Fox News is still dealing with the fallout of “parting ways” with top-rated host Tucker Carlson. But some fans are praising “The Five” co-host Greg Gutfeld as the “last trustworthy person” on Fox News after he went viral for ripping liberals for trying to cancel country music star Jason Aldean.
During a segment on “The Five,” the discussion centered around his hit song, “Try That In A Small Town,” which was actually released in May but has recently garnered attention — and criticism — from the left because of its use of footage of the 2020 riots.
The song contains lyrics describing instances of behaviors by rioters and protesters, such as burning a U.S. flag, screaming at police officers, and spitting on them, among other violent acts — all backed up by actual footage in the video. The song then goes on to warn others not to try such behavior in small towns, implying that residents who live there would not put up with it.
Aldean, who is unabashedly conservative, has responded to the criticism by explaining that nothing in the video is meant as an attack on anyone or any group in particular, but rather the behaviors of certain individuals during that riotous period.
Below is a transcript of the discussion on “The Five”:
WATTERS: “Like, a pro-crime hip-hop song, not canceled. But an anti-crime country song, canceled, judge.”
PIRRO: “Well, yeah, you have these rap songs like ‘F you-know-the-rest-of-it Donald Trump’ or — you get some of these rap songs where they actually talk about rape, they talk about killing cops, that stuff is never censored. Okay, but CMT, for them to do this, don’t they know who their audiences? Don’t don’t they know who buys Jason Aldean’s records? I mean, what is wrong with them? And the whole idea of the First Amendment and freedom of speech, I mean, the hip-hop rap artists get to say whatever they want, but you get a conservative there who literally has documentation of what is happening in America, of the truth, of the facts, and he is not trying to portray them in any way other than how they are, and he gets canceled, or the song is pulled. I’m going to buy a bunch of those songs.”
WATTERS: “Good. And usually the left, Jessica, embraces free expression, art. How many times have we heard, ‘Oh, it’s art, you can’t censor art?’”
TARLOV: “Yeah, I didn’t think it deserved to be pulled. I think you can have a conversation about it because it’s not just saying, you know, this doesn’t happen in small towns, it’s saying, ‘If it did happen in a small town, we’ve all got guns and we are going to take matters into our own hands,’ which is vigilantism — “
GUTFELD: “No, it’s a good message. It stops it.”
TARLOV: “Your good message is my vigilantism. I would also say that I do think it’s a strange choice to perform this in front of a courthouse where a boy was lynched, an 18-year-old was lynched in 1927.”
GUTFELD: “You think he knows that?”
TARLOV: “I hope that he does. If he doesn’t have food enough advance people — “
WATTERS: “There are so many music videos and so many films in front of that exact location. No one said anything.”
PIRRO: “Don’t you think he is trying to show that there hasn’t been that much progress and that, you know, Black Lives Matter is violating the law themselves at this point, rioting and burning — “
TARLOV: “I’m just saying, I imagine that there are available courthouses where an 18-year-old boy wasn’t lynched. Again, I said I didn’t think it should be taken down, I think you should have these conversations. I think what Sheryl Crow is contributing to this, talking about the fact that she actually grew up in a much smaller town than Jason Aldean did, and finds this to be offensive and promoting the use of guns.”
PIRRO: “That’s great.”
GUTFELD: “So brave. So brave, Sheryl Crow.”
TARLOV: “Now you hate Sheryl — everyone loves Sheryl Crow
PIRRO: “You know what? She doesn’t set the standard, the American people do.”
TARLOV: “Fine. Buy his record, enjoy it.”
WATTERS: “Fine! And you are right, it is fine. Is that it? Thank you.”
TARLOV: “Yeah. That’s it.”
