Sometimes people in country music get hot under the collar. Maybe it's all the passion they have for their craft that simply boils right over. These epic country feuds often grab headlines. They can end with a handshake, a court date, or just fizzle out on their own. But while they are rip-roaring hot, they sure do make for great reading and perhaps a few wry chuckles along the way. Let's look back at some of these long-ago nasty wrangles and see just what took place.
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Zac Brown Slammed a Luke Bryan Song
Twelve years ago during an interview, Zac Brown took the gloves off and clobbered a song by Luke Bryan called "That's My Kind of Night." Brown allegedly said it was "the worst song I've ever heard," per Taste of Country. What exactly provoked his wrath is unclear. It became a hot country feud. At any rate, Jason Aldean jumped in with both feet, saying, "To those people runnin' their mouths, trust me when I tell u that nobody gives a [expletive] what u think." Per the outlet, Brad Paisley and Carrie Underwood supposedly helped the guys bury the hatchet. They embraced at the CMA Awards in 2013.
Richard Marx and Brad Paisley Traded Barbs About Pop Versus Country
Per The Boot, Paisley insisted in 2001 that country is meatier than pop. The latter may have seemed to him to be slick and all surface. Marx pushed back, saying, "Pop songwriters don't take the craft of songwriting as seriously as [Paisley] does? Tell that to Paul McCartney." Paisley landed another jab with "You can't convince me that a song like '... Baby One More Time' is something you'd sit there and say, 'What a message -- what lyrics!'" The two went their separate professional ways, each enjoying continued success.
Waylon Jennings Insulted Garth Brooks
These are two tough dudes, so when they went nose-to-nose, it must have been pretty heated. Per Taste of Country, Jennings took a mighty big swipe at Brooks. He allegedly said the wildly popular "Friends in Low Places" singer was "the most insincere person I've ever seen...he thinks he's going to last forever. He's wrong." Long afterward, Brooks mused about the insult. To his credit, Brooks took it on the chin and reacted fairly graciously.
He said, "It was tough for me because he was a country legend, and for some reason, I was the guy that got the brunt of it. I never took it that personal. I just think he was addressing the different sound in country music and the changing of the guard. That's tough for anybody to handle. The guy's a legend and deserves nothing but respect."
Kacey Musgraves and Bobby Bones Sniped at Each Other
Eleven years ago, Bones, a well-known radio personality, interviewed Musgraves and decided she was "rude," per usmagazine.com. A country feud erupted. He even invented a segment titled "Is Kacey Musgraves Annoyed?" Their back-and-forth got more nasty when Bones tweeted, "Will @KaceyMusgraves ever respond to my tweets. Enter your answer now; A: yes, B: no." Musgraves retorted, "If you'd play our original interview in full and tell people how you unfairly re-edited it I might think about talking to you."
Musgraves issued a statement that said in part: "I am a songwriter and a musician. That's what I've been passionate about my entire life and it's really sad that the focus got taken away from that. Above all- I'm human. Not a robot. Especially at 8 AM. I don't stroke egos and that doesn't make me a '[expletive] head.' When you hear the music that means so much to me to make, that's all that should matter."
