Cody Johnson is on a pretty massive streak at the moment. Not only did he win the Male Vocalist of the Year award at the CMAs back in November 2025, but he also won the ACM Male Artist of the Year and the Entertainer of the Year awards in May.
But no-one can have that sort of run without some controversy, even if it's over something little.
And for Cody Johnson, of course it's over his love of hunting. In case you weren't aware, he absolutely loves the hobby. He pretty consistently posts online about his latest and greatest hunts.
And, as reported by Whiskey Riff, riding the high of his Entertainer of the Year win, what's better than to do the thing you love to celebrate something so massive?
So that's exactly what he did. And he didn't take half-measures, either - a 10-day excursion into the heart of the Alaskan wilderness was in store.
And he was looking for quite the special (and controversial!) prize - a grizzly. It seems like things went well for him, too, with him posting on social media showing what he'd found. Pictures show him posing alongside a massive grizzly bear.
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Cody Johnson Got Some Backlash for the Bear Post
But he got some pretty big backlash for this one. I mean, as it is, hunting has its detractors, but this one seemed to strike a nerve for many fans.
"Poor bear, love your music but not this," one wrote. Another chimed in, "Rich dudes killing wildlife for fun and to show off. Awesome."
Other fans questioned the legality of the hunt (it is legal, BTW - Alaskan laws are strict but they followed all regulations.) But others defended him, citing the laws that were in place.
One person wrote, "It's all for conservation methods... It's a state sanctioned hunt."
For Cody Johnson's part, he also defended himself during an interview. He explained, "I caught so much flak for shooting this bear. Whereas people in Alaska, they praised it, because when you don't control a predator population like a grizzly bear, it can get out of control really fast."
"A statistic is that a male grizzly bear eats between 120 and 150 calves a year - being moose or caribou - so the moose and caribou populations are suffering, and they're having to really regulate hunting on them."
