The comments against him got so aggressive, he says it’ll be a while before he posts again.
Brown shared screenshots of some of the messages he received, both in response to his words about Kirk’s death and in response to a tribute Brown shared about a high school mass shooting in Colorado, which took place the same day that Kirk was fatally shot during a speaking event at a Utah university.
“Why didn’t you post about the Democratic representatives being murdered?!!!!” one presumably left-leaning fan replied.
That commenter is presumably referring to the June 2025 murders of Minnesota House Speaker Melissa Hortman and her husband Mark Hortman, who were fatally shot in their home.
But another fan was angry for a reason that fell on the opposite end of the political spectrum: They were upset that Brown expressed any form of empathy to a Democratic perspective at all.
“Stand up don’t be silent and bow down to those liberal POS that are joyful [a] father died!!! You have a huge platform use it!” that fan told him.
Another comment affected Brown so strongly that he responded.
That person said that, by paying tribute to Kirk, Brown had “offended [his] ancestors” as a Black man.
“He was a racist bigot who didn’t believe in gun regulations,” the fan said, referring to Kirk.
“I’ve been called a n—-r my whole life. I don’t want those people dead,” Brown shot back.
It was during this last comment that Brown told his fans, “My last post for a while, be safe guys and love one another.”
How Did Charlie Kirk Die?
Charlie Kirk was fatally shot on Wednesday (Sept. 10) during an event at Utah Valley University. He was shot in the neck and hospitalized in critical condition before he died.
Kirk was a conservative commentator and the founder of Turning Point USA. He was widely mourned in the U.S. and beyond, and U.S. president Donald Trump shared a statement in tribute to him.
As of Thursday morning (Sept. 11), a wide-scale manhunt is underway for the shooter who killed Kirk, according to CNN. Multiple “persons of interests” in the case have been questioned and released.
What Did Kane Brown Say About Charlie Kirk?
From the posts and replies on Brown’s social media, he seems to have deleted the original tribute, but he did share a snippet of an Instagram Live video to his permanent feed.
View this post on Instagram
In the video, Brown was visibly upset.
“I’ve been crying for two hours,” he said.
“At the end of the day dude, I just want everybody to love each other…left side, right side, Black, white, different language speaking, different country living, just love each other. If you see somebody down, just pick ’em up,” he said elsewhere in the video.
“Now I’m just getting mad,” he said. “I don’t talk about this s–t. I don’t do politics. That’s not for me. I just want y’all to love each other, bro. It’s really not that hard.”
He ended the clip with a message of love, and a call to all his followers to show love to everyone in their lives.
Country Stars Who Have Died in 2025
We’re not even six months into 2025, and already country music has suffered some devastating losses.
Wayne Osmond
Wayne Osmond was one of the founding members of the Osmonds, who enjoyed decades of success in popular music in various permutations. The family band also launched the careers of Donny and Marie Osmond.
Wayne Osmond died on Jan. 1, 2025, after suffering a massive stroke. He was 73 years old.
Sammy Thurman Brackenbury
Legendary rodeo rider Sammy Thurman Brackenbury died in December 2024, according to a statement from the Women’s Professional Rodeo Association (WPRA), but her death was not widely reported until January of 2025. The pioneering barrel racer won the World Championship in 1965, and she was inducted into the Pro Rodeo Hall of Fame in 2019. She was 91 years old at the time of her death.
Peter Yarrow
Peter Yarrow was known to music fans as one-third of the seminal folk group Peter, Paul & Mary. He died on Jan. 7 at his apartment in Manhattan after a four-year battle with cancer. He was 86 years old.
Buck White
Buck White was best known as the founder of the Grammy Award-winning bluegrass group the Whites. He died on Jan. 13, 2025. He was 94 years old.
Melba Montgomery
Melba Montgomery scored a number of country duet hits with George Jones and others, as well as a No. 1 solo hit with “No Charge.” She died in Nashville on Jan. 15 at the age of 86.
