Thomas Rhett Opens up About Bashing Trolls Who Insulted His Wife

Country music star Thomas Rhett is not about to let trolls insult his wife, Lauren Akins, on social media.

“There just kind of comes a point where you can say whatever you want about me and my outfits and how ridiculous I look, but once you start talking about my wife, sometimes I can’t hold back,” Rhett, 29, told Entertainment Tonight backstage at CMA Fest 2019 Thursday in Nashville.

Rhett and Akins, also 29, walked the red carpet at Bridgestone Arena for the CMT Music Awards on Wednesday. Critics bashed Akins’ red carpet style, as she wore an animal-print skirt, satin pink top, a brown belt and pink-heeled sandals. The trolling got so out of control that Rhett shot down the comments section on his Instagram post from the red carpet.

PEOPLE shared a photo on Instagram, where Rhett told critics they should be ashamed of themselves.

“All of you with these hateful comments should be ashamed. This world doesn’t need more of your negativity,” Rhett wrote in the comments.

“I said that stuff basically just to encourage people to be kind. I can’t imagine being on someone’s [Instagram] page and seeing something and ragging on them for something like that,” Rhett told Entertainment Tonight. “I can’t imagine myself doing something like that, therefore I can’t imagine how someone else could do that.”

He continued, “But that’s the world we live in with the internet and cyber-bullying… It’s really unfortunate, and I wish people would just be kinder.”

Rhett said he usually tries not to respond to online critics, but people targeting his wife crossed a line.

“If you knew my wife as a human being, she’s as beautiful inside as she is out,” the “Look What God Gave Her” singer told ET.

Rhett and Akins are parents to daughters Willa, 3, and Ada, 1. The couple married in 2012.

While at CMA Fest, Rhett also spoke with PopCulture.com about his support for the CMA Foundation. All artists perform at CMA Fest for free, with proceeds going to the foundation to support music education.

Rhett told us music education is “one of the most important things in the world for a kid to be able to express themselves, whether it’s song writing or playing the saxophone or playing the guitar. And so that’s why this week is super important and it’s amazing that we can help give back to that.”

This summer, Rhett hits the road for his Very Hot Summer Tour to support his new album, Center Point Road.

Photo credit: Getty Images