This week, Morgan Wallen stepped on stage for the first time since video footage of him using a racist slur emerged nearly four months ago.
The singer was a surprise guest at Kid Rock’s downtown Nashville bar. He gave a full-band performance of his hit “Whiskey Glasses,” along with an acoustic rendition of another song, “Wasted on You.”
One concertgoer told The Tennesseean that the crowd gave Morgan a warm reception, saying the audience even chanted his name at one point. “Morgan really wanted to be playing his music for the people. Definitely could sense it…the overall feeling was tremendous,” they explained.
Morgan’s exit from the spotlight came in early February, when TMZ obtained video of him yelling the N-word as he said goodnight to a car full of friends after a night of partying. He was swiftly removed from many radio stations, his record contract was “suspended indefinitely” and the ACM removed his eligibility for receiving nominations at its 2021 awards show.
The following week, the singer shared a five-minute video to his social media, accepting responsibility for his acts and asking fans to stop defending him.
He explained that he was accepting invitations to meet with Black leaders to “engage in some very real and honest conversations,” and also said that he had become sober.
In the months that followed, Morgan largely stayed silent. However, in spring, he slowly began to resume posting on social media. To celebrate his 28th birthday on May 13, he shared a post saying that “27 brought a lot of the best and the worst times of my life.”
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