Love runs both ways for some country artists


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More country fun from Nancy Wilson. K99online.com

There’s no question how devoted country fans can be to their favorite artists — judging by all the baby Mirandas and Lukes running around. And that’s not counting the vast number of Jason Aldean and Florida Georgia Line tattoos adorning adoring fans. But the best part is when you see it returned. For some country artists, the love runs both ways.

Tim McGraw has long been known to stop a concert dead cold to break up tussles with fans, especially when it comes to women. During a June 2008 tour stop in Washington State, fan video shows Tim stopping in mid “Indian Outlaw” when he saw a guy roughing up a woman in the front row. Tim called for security while reaching into the crowd, grabbing the big guy by the arm and hauling him onto the stage. The fan charged Tim, who looked more than ready to take up the cause. Security intervened, and the fan was ejected. At a concert in Paso Robles, California in 2009, Tim refused to continue when he said man was “being abusive” to a woman until the guy was escorted out. He told the crowd, “You don’t treat a woman like that.”

Looks like Tim has taught the newbies well. Just last week, Jake Owen was performing in Fort Wayne, when he stopped his show after seeing a guy punch a female fan in the face. “If you’re a man and you touch a woman, you’re a bad dude, man” he told the crowd. The “bad dude” was promptly escorted off the premises.

A few days after that, Chris Young was on stage in Glen Falls, New York, when he quit singing mid-song to break up a fight between two guys next to the stage. “Quit, there are kids in here,” he said. When the men paid no attention, Chris raised his voice. “Hey! I don’t care who started it, both of you quit.” Still not getting the job done, CY walked over to the brawling duo, all 6-feet-3 inches of him, shaking his head “no” the entire way.

He motioned for the two of them to split up. “Count it out fellas. I don’t even want neither one of ‘em thrown out, as long as they quit trying to fight each other,” he reasoned. “Let’s drink beer and have a good time alright?” That did it. A few seconds later, he gave the screaming crowd the thumbs up, headed back to the mic and launched into “You,” never missing a beat.

Last October, it was Luke Bryan who took up the cause. He brought a show in Tampa to a halt while security waded in. Luke handed out towels to innocent bystanders, but before he sang another note, he laid down the law.

“I’m sorry I stopped the show, but we had someone who was fighting down here,” he said. “Anybody who fights again, we’re going to send your (blank) to jail. I know everybody’s drinking and having a good time, but we’ve got a lot of children in here, we’ve got a lot of country girls in here.”

It’s nice that the guys step up for the ladies in the audience, but Miranda Lambert isn’t shy about speaking her mind during a melee. Many times, the Texas spitfire has taken her show to a grinding halt to stop a catfight. Last August in Hartford, Conn., Miranda called out a couple female fans.

“I don’t really wanna have to kick anybody’s (blank) tonight, so will you please get over it?” When she found out the girls were fighting over a guy, she put it out there. “It’s over a boy, that’s so stupid.” TKO — Miranda.

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