Gay dad defends video that showed him 'mocking' his surrogate baby asking for 'mama': Why he stands by clip that shocked America

By WILL POTTER, US SENIOR NEWS REPORTER Published: 18:07, 17 April 2026 | Updated: 18:10, 17 April 2026 A gay country music songwriter and his husband say they have been left 'stunned' after a video of them 'mocking' their baby son calling for his 'mama' sparked furious conservative backlash.  Grammy Award winner Shane McAnally, 51, shared a clip to his Instagram this week showing his husband Michael Baum playing with their baby boy born via surrogacy at their $5.3 million Nashville mansion.  Baum asked the infant: 'Who do you want, Dada or Pop?', a reference to the names the couple let their children use to differentiate between them.  'Mama, mama,' the baby responded as he burst into tears.  McAnally and his husband laughed as the baby boy called for its mama, as Baum said back: 'No, there is no mama.'  'You have dada or pop - two choices,' McAnally said from behind the camera.  McAnally told the Daily Mail he was 'shocked' by the furious reaction the video received online, which racked up millions of views across social media as conservatives slammed the clip as 'heartbreaking.'  The songwriter said he shared the clip to be 'self-deprecating', as he and his husband found it funny as gay dads that their baby's first word was 'mama' while most babies find it easier to say 'dada.'  'We found it hilarious,' he explained. 'He's five months old, he obviously doesn't understand English.'   Grammy Award winner Shane McAnally and his husband were met with a wave of backlash after sharing a clip of them 'mocking' their baby son when it called for its 'mama', telling the infant 'you have Dada or Pop - two choices'  The baby boy burst into tears when he was told there was 'no mama' - a moment that sparked fury among conservatives on social media, but McAnally said was 'taken out of context' and was meant to be funny  McAnally seen with his husband Michael Baum and their twins Dash and Dylan. They welcomed their baby son in October 2025 via surrogate  Footage from McAnally's Instagram circulated across social media as conservatives criticized him for sharing the 'mocking' clip.  McAnally, a songwriter with 50 number one hits collaborating with stars including Kenny Chesney and Keith Urban, said he never expected the video would receive so much attention, saying he woke up Friday morning to see the clip went viral.  'I was appalled by what some people have been saying,' he said. 'Some people have taken it out of context.'  The songwriter added that he considers himself 'quite conservative' politically and was 'mostly confused' by the way some critics got so upset.  'Babies usually say dada first, but people wouldn't then say the babies are only wanting their dads? It doesn't really make sense,' he said.  'People have been saying some awful things... He's the happiest baby in the world.'  After a number of social media accounts re-shared the video to the masses, the clip received a torrent of abuse.  'Mocking a child you supposedly love for clicks,' one critic said on X. 'This is called Narcissism Toxic Parenting.'  Another wrote that the clip 'hurts to watch.'  'Every baby just wants their mom when they're scared or crying,' they wrote.  'That's the most natural thing in the world. Seeing them laugh and say there is no Mama feels so cold. Kids need that mother bond. It's not about politics, it's about what's right for the little one. Breaks my heart for that baby.'  However, some felt that the fury over McAnally's clip was overblown, arguing that the baby was likely not understanding what it was crying about.  'There are worse things in the world,' they wrote.  'Y'all are acting like they're cold blooded criminals. Babies cry when they're inconvenienced in the slightest.' The hitmaker Shane McAnally and his husband Michael Baum welcomed the baby boy in October 2025 via surrogate McAnally welcomed the baby boy in October 2025 via surrogate, telling People at the time that he and his husband had long waited for the chance to have a third child.  He said he felt slightly guilty at having a baby in his 50s, but told the outlet that 'since ours is a nontraditional family anyway, we don’t feel like those rules apply.'  The songwriter has 50 number one hits, with his songs performed by hitmakers including Kenny Chesney and Keith Urban.  He said the surrogacy went so smoothly that he and his husband felt it was a 'sign' that they were meant to have a third child.  'It just started to feel like it was meant to be,' he said. 'I have to trust the way the universe does things, and it was all green lights.'  Sorry we are not currently accepting comments on this article.