While discussing Morgan Wallen, there are plenty of caveats.
On one hand, you have arguably the most successful country artists of all time who has continually pushed the genre to heights not yet seen in the mainstream. On the other hand, you have an artist who has pushed the genre closer to both pop and rap with each subsequent release, while simultaneously carrying the baggage of a plethora of different controversies. Whether you absolutely adore the “Last Night” singer or despise him, it’s simply something that you cannot ignore.
Of course, the most high-profile and controversial of all of Wallen’s past mistakes is none other than his use of the n-word in 2021, which not only resulted in criticism from the likes of Jason Isbell, Maren Morris, Cassadee Pope and Mickey Guyton, but also resulted in him getting banned from a plethora of different platforms across the genre. This included but was not limited to his music temporarily being removed from streaming services and country radio, CMT, Sirius XM and Pandora banning his music from airing, the Academy of Country Music “halting” his eligibility for awards and his own label, Big Loud Records, temporarily suspending his contract.
Though we all know that Wallen has since recovered and has continued to break record after record over the course of the past few years, his 2021 banning has remained in the minds of many and has since been a key talking point while discussing not only the Tennessee native himself but the culture surrounding country music.
Someone who got to witness Wallen’s rise, fall and rebirth first hand was none other than his friend, collaborator and co-writer, HARDY.
As we all know, HARDY has been with the “I Got Better” singer since the beginning of his career. Beyond trading features on songs like “Come Back As A Redneck,” “In The Bible,” “red” and “He Went to Jared,” HARDY has written a laundry list of Wallen’s hits, such as “Up Down,” “Sand in My Boots,” “More Than My Hometown,” and “7 Summers.”
After recounting his horrifying 2022 bus crash, HARDY opened up about seeing the backlash Wallen received during that time period in a recent interview with Rolling Stone on their Nashville Now podcast.
When host Joseph Hudak asked him how he thinks the way Wallen was treated by the press affected him in his career, HARDY would immediately point to the fact that he thought that the powers that be in Nashville reacted too harshly at first. He’d go on to say, however, that he thinks that the major players in the genre, such as iHeart, CMT and the Academy, realized that Wallen was simply too valuable and important to have off the air, saying they learned from their mistake.
“I think a lot of people… big companies were really hard on him early on. And a lot of it is that people feel like they owe him, because he made a mistake — especially the big one that we all know.
I think, especially the gatekeepers, at radio and iHeart and people like that, they opened back up for him… because they banned him for a while, they literally banned him from the radio. I think people came to their senses and they were like, ‘We made a mistake and this guy’s really good and maybe we should give him a chance.’ And I think the floodgates just opened.”
Hudak would then ask HARDY if he thinks the controversy surrounding Wallen’s use of the n-word and subsequent banning played a role in him reaching the popularity he’s currently experiencing. Candidly, the “wait in the truck” singer would say it definitely played a role, but he heavily emphasized the fact that he believes the 32-year-old singer/songwriter’s talent is what truly catapulted him to where he is right now.
“Some of it, not all of it. First and foremost, he’s incredibly talented. He’s an amazing singer. He’s an amazing songwriter. And if he doesn’t write the song, he cuts amazing songs. He’s a great performer. I think a lot of it was a lot of platforms and people that were like, ‘Man, we were a little too hard on this guy. I think we should show him some love.'”
Ultimately, HARDY is pretty spot on in his assessment.
While there’s absolutely no defending Wallen’s use of the n-word back then, there’s no denying that he’s simply a money printer for essentially the entirety of Music Row. It was only a matter of time before he got back on the air and pushed himself further into superstardom, and luckily for fans of the “Whiskey Glasses” singer, it didn’t take him too long after the controversy. I also think timing plays a critical role in the entire ordeal… had he said that a few years earlier, or a few years later, I don’t know if we see quite the reaction that we did. Once again, nobody is justifying it, but on the heels of George Floyd’s death and the peak of the Black Lives Matter movement, as well as the tail end of the Me Too movement… cancel culture, and this method of trying to regulate behavior via social media outrage, was certainly at its height. Morgan Wallen was made an example of, and even today, for some people like Hayley Williams, he’s just not going to be see in any other way.
Watch the full podcast here:
“Come Back As A Redneck”
