“I feel like everybody’s entitled to their opinion. You can think something all you want to — doesn’t mean it’s true, right?” he said during a Cincinnati gig amid the backlash.

Jason Aldean defended his controversial song “Try That in a Small Town” during a gig over the weekend in Cincinnati.

Aldean’s song has been criticized for promoting gun violence and taking aim at the Black Lives Matter movement. The video, which was released just over a week ago, has since been pulled by CMT.

“I gotta tell you guys, man, it’s been a long-ass week,” he told the crowd, according to a video posted online. “It’s been a long week, and I’ve seen a lot of stuff. 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 — doesn’t mean it’s true, right?”

Aldean went on to note his pride in his country.

“What I am is a proud American,” he said. “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 bullshit started happening to us. I love our country, I love my family, and I will do anything to protect that. I’ll tell you that right now.”

Aldean received cheers from the audience as well as chants of “U.S.A.” In his remarks, he went on to decry “cancel culture,” according to the Columbus, Ohio, Dispatch.

“Cancel culture is a thing … which means try and ruin your life, ruin everything,” he was quoted as saying. “One thing I saw this week was a bunch of country music fans that could see through a lot of the bullshit, all right? I saw country music fans rally like I’ve never seen before and it was pretty badass to watch, I gotta say.”