Trevor Aldridge, MTN Reporter
February 10th, 2021
Morgan Wallen has been suspended indefinitely by his record label and
had his music pulled from radio stations and streaming services Wednesday after a video
surfaced of him shouting a racial slur.
Big Loud Records, the label which Wallen is signed to, released a statement that they were suspending Wallen indefinitely. Republic Records, which Wallen is co-signed to, added that “such behavior will not be tolerated.”
The video was first published by TMZ on Tuesday night and shows Wallen yelling obscenities, including the N-word outside a Nashville home.In a statement to TMZ, Wallen said, “I used an unacceptable and inappropriate racial slur that I wish I could take back. There are no excuses to use this type of language, ever. I want to sincerely apologize for using the word. I promise to do better.”
The controversy arose just as Wallen’s sophomore album, “Dangerous: The Double Album,”was beginning its third week atop the Billboard 200 chart and had set several streaming records. iHeartMedia, one of the country’s largest owners of radio stations, said, “In light of Morgan Wallen’s recent actions involving the use of a racial slur, we have made the decision to remove his music and content from our stations effective immediately.”
Spotify, Apple Music, SiriusXM and Pandora have all removed Wallen’s music from their
playlists, while the Academy of Country Music halted his eligibility for their annual awards
show in April.
Wallen has had to issue multiple public apologies within the past year. He was arrested for public intoxication and disorderly conduct after being kicked out of a bar in downtown Nashville in May 2020.
In October, he was dropped from a scheduled live performance on “Saturday Night Live” after videos surfaced on social media of him flouting COVID-19 protocols and partying with fans in Alabama. He was invited back on the show in December and appeared in a skit making fun of himself.
Fellow country star Maren Morris criticized Wallen and the country music industry. In a tweet, she said, “It actually IS representative of our town because this isn’t his first ‘scuffle’ and he just demolished a huge streaming record last month regardless. We all know it wasn’t his first time using that word. We keep them rich and protected at all costs with no recourse.”
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