Country star Morgan Wallen faced a swift rebuke from the music industry after TMZ published a video on February 2 that showed the 27-year-old saying a racial slur in his driveway. He was indefinitely suspended from his record label, dropped from radio playlists across the country, and barred from consideration for this year’s Academy of Country Music Awards. Despite that, his most recent record, Dangerous, has remained at the top of the Billboard 200, where it had spent the three weeks before the video was released; the magazine noted that sales and streams of Wallen’s music had jumped in the aftermath of the controversy.
It meant that when Wallen released a five-minute apology video to YouTube on Wednesday night, he was in the unusual position of having to rebuke his supporters. “I appreciate those who still see something in me and have defended me, but for today, please don’t,” he said. “I was wrong. It’s on me to take ownership for this and I fully accept any penalties I am facing.”
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GB3OII1pZI8
He confirmed that he had been drinking at the time of the TMZ video. “The video you saw was me on hour 72 of a bender,” he said. “Since that video was taken, I’ve been sober for nine days. It’s not all that long of a time, but it’s enough to know that the man in that video is not the man that I’m trying to be.”
The video was Wallen’s first public comment since a brief apology appeared in TMZ’s original article, and as part of the new apology, he explained why he waited to speak. “I let so many people down…and I’m not okay with that,” he said. “So this week I’ve been waiting to say anything further until I got the chance to apologize to those closest to me that I knew I personally hurt. I also accepted invitations from some amazing Black organizations, executives, and leaders to engage in some very real and honest conversations.”
Wallen said he has already learned from those conversations. “One thing I’ve learned already that I’m specifically sorry for is that my words matter, that words can truly hurt a person and at my core that’s not what I’m okay with,” he said. “This week I heard firsthand some personal stories from Black people that honestly shook me. I know what I’m going through this week doesn’t even compare to some of the trials I heard about from them. I came away from those discussions with a deep appreciation for them and a clearer understanding of the weight of my words.”
On Dangerous, the album Wallen released on January 8, he included a rendition of Jason Isbell’s 2013 song “Cover Me Up.” In the wake of the TMZ video, Isbell was one of a handful of country musicians to speak out against the comments. When it became clear that Wallen’s sales had only increased in the wake of the controversy, Isbell announced on Twitter that he would donate his proceeds as the songwriter to the Nashville chapter of the NAACP.
But one of the most high-profile people who criticized Wallen in the wake of the TMZ video welcomed his apology. Country radio figurehead Bobby Bones tweeted the video with the comment, “Really strong.”
Wallen’s record label, Big Loud, hasn’t commented on his status at the company since they indefinitely suspended his contract last week. But the surest sign that Wallen will be welcomed back into the fold eventually came from a post made by Rakiyah Marshall, one of country music’s few Black executives and the girlfriend of Big Loud founder Seth England. “This guy has a heart. Maybe a little ignorant, for sure makes a lot of mistakes, may need a little extra love & care, has lost his fight with alcohol, but by no means is a racist,” she wrote in a caption to a photograph that shows her embracing Wallen. “He is not perfect nor does he get a pass for his reckless behavior. But he does not deserve this and I’ll stand by that. I’m not giving up on him.” A slew of stars who had remained silent about the controversy, from Jimmie Allen to Lauren Alaina, liked the post or added heart emojis in the comments.
In Wallen’s video, however, he said he didn’t think that return was inevitable. “Who knows if I’ll be able to live down all the mistakes I’ve made, but I’m certainly going to try,” he said. “I’m going to spend some time taking back control of my habit, living healthy, and being proud of my actions.” The video concluded with a Bible verse.
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