927.
Aldean issued a statement in the response to the controversy, denouncing those who accused him of releasing a "pro-lynching song" and calling accusations of racism against him "not only meritless, but dangerous."
Around the same time, Brittany blamed the "media" for the controversy in an Instagram story slide, saying that the message of Aldean's song had been "twist[ed]" to fit a "repulsive narrative" and suggesting that the mainstream news cycle should instead be focusing on "real" stories "such as CHILD TRAFFICKING."
Last year, Brittany became embroiled in a feud with Maren Morris after Morris and a couple of other stars criticized an Instagram reel she posted as transphobic. The dust-up went back and forth on social media, and Brittany then appeared on Fox's Tucker Carlson Tonight to elaborate on her views on gender-affirming care for youth. The segment now-famously branded Morris as a "lunatic country music person," and both Brittany and Morris launched T-shirts around the feud that raised money for the charities of their choice. For Brittany, that was Operation Light Shine, a Nashville-based organization that seeks to combat sex trafficking; Morris donated proceeds to the Trans Lifeline and the GLAAD Transgender Media Program.
Brittany also helms a conservative clothing line with Kasi Rosa, who is Aldean's sister and married to singer and radio personality Chuck Wicks. Their website currently features shirts and hooded sweatshirts with slogans like "Unapologetically Conservative," "Unsilent Majority" and "Alexa, Change the President."