Shaboozey Laughs Off Weird CMAs Moment From Cody Johnson Producer

Shaboozey seemed confused — but still smiling — after a bizarre moment at the 2024 CMA Awards where Cody Johnson‘s producer Trent Willmon brought up his name while the two men were onstage to claim their Album of the Year trophy for Leather.

After the awards show, the “A Bar Song (Tipsy)” star posted a photo of himself seated inside a vehicle, grinning and playfully shrugging his shoulders.

“Ain’t nobody kicking me!” he wrote in the caption.

To understand exactly what Shaboozey meant, you’ve got to look back to one particular comment Willmon made in his acceptance speech.

In the midst of praising Johnson’s music-making efforts, he said, “This is for this cowboy that’s been kicking Shaboozey for a lot of years.”

It wasn’t clear whether the comment was a Shaboozey dig or just an odd pun on the phrase “kicking booty,” but either way, it became a hot topic on social media within minutes.

Shaboozey fans criticized Willmon’s comment, saying that even if it was joke, it was in poor taste. One fan wondered why Willmon would “throw a diss at Shaboozey for no reason at all,” while another added, “Cody Johnson looked uncomfortable.”

Taste of Country has reached out to Willmon for comment, but hasn’t heard back as of Thursday morning (Nov. 21).

It wasn’t the only time during the awards show that Shaboozey’s name was a punchline. While introducing his performance, host Luke Bryan spoke to the singer’s breakout success, adding with a giggle, “His parents, Mr. and Mrs. Shaboozey, must be so proud.”

Read More: How Shaboozey Got His Name + More Wild Facts About Him

Shaboozey is one of country music’s biggest breakout artists of 2024, and his star status was reflected at the 2024 CMA Awards with a performance slot and two nominations.

Many fans were upset that Shaboozey didn’t win either of the awards he was nominated for on Wednesday night (Nov. 20). He lost the New Artist of the Year category to Megan Moroney and Single of the Year of the Year to Chris Stapleton.

The New Artist category was anybody’s game this year — there were some truly extraordinary breakout acts in 2024 — but it’s easy to see why fans might feel that Shaboozey deserved to win the Single category for “A Bar Song (Tipsy).” After all, that song was undeniably one of the biggest hits of 2024, and it even recently broke a major record on the all-genre Billboard Hot 100.

But several social media users drew comparison between Shaboozey’s lack of trophies and Beyoncé‘s shut-out from the CMAs nominees list.

“White folks already think they created the genre not realizing WE are the reason they even have a beat going. They’re never gonna respect us. It’s bigger than Beyoncé or Shaboozey,” one X user opined.

“You mean to tell me that a young Black man like Shaboozey who dropped the biggest country single of the decade didn’t win any awards at the Country Music Awards?” another quipped. “Shocking! I’m shocked!”