The comments sparked broad outcry on social media and from a number of high profile female artists and others in the industry.
Drawing an analogy with the composition of a salad, Hill remarked: If you want to make ratings in country radio, take females out.
The reason is mainstream country radio generates more quarter hours from female listeners at the rate of 70 to 75 percent, and women like male artists.
[4][3]Hill's comments drew widespread condemnation, especially on social media and from women in the country music industry, including Jennifer Nettles,[c] Martina McBride,[d] Miranda Lambert[e] and Leslie Fram.
[7] Nashville based artist Kalie Shorr penned her 2016 single "Fight Like a Girl" in response to Tomato-gate, as she told the Chicago Tribune, to "handle being pissed off".
[11][12][13] However, in a follow up piece by The Tennessean three years later, the paper reported that despite "hope that bringing the issue to the surface would yield progress.