Luke Bryan is sorry after calling Willie Nelson, Merle Haggard and Waylon Jennings “outlaw country stars” over their drug use. Via Twitter, Bryan revealed that he misspoke and never wanted to insult the legends.
According to a series of tweets, Luke Bryan is sorry for throwing three fellow country stars under the bus. This week, an interview that Luke Bryan did with HITS Daily Double was published online.
While the piece is mainly on Luke Bryan’s upcoming album, Kill The Lights, a quote about Willie Nelson, Merle Haggard and Waylon Jennings really stood out.
When asked to share his thoughts on hip-hop and country music, Bryan replied by saying that he is content with the way he does music and is not interested in mixing it up or in the old way of producing hits. He explained:
“Well, yeah. I think that people who want Merle, Willie and Waylon just need to buy Merle, Willie and Waylon. I’ve never been a “Those were the good old days” kind of guy. I’m not big on looking back on the past. I’m not an outlaw country singer. I don’t do cocaine and run around. So I’m not going to sing outlaw country. I like to hunt, fish, ride around on my farm, build a big bonfire and drink some beers—and that’s what I sing about. It’s what I know. I don’t know about laying in the gutter, strung out on drugs. I don’t really want to do that.”
He went on to add:
“There’s plenty of room for people to like Luke Bryan, Eric Church, Jason Aldean. We don’t all need to be the same. Sam Hunt is a different kind of country artist; he has his crowd, just like Eric and Jason do.”
The comments went viral and many blasted Luke Bryan for reminding the world that Willie Nelson, Merle Haggard, and Waylon Jennings used drugs. Bryan, who is currently on tour, took to Twitter and said sorry to the fans, artists and families he offended. Bryan shared:
“You have to take things and learn from them, but at the end of the day, I was really speaking from where I draw my fuel and inspiration for music. It just got weirdly associated with Willie and Waylon and Merle. And I may have done a better job if I said, ‘a modern form of outlaw country.’ When I originally stated them in the interview, it was an earlier part, but then I moved on and it got all put together.”
Bryan also called Waylon Jennings’ son, Shooter Jennings, and his mother, Jessi Colter, to apologize. Jennings said that he was moved by Bryan’s gesture and added:
“But he went above and beyond and manned up and apologized. In the long run, I believe his image has improved.”
Bryan’s Kill The Lights album will be out on August 7.
What are your thoughts on Luke Bryan’s apology?
Hey guys I've been thinking about this all day, every now and then I feel I need to defend myself in this business. I did a great interview
— Luke Bryan (@LukeBryanOnline) July 10, 2015
with many topics discussed. It’s so frustrating that something negative has spun out of the story. I would never speak against any artist.
— Luke Bryan (@LukeBryanOnline) July 10, 2015
It’s not my style. I consider Willie, Waylon and Merle musical heroes. I was trying to state what I was about and
— Luke Bryan (@LukeBryanOnline) July 10, 2015
