Photos: Singer Jason Aldean brings tour to Raleigh amid ‘Small Town’ video controversy

Scott Sharpe
·2 min read

Country music star Jason Aldean has been in the spotlight this summer, thanks to ongoing controversy over his video, “Try That in a Small Town.”

The video has drawn backlash for the song’s lyrics, which some say are racially charged, as well as the video’s imagery, with footage of Black Lives Matter protests that has since been removed. The video, also criticized for its filming location at a 1920s lynching site, has racked up 28 million views.

That was the backdrop for his concert in Raleigh Friday night as he brought his Highway Desperado Tour to Coastal Credit Union Music Park at Walnut Creek.

The night before, he addressed the controversy at his concert in Charlotte, The Charlotte Observer reported. He defended the song and the video, saying the media “tries to twist a lot of things to make it look this way or that way.”

“We put out a song that was supposed to be — it was supposed to start a conversation about people looking at — at what’s going on in our country,” he said to applause at PNC Music Pavilion.

Concert review: Jason Aldean goes off on his critics — and the crowd in Charlotte goes wild

Here are photos from Aldean’s concert in Raleigh.

Jason Aldean plays Raleigh, N.C.’s Coastal Credit Union Music Park at Walnut Creek, Friday night, Aug. 11, 2023.
Jason Aldean plays Raleigh, N.C.’s Coastal Credit Union Music Park at Walnut Creek, Friday night, Aug. 11, 2023.
Jason Aldean performs during his concert at Raleigh, N.C.’s Coastal Credit Union Music Park at Walnut Creek, Friday night, Aug. 11, 2023.
Jason Aldean performs during his concert at Raleigh, N.C.’s Coastal Credit Union Music Park at Walnut Creek, Friday night, Aug. 11, 2023.
Jason Aldean performs with the U.S. flag as a background during a song at Raleigh, N.C.’s Coastal Credit Union Music Park at Walnut Creek, Friday night, Aug. 11, 2023.
Jason Aldean performs with the U.S. flag as a background during a song at Raleigh, N.C.’s Coastal Credit Union Music Park at Walnut Creek, Friday night, Aug. 11, 2023.
Jason Aldean performs at Raleigh, N.C.’s Coastal Credit Union Music Park at Walnut Creek, Friday night, Aug. 11, 2023.
Jason Aldean performs at Raleigh, N.C.’s Coastal Credit Union Music Park at Walnut Creek, Friday night, Aug. 11, 2023.
Jason Aldean plays Raleigh, N.C.’s Coastal Credit Union Music Park at Walnut Creek, Friday night, Aug. 11, 2023.
Jason Aldean plays Raleigh, N.C.’s Coastal Credit Union Music Park at Walnut Creek, Friday night, Aug. 11, 2023.
Jason Aldean belts out a song at Raleigh, N.C.’s Coastal Credit Union Music Park at Walnut Creek, Friday night, Aug. 11, 2023.
Jason Aldean belts out a song at Raleigh, N.C.’s Coastal Credit Union Music Park at Walnut Creek, Friday night, Aug. 11, 2023.
Jason Aldean works the crowd during his concert at Raleigh, N.C.’s Coastal Credit Union Music Park at Walnut Creek, Friday night, Aug. 11, 2023.
Jason Aldean works the crowd during his concert at Raleigh, N.C.’s Coastal Credit Union Music Park at Walnut Creek, Friday night, Aug. 11, 2023.
Jason Aldean plays Raleigh, N.C.’s Coastal Credit Union Music Park at Walnut Creek, Friday night, Aug. 11, 2023.
Jason Aldean plays Raleigh, N.C.’s Coastal Credit Union Music Park at Walnut Creek, Friday night, Aug. 11, 2023.
Jason Aldean acknowledges the crowd during his concert at Raleigh, N.C.’s Coastal Credit Union Music Park at Walnut Creek, Friday night, Aug. 11, 2023.
Jason Aldean acknowledges the crowd during his concert at Raleigh, N.C.’s Coastal Credit Union Music Park at Walnut Creek, Friday night, Aug. 11, 2023.

Jason Aldean setlist, Raleigh, NC, Aug. 11, 2023

1. Tough List

2. Tattoos on This Town

3. When She Says Baby

4. That’s What Tequila Does

5. Fly Over States

6. Rearview Town

7. Amarillo Sky

8. We Back

9. Try That In a Small Town

10. Dirt Road Anthem

11. Take a Little Ride

12. Got What I Got

13. Crazy Town

14. Trouble With a Heartbreak

15. You Make It Wasy

16. Big Green Tractor

17. Lights Come On

18. Girl Like You

19. If I Didn’t Love You

20. Hicktown

21. My Kinda Party

22. She’s Country

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