After Vegas Shooting, Country Music’s NRA Ties Show Signs Of Fraying

Photo Credit: John Shearer/Getty Images, Mindy Small/FilmMagic

For the past decade, the National Rifle Association has had a close, codependent relationship with the country music industry, from partnering with artists such as Florida Georgia Line and Lee Brice for cross-promotional campaigns to throwing annual celebrity skeet shoots hosted by Blake Shelton. “It’s no secret,” the Director of NRA Country said in 2015. “If you poll our members, they love country music.”

But now, less than a week after the deadliest shooting in modern American history took place at a country music festival – 58 people were killed and more than 500 were woundedat Las Vegas’ Route 91 Harvest fest by an attacker firing from 32 floors above – country artists seem, at least for the moment, less willing to openly embrace the NRA.

Read more about top country artists’ partnerships with the NRA here.