Clay Walker Says ’90s Country Stars Deserve More Respect

Clay Walker is weighing in on the controversy surrounding Sammy Kershaw and the CMA Awards, and he believes the situation brings up a bigger conversation about how the country music industry treats the artists who helped build it.

Clay Walker Says ’90s Country Stars Deserve More Respect After Sammy Kershaw CMA Controversy

Walker, who considers Kershaw a dear friend, says he respects the ’90s country artist for standing up for himself. He also understands why the CMAs have to make decisions about who gets access to its red carpet.

“This is an industry, and Sammy is a dear friend. You know, he’s a legend,” Walker tells me on Taste of Country Nights. “And, you know, I respect him, you know, standing up for himself.”

Walker says there is another side to the situation, particularly when it comes to the business of country music.

“We are products, you know, artists are products in the eyes of the industry, meaning the eyes of the record labels, the CMAs, everything. We’re not, you know, and that’s what matters to us mainly, is how did the fans perceive us.”

Jason Kempin, Getty Images

For Walker, the fans are what ultimately matter. He says the support he’s received throughout his career hasn’t changed, and he believes Kershaw can say the same.

“And I can tell you right now, you know, my fans adore me as much as they ever did,” Walker says. “And I’m sure it’s the same way for Sammy and most of those artists that, you know, we were trailblazers in the ’90s.”

Walker also points out that the artists who came before them deserve the same recognition.

“But, you know, there were artists in the ’70s and ’80s who trailblazed for us,” he says.

Walker doesn’t believe the passage of time should mean that an artist’s contributions to country music are forgotten.

“Do I think we deserve respect? Absolutely.”

Clay Walker Understands the CMA Awards’ Side of the Sammy Kershaw Controversy

While Walker is supportive of Kershaw, he isn’t suggesting that the CMA Awards or record labels are necessarily wrong for wanting to give their current artists the spotlight.

Read More: Sammy Kershaw Accepts CMA Apology but Hopes Red Carpet Backlash Leads to Lasting Change

“Do I understand, you know, the CMAs’ perspective of it, too, and the record labels who spend all the money, you know, promoting artists? You know, they want their artists in there, and they want them to have the limelight, so it’s really a catch-22,” Walker tells me.

Handout, Getty Images

Still, understanding the business side doesn’t change his feelings about Kershaw or his decision to stand up for himself.

“Do I respect Sammy? Absolutely,” Walker says. “Am I proud that he stood up for himself and he’s going to walk that carpet with his wife, his beautiful wife? He deserves it.”

Walker shared those comments with me on Wednesday (Nov. 11.) The day before that, Kershaw stated that he’d had a private conversation with the CMA: That they’d apologized for how they handled the situation, and that he accepted their apology.

Read More: Sammy Kershaw Accepts CMA’s Apology But Hopes His Situation Leads to Lasting Change

He also said that he and his wife have been invited to walk the red carpet at the 2026 awards show.

Clay Walker Releases New Christmas Album, Announces Holiday Tour

Clay Walker is celebrating the release of A Clay Walker Family Christmas, a new holiday album that gives fans a chance to hear him take on the Christmas season, with his entire family.

Clay Walker – A Clay Walker Family Christmas

The project arrives just ahead of the holidays, and Walker is also taking the music on the road. The A Clay Walker Family Christmas Tour is scheduled to begin Nov. 27.

It’s another opportunity for Walker to connect with fans, something he says remains just as important to him today as it was when he first became a country star… and this time he gets to bring his entire family with him on the road.