Eric Church performs during the 51st Academy of Country Music Awards in 2016. (Ethan Miller/Getty Images) by Emily Yahr[1] August 1 at 7:00 AM Email the author[2] As you may have noticed, country music is the rare genre that has sat out politics[3] almost completely over the past two years. After the Las Vegas massacre in October, in which 58 people were shot and killed at a country music festival, there was increased pressure for mainstream Nashville stars to talk about gun rights. A few did[4]. But most stayed quiet. Given what happened with Eric Church over the past week, you can bet those silent singers feel justified. Church, an extremely popular country artist with a fiercely loyal fan base, shared his opinion about politics and the National Rifle Association. And it played out exactly the way you might have thought it would. [Country music avoided politics this year. Then Las Vegas happened. Will anything change?[5]] Rolling Stone published last Tuesday a Church profile as its cover story[6]; the front of the magazine reads “Nashville’s renegade Eric Church on loving Bernie, almost dying, and why he opposes the NRA.” Church’s Instagram account urged fans to pick up a copy and read the interview, but cautioned not to “be misled by the headline.” In the article, Church answered questions about President Trump (and revealed he didn’t vote in the 2016 election), Bernie Sanders, immigration, NFL protests and more. Then came the subject of the Route 91 Harvest festival in Las Vegas. Church headlined the festival
