Morgan Wallen has broken his silence eight days after a video surfaced showing him the N word. He says that moment came at the end of a 72-hour bender, and in a video message to fans posted Wednesday night (Feb. 10), Wallen apologizes and gives an update on what he’s done to change. He also asks those who have defended him to stop doing this.
The emotional plea on social media reveals that Wallen has been sober for nine days and sees his relationship with alcohol as toxic to the man he is trying to be. Conversely, he is proud of who he is when he is sober, but acknowledges that he abandoned his family, friends and professional team – as well as his fans – the night the video was made. He specifically mentions his parents and little boy, Indie, as people he has disappointed.
“I appreciate those who still see something in me and who have defended me,” says Wallen at the end of the five-minute video, “but for today, please don’t. I was wrong. It’s up to me to own this. , and I fully accept any punishments I encounter. “
Puffiness, dressed in a brown vest over a gray long-sleeved T-shirt, seems to read from prepared notes in this video, as he did when he apologized to fans after being forced out Saturday Night Live in October after a weekend of maskless partying during the COVID-19 pandemic. He begins by explaining that his apology to TMZ – who published the video in which he used the racist slur on February 2 – was inadequate, partly because he had little time after being made aware of it, and partly because only some of his apology was published.
Words are important, says Wallen. Later he reiterates that he takes full responsibility for his actions and will accept the consequences.
“There is no reason to downplay what I did”, Wallen recalls. “It’s important, even if I choose my next steps carefully.”
Wallen’s statement does not include specific ways he plans to make changes, or how he will spend the next few weeks. He indicates that he will step out of the spotlight again and will decide when it is the right time to return.
“I want my family, my team, my friends and even strangers to trust me,” said the 27-year-old.
Several Black executives and leaders have offered to talk to Wallen and perhaps even offer guidance – invitations that Wallen says he was “very nervous to accept.”
‘The very people I hurt had every right to kick my neck while I was downstairs, so as not to show me any mercy. But they did the exact opposite. ‘
The video of Wallen using the N word was filmed by one of Wallen’s neighbors on the night of January 31. Sharing that the video was made “at hour 72 of 72 of a bending machine,” Wallen is referring to something that looks like a problem for the first time.
Within 24 hours of TMZ’s story, Wallen had lost his booking agent and was taken off national radio, as well as inclusion on digital streaming playlists. The outrage from country fans was immediate, but divided, with some saying the consequences were more serious than his actions, citing another example of a culture of cancellation.
Big Loud Records has also suspended the Wallen record deal, but his music is still available in the same places as before. His new album spent a fourth straight week at No. 1 on the Billboard 200 last week – an indication that fans were not united in anger and disgust.
Wallen’s next professional bet will be on June 3, at the Tailgate N ‘Tallboys Festival in Illinois. He was previously attached to Luke Bryan’s summer tour, but it’s not clear if those dates will go ahead as planned.
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