Country DJ Bobby Bones Reacts to Nashville School Shooting: ‘Your Politicians Don’t Care for You’
As host of the national country-music morning program The Bobby Bones Show, DJ Bobby Bones knows firsthand the deep-rooted connection between country music and gun culture. But that didn’t stop him from speaking out in favor of gun regulation after a school shooting in Nashville on Monday that left three 9-year-old students and three adult school staff members dead.
In an Instagram Story post on Monday, Bones wrote about the lack of nuance in the gun control debate and blamed politicians for dividing their constituents. “I am a proud gun owner, but I also believe in nuance,” he said. “Your politicians want you to believe there’s only black and white. Your politicians take money from groups that also want you to believe it’s only one way or the other. Their goal is to divide us.”
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Unlike fellow Nashvillians like Sheryl Crow, Jason Isbell, and Margo Price, who lambasted Tennessee governor Bill Lee and state senator Marsha Blackburn, Bones didn’t call out any politicians by name but said, “Your politicians don’t care for you. And only want to get re-elected.”
Bones reiterated his points during a lengthy segment about the shooting during Tuesday’s Bobby Bones Show. “Guns aren’t bad by themselves. I can agree with that. I have them, but I’m going to give you a little bit of nuance here,” he said. “Just because they’re not bad by themselves, doesn’t mean everybody should get one.”
In his Instagram post, Bones admitted that “a few more rules” regarding gun control wouldn’t have stopped Monday’s shooting. “But it will stop it happening somewhere,” he wrote. “And some kids won’t have to die for no reason.” He also acknowledged that any talk about gun regulation will likely earn him blowback from segments of the country music industry: “I’m sure I’ll get crushed by the country community for this.”
During Tuesday’s show, however, Bones amended his comments on Instagram. “I used to say ‘proud gun owner’; I’m not a proud gun owner. I’m not a proud car driver. I’m just a ‘gun owner’ and a ‘car driver’ because those are normal parts of my life. I don’t need to create my identity because of guns,” he said. Bones added that if everyone has the right to own a gun, everyone should also have access to healthcare. “How about providing some free mental health if everybody gets a gun?”
Monday’s shooting occurred at the Covenant School, a private Christian school in Nashville’s Green Hills neighborhood. The shooter, 28-year-old Nashville native Audrey Hale (who police confirmed was transgender and used he/him pronouns), armed with two assault rifle-type weapons and a handgun, was killed by police.
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