Brad Paisley believes Russian bots may have fueled the backlash against his pro-Ukraine song. The singer says the track first received a positive response. However, he later noticed a sharp shift in the online response. He suspects the negative reaction was partly driven by coordinated online activity.
Brad Paisley suspects Russian bots targeted his anthem
Speaking on Rolling Stone’s Nashville Now podcast on Oct. 21, Paisley discussed the reaction to “Same Here.” The song was released in 2023, roughly a year after Russia launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine. The track features a recording of Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy discussing the values people share across cultures. “We speak different languages in our life,” Zelenskyy says before naming children, freedom, flags, soldiers and people as common values.
Paisley said his team initially observed an overwhelmingly positive response. “When it came out, the response was 98 percent positive, based on what my web guy was tracking,” he recalled. He added that a team in Ukraine was also monitoring online reactions to the song. However, Paisley claimed that Russian bots later fueled a backlash, with the online response becoming “90 percent negative.”
The singer said the accounts appeared authentic and seemed to belong to Americans. He described them as “incredibly believable avatars” and claimed their American identities concealed their actual origins. “It was people pretending to be Americans, or even bots pretending to be Americans,” he explained. Paisley believes the activity made the attacks on his song seem genuine.
Paisley said Russia’s 2022 invasion deeply affected him and strengthened his desire to support Ukraine. He later became a United24 ambassador, helping raise awareness and funds for Ukraine’s defense and humanitarian needs. He said he never expected the role to cause division. Despite the backlash against “Same Here,” Paisley said he stands by the song because it reflects his personal beliefs.