In a post to Facebook, Montgomery’s daughter, Melissa, reveals that the singer-songwriter battled dementia prior to her death.
Kenny Law
Everett Kenneth “Kenny” Law was a popular figure on Moonshiners since Season 8 and cousin to Henry Law. The Discovery show announced his death with a post to social media on Jan. 16. He was 68 years old.
Henry Law told TMZ that Kenny had heart troubles and diabetes and had recently been hospitalized due to a blood infection.
Daryl Schiff, Martina McBride’s Father
Martina McBride’s father, Darryl Schiff, died on Jan. 14, 2025, at the age of 86. The country star turned to Instagram on Jan. 18 to share the sad news, writing, “I really don’t have the right words. My dad passed away Tuesday night. Our hearts are broken.”
According to McBride, “He was 86 and had an amazing life. He was a third-generation family farmer. He was also the leader of our family band, The Schiffters.”
She would remember her father as being instrumental in her own musical development, adding that he passed away “suddenly and peacefully at his home.”
Garth Hudson
Garth Hudson was the last remaining member of The Band, securing his influence in both rock and country music. He died on Jan. 21, 2025, at a nursing home in Woodstock, N.Y., at the age of 87.
Ryan Whyte Maloney
Ryan Whyte Maloney made it all the way to the finals when he competed on Blake Shelton’s team on The Voice Season 6.
People confirmed Whyte Maloney died by suicide on Tuesday (Jan. 28), citing the Clark County Coroner in Las Vegas. He was 44 years old.
According to reports, Whyte Maloney shot himself and took his own life very suddenly after arguing with his girlfriend. He had harmed himself and contemplated suicide previously.
Dolly Parton’s Husband, Carl Dean
Dolly Parton’s husband of nearly 60 years, Carl Dean, died on Monday, March 3, 2025, in Nashville.
“Carl and I spent many wonderful years together. Words can’t do justice to the love we shared over 60 years,” Parton said in a statement. “Thank you for your prayers and sympathy.”
Dean was 82 years old.
Doug Kiker
Doug Kiker, who shot to viral fam as the “singing garbageman” on American Idol Season 18, died on March 13 of unspecified causes. He was 32.
Kiker caused a stir after singing Rascal Flatts’ “Bless the Broken Road” on Idol in 2020. He went on to Hollywood Week before washing out of the singing competition.
Jack Lilley
Little House on the Prairie alum Jack Lilley died in March of 2025 at the age of 91.
The beloved actor played multiple roles on the hit series. Melissa Gilbert, who starred as Laura Ingalls on the show, shared the news of his passing on Instagram, calling him one of her “favorite people.”
Dick Damron
Canadian country music legend Dick Damron died on March 25 at the age of 91.
The Canadian Country Music Hall of Fame member had hits in four different decades, and he also wrote songs recorded by Charley Pride, George Hamilton and more.
Damron was 91 years old.
Dylan Grant
Professional bull ride Dylan Grant died after sustaining injuries at the Wharton County Youth Fair Xtreme Bulls event in Wharton, Texas, on April 3. He was 24 years old.
According to a statement from the Professional Rodeo Cowboys Association (PRCA), Grant was competing in the second round of the event when he was bucked off a bull.
After that, he was trampled by the bull, according to an interview his father Wade Grant gave to ABC News the following day.
Colt Ford’s Father, Paul Heyward Brown
Colt Ford turned to social media to reveal that his father, Paul Heyward Brown, died on April 8.
Brown was 89 years old. He died holding the hand of his wife of 62 years, Elizabeth.
Al Pearce
Al Pearce, a legendary NASCAR reporter and a member of the Virginia Sports Hall of Fame, died on April 9, 2025. He was 82 years old.
Pearce was a correspondent for the Newport News Daily Press from 1969 until his retirement in 2004. He also wrote for Autoweek from 1973 until his retirement, and continued to occasionally write stories for that publication until nearly the end of his life.
