Blake Shelton Rep Says He’s Not Throwing Shade at Lil Nas X in ‘Hell Right’
In Blake Shelton's new single with Trace Adkins, "Hell Right," the two singers take a lyrical jab at what is probably the song of 2019, Lil Nas X's "Old Town Road." What likely started out as a humorous songwriting idea has now sparked chatter as to whether the song's lyrics are offensive.
The line in question is: “The girl from the small town took off the ‘Old Town,’ put on a little Hank Jr.," with Adkins replying “Thank God.” Variety quotes an author and music critic who claimed in a tweet this could be construed as offensive, given that Nas is a black artist and Hank Williams, Jr. is well-known for his support of the Confederate flag.
But a spokesperson for Shelton says this is misinterpreted, telling Variety that Shelton didn't mean any such harm with his song, stating that the singer only targeted "Old Town Road" for its ubiquitousness.
“It’s absolutely not throwing any kind of shade at Lil Nas X at all. Blake says this literally has nothing to do with anything at all except how much the song is played. It could have been ‘Achy Breaky Heart’ or any other song."
The spokesperson also notes that Shelton talked to Billy Ray Cyrus, who appears on the most famous version of the oft-remixed song, and that Cyrus thought the lyric was funny. Shelton did not join in himself, but Nas posted a (now deleted) tweet commenting mildly of the song, "It don't slap like old town road tho.”
Whatever the intentions behind the diss were, the fact remains that "Old Town Road" is unstoppable. The song set the record for most weeks at No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100, and currently sits on top for the 19th week straight.
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