Shaboozey Reacts to Producer Who Dissed Him: 'Ain't Nobody Kicking Me'

Shaboozey remains unbothered.

After leaving the Country Music Awards empty-handed, the Virginia-born singer-songwriter reflected on the ceremony and his place within the genre. Shaboozey shared a photo of himself shrugging and smiling in a sprinter van just minutes after the ceremony wrapped up.

“Ain’t nobody kicking me!” he tweeted.

The caption was an apparent response to a producer’s acceptance speech that included a confusing Shaboozey pun. The moment went down after singer Cody Johnson won the Album of the Year for his project Leather. Johnson was accompanied by his producer Trent Willmon, who name-dropped Shaboozey while accepting the award.

“It takes an army of people to make a great record,” Willmon told the crowd. “But I gotta tell ya, this is for this cowboy who’s been kicking Shaboozey for a lot of years, y’all.”

Many people dismissed the comment as an awkward turn of phrase similar to host Luke Bryan’s “sha-doozey” joke earlier that night. Some, however, were convinced that Willmon’s joke was, at the very least, a microaggression.

Willmon and Johnson have not commented on the matter.

Shaboozey entered this year's CMAs with two big nominations: New Artist of the Year and Single of the Year for “A Bar Song (Tipsy).” The track has spent 18 nonconsecutive weeks atop the Billboard Hot 100 and is up for several awards at the 2025 Grammys, including Song of the Year, Best Country Song, and Best Country Solo Performance. Shaboozey also received a Grammy nod for Best New Artist.

Although he didn’t secure any CMA wins, Shaboozey was arguably one of the night’s biggest standouts thanks to his stellar performance of “A Bar Song (Tipsy).” The 29-year-old singer touched on his CMA experience in a series of X posts.

“Couldn’t have ever in my wildest dreams imagined being here. I’m grateful for all of it,” he wrote. “Win or lose, I’m blessed by something or someone that has a power beyond my understanding. I’m here today hopefully living in my purpose and if my music makes even the tiniest positive impact in someone’s life I can die with a smile. Country music changed my life and I’m forever grateful to it and for it.”