As a country music superstar, Luke Bryan has the potential to speak to, and influence, hundreds of thousands of fans, both through his music and his public words and actions.
"I had a lot of people ask me, 'Well, does that mean you want to plant a flag and support the gay and lesbian community?' I’m like, 'I’m not saying I’m gonna go fly that flag — but I’m not saying I’m not either.'"
Bryan's walking the same line as many of his peers and country music predecessors, especially those who hold more liberal ideals.
"It’s a delicate conversation, and do I think we may take a little longer in country to have it? Before he signed with Capitol Nashville in 2007, he first wrote songs for Travis Tritt and Billy Currington.
He is one of the most popular and award-winning country musicians of the last ten years.
Because of his fame, there are a lot of stories about him.
I'll be truthful: I thought about it as maybe an interracially charged line, but even that was only after multiple listens to the song."
Bryan says he's glad the song's message of equality and hope has reached his LGBTQ listeners, and that the song is broad enough to offer something to a variety of different fan demographics.
"Going into recording it, if somebody had asked me if I would ever change that line, I would have been like, 'Are you crazy?
“That’s what I used to do with all my heroes. Wait around 'til I put something out that's more what you want to hear from me,” he said. In 2016, they marked their 10th wedding anniversary, and Luke gave Caroline a new engagement ring as a gift.
“It was a small gift for 10 years of marriage. When George Strait put out a song that I didn't care for, I didn't have a platform to tell the world.
Portnoy used this Twitter account again the very next year to say,
Well, now we’re all wondering if Dave is just talking nonsense or if he really thinks the award-winning singer is gay. After a few years apart, they got back together, and Luke asked her to marry him.
After a terrible family tragedy, Luke and Caroline now have two children together and have taken in three more.
His current hit “One Margarita” has been criticized for being too frivolous at a difficult time – but Bryan brushed it off.
“If you're a fan of mine and you don't like the song, don't write me off for the rest of your life. And that's frustrating too."
Elsewhere in the interview, Bryan shared his thoughts on diversity in country music.
“I have sat up at night after hearing from African American audience members who say they've felt uncomfortable at my shows through the years,” he said.
Probably.