Jason Aldean expressed his deep respect for the legendary Toby Keith during a recent press event ahead of the 59th ACM Awards.
Discussing his admiration for the late artist, Aldean revealed how Keith had been a significant source of inspiration.
The 47-year-old gushed, "I think [Keith] was a guy for a lot of us in the business - well, I'll speak for myself. I think he was a guy that a lot of us looked up to."
He told Fox News, "For me personally, he was a guy that I feel like ... just always spoke his mind."
"He said what he thought, whether it was the popular opinion or not. And it wasn't, you know, it didn't always go well for him, and he didn't care. I mean, it was something that if he felt strongly about it and felt like it was something he believed in, he was going to speak his mind."
"To me, from personal level, that was something to me that was always inspiring, as far as like, 'Hey, you can still be an artist and be true to who you are and go out and not be afraid to speak out.' And I think that was something that always kind of stood with me."
"Just being not afraid to speak your mind, stand up for what you believe in," the "She's Country" singer said.
"Whether other people agree with it or not, be who you are and be unapologetic about it. And I think that's pretty good advice."
The award-winning CMA artist shared a pivotal encounter when Keith imparted some pieces of advice to Aldean, urging him to always stand by his patriotic beliefs without apologizing.
The lyrics of "Try That in a Small Town" illustrate a community uniting to resolve conflicts internally, especially when dealing with instances like disrespect toward law enforcement or mistreatment of the national flag.
READ ALSO: Jason Aldean Will Honor Toby Keith in 2024 ACM Awards Tribute
During a segment on CBS Mornings in November 2023, Jan Crawford questioned Aldean about the social media backlash, accusing the music video of harboring racially sensitive implications.
Crawford said, "You know, it was like a call to arms and small towns It was a threatening kind of video for Black people, I mean, people were putting this on like, TikTok."
Aldean said, "But there was people of all color doing stuff in the video. That's what I don't understand."
He added, "You know, there was white people in there. There was Black people. I mean, this video did not shine light on one specific group and say, that's the problem."
"So anybody that saw that in the video, then you weren't looking hard enough in the video is all I can tell you."
READ MORE: Jason Aldean Reveals He Would Only Retire From the Music Industry for One Reason
