Will Controversial Remarks About Hitler and Obama Actually Give Hank Williams Jr.'s Career a Boost?

Hank Williams Jr. used to sing to us ahead of our football games, but it's unlikely that his ouster will win him many new fans

Something tells me that Hank Williams Jr. is going to be even more popular now that he's compared Obama to Hitler.
—Mac, via the inbox

You speak of the colorful man in the floppy hat who, until recently, inquired of us whether we were ready for some football, through the gaiety of song. I'm sure that's exactly the way he'd describe his former job. Anyway, if you're a Hank Jr. fan you may not want to read any further ...

...because you are, as the folk might say, a rare turducken these days. The singer has garnered plenty of new eyeballs ever since he got schooled by ESPN over his clichéd comparison. Williams then enjoyed a second news bounce when he released a song criticizing the media.

But don't expect all this to rustle up a Tea Party-fueled comeback.

"His handful of diehard fans will stand by their man, but the reality is he is no longer a popular country star and a political controversy is hardly enough to get the soccer-mom demo to start requesting his songs," says a country music insider who requested anonymity for fear of blowback from the industry. "Country radio hasn't played him steadily in years, maybe decades, and that I know will not change.

"The fan base tends to love a good drinkin' song now and then, but the outlaw coattails he's still riding are so over."

I also spoke to Steve Jones, who programs more than 80 radio stations, including those in a country format.

"I don't suspect his bump will be that big or that long lasting," he tells me. "My guess is that it will be a short-term burst of interest in him and a temporary increase in concert ticket sales."

That said, "so far we haven't seen any notable increase in requests for Hank Jr's music, although I expect this new song to get sizable buzz and probably generate listener requests. I suspect that in certain geographic areas, like the Deep South where Hank is from, radio stations may be getting more listener requests."

Other than that, don't look for much of a popularity increase for this guy—especially if he going to switch from the president to bashing another American icon: Mickey Mouse.