Sheesh, everyone's a country singer these days. Beyoncé's venture into country music may be controversial, but music fans probably didn't know that Ronald Regan shooter John Hinckley Jr. is trying to enter the genre. Hinckley tried to assassinate the president in 1981. He spent the next several decades in a mental hospital after being found not guilty by reason of insanity before being released in 2016.
Hinckley has amassed a following on YouTube of more than 36,000 followers. He uses the platform to share his music. He's also attempted to perform publicly. However, venues keep canceling on him because in Hinckley's own words, "Owners don't want the controversy."
The question at the heart of the matter here is can anyone ever be truly forgiven for their past deeds? Hinckley may have served the time in rehabilitation, but he still can't escape his past actions. Speaking with the New York Post, Hinckley vented about not being able to perform. So far, venues in New York, Georgia, Virginia, and Illinois have canceled on him. What's a starving artist to do?
"They book me and then the show gets announced and then the venue starts getting backlash," he told the outlet. "The owners always cave, they cancel. It's happened so many times, it's kinda what I expect. I don't really get upset."
Hinckley doesn't want to focus on what he did in the past. He says he's trying to move forward, but the question to you dear reader, is some actions unforgivable? Can you move forward from shooting a U.S. president?
