Shaboozey is coming to Megan Moroney’s defense amid backlash she’s received after Moroney said the Carter Family “basically invented” country music at the 2025 American Music Awards.
At the AMAs, the artists presented the prize for favorite country duo or group together. In their monologue, they both honored artists who have won the AMA award before, and the “Tennessee Orange” singer read from a teleprompter that said “this award went to the Carter family, who basically invented country music.”
Shaboozey’s side eye reaction to the moment swiftly went viral online and prompted him to issue a response online Tuesday. On X, he wrote, “When you uncover the true history of country music, you find a story so powerful that it cannot be erased,” with a second follow-up post that read, “The real history of country music is about people coming together despite their differences, and embracing and celebrating the things that make us alike.”
Amid the controversy, the “A Bar Song (Tipsy)” singer clarified that his “reaction at the AMAs” during the moment “had nothing to do with Megan Moroney” in the comments of one of her Instagram posts recounting the AMAs on Tuesday night. There, the five-time Grammy nominee further urged fans to not direct any hate towards Moroney.
“I’ve seen some hateful comments directed at her today, and that’s not what this moment was about,” he wrote in the comment section. “Let’s not twist the message – she is amazing and someone who represents the country community in the highest light!”
Shaboozey further noted that Moroney is “an incredibly talented, hard-working artist who’s doing amazing things for country music and I’ve got nothing but respect for her.”
In a since deleted post, Shaboozey first told followers to look up figures like Lesley Riddle, Steve Tarter, Harry Gay and DeFord Bailey, and their influence on country and The Carter Family. The Carter Family is regarded as “the first family of country music,” according to the Country Music Hall of Fame, and Riddle in particular is cited as an influence on the group for helping A.P. Carter with songs and for teaching Maybelle Carter his guitar style.
The influence of Black musicians on the country genre has become a more common topic in music in recent years, as evidenced as recently as last year on Beyoncé’s Grammy-winning country album Cowboy Carter. Bey dedicated her Grammy for album of the year to country pioneer Linda Martell, who was featured on the album on “Spaghettii” and “The Linda Martell Show.” Ahead of the album’s release last March, Beyoncé herself revealed she wanted to create the project after she “did not feel welcomed” breaking into the country music genre.
“It was very clear that I wasn’t,” the Grammy-winning artist wrote in an Instagram post at the time. “But, because of that experience, I did a deeper dive into the history of Country music and studied our rich musical archive. It feels good to see how music can unite so many people around the world, while also amplifying the voices of some of the people who have dedicated so much of their lives educating on our musical history.”