Fake Jason Aldean Single Takes Internet by Storm Amid Controversy

Jason Aldean's name has been attached to a song that has become a viral hit across social media—even though the country music star has nothing to do with it.

The track, called "Go Woke, Go Broke," has been shared on TikTok and Twitter, and is styled to sound like country music star Aldean lashing out at a host of entities that have faced criticism for supporting LGBTQ+ people, including Bud Light, Target and Disney. The track also lashes out at Country Music Television (CMT).

Aldean has faced scrutiny over the past several days for his controversial single "Try That in a Small Town," and its accompanying video, which was released in July. The song compares city life and small-town lifestyles.

It includes the lyrics that if somebody "cross[es] that line," to "cuss out a cop, spit in his face" or "stomp on the flag and light it up," to "try that in a small town." Aldean also sings: "Got a gun that my granddad gave me. They say one day they're gonna round up/ Well, that s*** might fly in the city, good luck."

The musician has also faced criticism for his music video. A clip was filmed outside of the Maury County Courthouse in Columbia, Tennessee, where a white mob killed Henry Choate, a Black man, in 1927.

After having the video in rotation for three days, CMT dropped the clip from its broadcasts. A spokesperson for the station told Newsweek that the music clip was no longer on rotation on the channel, but did not offer any further information as to why the decision was made.

Parts of the video appear to have since been altered, with the removal of footage from news coverage of a Black Lives Matter protest, among other imagery.

While Aldean faces an ongoing backlash from detractors who have accused him of promoting racism and gun violence in his song and music video, he has also received a wave of support and topped the Billboard Hot 100 chart.

One of his supporters on TikTok, who uses the handle @jokesonwokes, has composed the single "Go Woke, Go Broke," which has taken aim at what is described in the lyrics as "hypocritical woke liberals."

Part of the song goes: "Dear Bud Light, dear CMT/ We were happy as as can be/ 'Til you caved and bent the knee/ Good luck coming back from that/ Tell us what were you thinking/ f****** with the can we were drinking/ Tread all you want you're still sinking down."

Singing expletives aimed at Bud Light, CMT, Target and Disney, the lyrics continue: "These hypocritical woke liberals know they're never gonna learn, it seems/ They're calling me stupid, calling me dumb, driving my song to number 1/ Shoulda known it by now, f*** around and find out, you joke."

Other parts of the song see attacks aimed at coffee chain Starbucks, streaming giant Netflix, talk show The View, hit movie Barbie, and President Joe Biden. Winning praise is Donald Trump, who is backed in the lyrics to become president in 2024.

Three teaser clips of the track shared by @jokesonwoke have drawn in more than 3 million views, with several TikTok users mistakenly believing it to be a new song by Aldean. The uploader confirmed that the track did not feature Aldean's vocals.

Still, the misconception that Aldean performed the track continues among a faction of social media users, one of whom labeled it as such when they shared it on Twitter.

Part of the confusion appears to stem from the imagery of Aldean performing onstage in the video. Aldean's name has also been added to the hashtags accompanying the clip.

When contacted by Newsweek, TikTok user @jokesonwoke explained that he was "shocked that this silly song has taken off like this," while explaining that he is "not a political person in the least, and this was pretty much intended as a goof."

Addressing the confusion around whether the track had been performed by Aldean, the TikTok user explained that he had been posting Aldean parodies on his account and using the #JasonAldean trending hashtags to drum up interest.

He also spoke to claims that the song was generated using artificial intelligence, telling Newsweek: "I can assure you there was absolutely no AI involved at all. This is the first I had ever tried out TikTok, so it's been quite the ride for the last week to say the least."

The two-minute-long track was released on Apple's iTunes on August 1. Newsweek has contacted a representative of Aldean via email for comment.

Amid criticism of his track "Try That in a Small Town," Aldean—who has won the support of former President Donald Trump and Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, among others—has called the accusations of racism "not only meritless, but dangerous." He added in his Twitter post that there is "not a single lyric in the song that references race or points to it" and "there isn't a single video clip that isn't real news footage."

During a July 21 show in Cincinnati, Ohio, as a part of his current Highway Desperado tour, Aldean decried "cancel culture" as he reflected on his "long week" of controversy.

"It's been a long week, and I've seen a lot of stuff," he told the crowd, Entertainment Weekly reported. "I've seen a lot of stuff suggesting I'm this, suggesting I'm that. Here's the thing, here's one thing I feel: I feel like everybody's entitled to their opinion. You can think something all you want to, it doesn't mean it's true, right?"

"What I am is a proud American," Aldean went on. "I'm proud to be from here. I love our country, I want to see it restored to what it once was before all this bulls*** started happening to us. I love our country, I love my family, and I will do anything to protect that. I can tell you that right now."

Update 04/08/2023, 11:40 a.m. ET: This article has been updated to include a statement from TikTok user @jokesonwoke.