Trace Adkins says he didn't mean to offend anyone by wearing a Confederate flag earpiece during his performance at the Rockefeller Center tree lighting ceremony Wednesday.

He writes on his his webpage: “As a proud American I object to oppression of any kind. To me, the battle flag represents remembrance of my Southern lineage – I am a descendant of Confederate soldiers who followed that flag into battle. I advocate for the preservation of America’s battlefields and honest conversation about our country’s history. To those who view the flag as a symbol of racism, that was not my message and I did not intend offense.”