Morgan Wallen Banned From Billboard Music Awards Despite 6 Nominations
Country music is making a statement after Morgan Wallen was caught saying the N-word and other expletives after a night out in Nashville.
In the video published by TMZ on Tuesday, February 2, the 27-year-old singer can be heard telling one of his friends to “take care of this p–sy-ass n–ga.”
Wallen subsequently apologized in a statement: “I’m embarrassed and sorry. 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 “7 Summers” crooner’s peers, however, are holding him accountable for his actions.
“The news out of Nashville tonight does not represent country music,” Kelsea Ballerini tweeted on Tuesday.
Maren Morris replied, “Yup. we’d be dropped, endorsements lost, social pariahs to music row.”
The “Girl” songstress also was the first to point out that this wasn’t Wallen’s first “scuffle,” referring to Saturday Night Live retracting his chance to perform on the show in October 2020 after he violated coronavirus safety protocols. (He was given a second chance to appear on SNL in December 2020 and poked fun at the scandal during a skit.)
“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,” Morris tweeted. “We keep them rich and protected at all costs with no recourse.”
Cassadee Pope also spoke out in a lengthy statement.
“I am completely disgusted by Morgan Wallens’ [sic] words,” the “Wasting All My Tears on You” singer wrote via Instagram. “To be that flippant and nonchalant while hurling the most offensive racial slur you could utter…. some people just have ZERO sensitivity to a real f–king problem in this world: racism. It has no place in country music and has been tolerated and enabled way too long. And it has NO place in this world.”
Florida Georgia Line’s Tyler Hubbard, who is signed to the same record label as Wallen, applauded the Voice winner’s post, commenting, “Amen.”
Mickey Guyton, for her part, called out industrywide racism.
“When I read comments saying ‘this is not who we are’ I laugh because this is exactly who country music is. I’ve witnessed it for 10 gd years. You guys should just read some of the vile comments hurled at me on a daily basis. It’s a cold hard truth to face but it is the truth,” the “Black Like Me” singer tweeted. “I do not believe in cancel culture. Watching anyone fall from grace is a terrible thing to see. People must all be given a chance to change. Morgan must feel the weight of his words but completely throwing someone away is detrimental to anyone’s mental health.”
Scroll through for all of the details of how the scandal is affecting Wallen’s career:
Big Loud Records suspended Wallen’s recording contract “indefinitely,” adding that “Republic Records fully supports Big Loud’s decision and agrees such behavior will not be tolerated.”
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CMT announced in a statement that the network removed all of Wallen’s performances: “After learning of Morgan Wallen’s racial slur late last night, we are in the process of removing his appearances from all our platforms. We do not tolerate or condone words and actions that are in direct opposition to our core values that celebrate diversity, equity & inclusion.”
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Wallen’s sophomore record, Dangerous: The Double Album, which dropped last month, was the first alum since Taylor Swift’s Red to top the Billboard 200 chart for three consecutive weeks. Following the scandal, his music has been pulled from all of iHeartMedia’s radio playlist, Cumulus Media’s 400-plus stations, Pandora and satellite radio provider SiriusXM’s rotation.
Wallen’s music is also no longer featured on Apple Music and Spotify’s country pages or playlists.
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Wallen’s “potential involvement and eligibility” for the upcoming 56th Academy of Country Music Awards has been halted, the Academy of Country Music said in a statement.
“The Academy does not condone or support intolerance or behavior that doesn’t align with our commitment and dedication to diversity and inclusion,” the statement continued. “In the coming weeks, the Academy will expedite the offering of long-planned diversity training resources for our ACM Membership, Board, Staff and the Country Music artist community, made available through our Diversity + Inclusion Task Force, established in 2018. As a result of this unprecedented situation, the Academy will be reviewing our awards eligibility and submission process, ensuring our nominees consistently reflect the Academy’s integrity.”
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While the CMAs are not until November 2021, it’s likely Wallen, who won Best New Artist in 2020, won’t be featured.
“In light of Morgan Wallen’s recent use of a racial slur, CMA is removing his digital content from our platforms,” the Country Music Association said in a statement. “We support our Country Music partners for taking swift action. We will confer further with our Board of Directors to review additional measures and will continue to examine our industry’s inclusivity efforts.”
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Wallen received six nominations for the 2021 Billboard Music Awards. However, he was barred from the ceremony.
“With our content reaching millions of viewers, dcp and MRC have the privilege and responsibility to effect change by creating a more inclusive dialogue in our productions and across the industry,” Dick Clark Productions said in a press release in April 2021. “Morgan Wallen is a finalist this year based on charting. As his recent conduct does not align with our core values, we will not be including him on the show in any capacity (performing, presenting, accepting). It is heartening and encouraging to hear that Morgan is taking steps in his anti-racist journey and starting to do some meaningful work. We plan to evaluate his progress and will consider his participation in future shows.”
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