Country singer Bryan Andrews on putting politics in music: "I couldn't keep my mouth shut anymore"

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 Many musical artists today go out of their way to keep politics out of their performances. But for country singer Bryan Andrews, his progressive politics define his art.

Andrews' lyrics condemn billionaire greed, stand up for undocumented immigrants and call out mainstream country. He's gathered nearly 4 million followers on TikTok, and his album Independence Day came out just in time for the nation's 250th anniversary. This fall, his "Taking My Flag Back" tour comes to the Moroccan Lounge in LA.

Andrews' backstory

Andrews is from Missouri, but he was working as a welder in Minnesota when he decided to turn to music full-time.

"My hometown radio station played the song Liquor and Pills, and I took a video of it," Andrews said. "That ended up going viral. The next week, I called my boss, and I was like, 'Hey, I'm not coming back to work.'"

Andrews said his passion for politics and policy came from his liberal parents, but he was initially hesitant to put his beliefs into his music.

"I've been a liberal in a small town my whole life," Andrews said. "I know what people in small towns think of Democrats. But I started watching all the things happen with the LA ICE raids, and then Minneapolis, and then the shooting that just happened in Maine, and I couldn't keep my mouth shut anymore."

The classic artists inspiring TikTok hits

One of Andrews' songs that's gone viral on TikTok is "Yeehaw," which features the line, "Willie, Waylon, Johnny Cash, they're gonna want their records back." Andrews said mainstream country music has forgotten the politics of its outlaw past.

"The real outlaws, The Highwaymen, Cash, Kristofferson, Nelson, Jennings, all those guys were very economically educated when it came to the government and how the government spends their money," Andrews said. "A lot of those guys were hard leftists. Country music has always been rooted in standing up for the working man. Johnny Cash wrote a song called "The Man in Black" that is basically all about him standing in solidarity with folks on welfare who have been taken advantage of by a system that's rigged against them."

Taking the show on the road

Andrews' "Taking My Flag Back" tour comes to the Moroccan Lounge for a sold-out show on December 12. In an era when many social media stars have problems converting followers into live show attendees, Andrews said he doesn't take his success for granted.

"It's just been incredible for me, especially in this economy," Andrews said. "People going out and spending 30 bucks to just come hear me play my music, they deserve it a whole lot more than I do, so I'm gonna go out there and give them the best show I possibly can."

Andrews is aware that his outspoken politics may keep him out of some corners of mainstream country music.

"If they don't want to accept me into their spaces, then that's OK. I'll make my own space," Andrews says. "We've built this whole thing organically anyways. If I gotta build this road myself with all these fans, then we can do that. We're up for the challenge."