Pearce covered the Daytona 500 for a whopping 56 consecutive years.
Pearce won an array of auto-racing journalism awards, including the American Motorsports Media Award of Excellence. He was inducted into the International Motorsports Hall of Fame in 2003 and the Virginia Sports Hall of Fame in 2012.
Larry Bastian
Larry Bastian, an acclaimed Nashville songwriter who wrote hits for Garth Brooks and many more, died on April 6 in California. He was 90 years old.
Conway Twitty (“Saturday Night Special”), Sammy Kershaw (“Yard Sale”) and Craig Morgan (“Look at Us”) are three more artists who had hits with a Bastian composition.
Janie Fricke, David Frizzell (with Merle Haggard), Reba McEntire, George Jones, Neal McCoy and Rhett Akins are also among the many artists who recorded Bastian’s songs over the years.
David Briggs
Keyboardist David Briggs, a member of the legendary group of studio musicians the Nashville Cats, died in April of 2025. He was 82 years old.
“David Briggs could play keyboards in any style,” Hall of Fame CEO Kyle Young said in the statement. “For more than four decades, his deft touch graced countless country, R&B, pop and rock recordings.”
Though he played in multiple genres, Briggs focused on country, working with major stars including Willie Nelson, Reba McEntire, Dolly Parton, Kenny Chesney and Shania Twain.
Briggs became a member of the Alabama Music Hall of Fame in 1999, and he was inducted into the Musicians Hall of Fame in 2019.
Lulu Roman
Hee Haw star Lulu Roman died on April 23, 2025.
The actress, comedian and gospel singer was with the show from beginning to end, but her time on the show was interrupted by a conviction on drug charges in 1971.
She’d later convert to Christianity and release more than a dozen Gospel-themed albums.
Roman was 78 at the time of her death.
Roy Cooper
ProRodeo Hall of Fame member Roy Cooper, known in the rodeo world as “The Super Looper,” died in a house fire at his North Texas home on April 29. He was 69 years old.
A professional rodeo performer who competed in the Professional Rodeo Cowboys Association (PRCA) for two decades, Cooper won the All-Around world championship in 1983, the PRCA’s Rookie of the Year Award in 1976 and six Tie-Down Roping championships over the course of his career.
Priscilla Pointer
Dallas star Priscilla Pointer died on April 28, according to her daughter, actress Amy Irving.
“Priscilla Pointer, acclaimed stage television and film actress, and mother of David, Katie, and Amy Irving, died peacefully in her sleep at the age of 100, hopefully to run off with her 2 adoring husbands and her many dogs,” she writes. “She most definitely will be missed.”
Though Pointer appeared in a number of prominent films including Carrie, Looking for Mr. Goodbar, Blue Velvet, The Falcon and the Snowman and more, she made her career as a character actor.
Dallas was a major standout on her resume, as she began appearing on the iconic nighttime soap opera in 1981, at the height of its success.
She played Rebacca Barnes Wentworth, the long-estranged mother of Victoria Principal’s character, Pamela Ewing.
Her character died in 1983 during Season 6.
Principal turned to Instagram to remember Pointer, writing, “Priscilla Pointer, my favorite TV mama & a wonderful woman, passed away today. My sincere condolences to Amy Irving & all of Priscilla’s family. Always a special place in my heart. RIP.”
Johnny Rodriguez
’70s country superstar Johnny Rodriguez died on May 9, surrounded by family. He was 73.
Rodriguez was one of the first Hispanic country singers to score any mainstream success. His run of hits began in 1973 with “Pass Me By (If You’re Only Passing Through)” and included “You Always Come Back (To Hurting Me),” “Ridin’ My Thumb to Mexico,” and “That’s the Way Love Goes.” The Texas Country Music Hall of Fame inducted Johnny Rodriguez in 2007.