COUNTRY singer Morgan Wallen has been at the center of numerous public scandals since he hit the music scene in 2015.
Morgan gained notoriety on the sixth season of The Voice and later signed a record deal with Big Loud – releasing the hit albums I Know Me, Dangerous: The Double Album and One Thing at a Time while signed to the label.
Since then, Morgan, 30, has found himself wrapped up in numerous controversies, including an arrest for public intoxication, being caught using a racial slur, and facing felony charges after throwing a chair off a rooftop.
Here are all the instances that landed the Last Night singer in hot water – or worse, in jail.
MUSICAL CHAIRS
Earlier this month, Morgan was arrested and charged with three felony counts after throwing a chair from the rooftop of Chief’s Bar on Broadway in Nashville, Tennessee.
The bar, owned by fellow country musician Eric Church, was celebrating its grand opening the weekend of the incident.
Morgan threw a chair from the rooftop of the six-story bar, according to an arrest warrant seen by local CBS affiliate WTVF.
Officers claimed the chair landed only three feet from where they were positioned on the street in front of the building.
The arrest report revealed that bar staff told police Morgan threw the chair and accompanying video footage captured the Whiskey Glasses singer allegedly lunging and throwing an object over the roof.
According to bystanders, Morgan laughed afterward.
Morgan was detained by law enforcement and charged with three counts of reckless endangerment relating to the two police officers below and for the danger to the public.
The Somebody’s Problem singer also racked up an additional disorderly conduct charge.
Morgan didn’t appear remorseful around the time of the incident as he was shown grinning in his mugshot taken by the Nashville Police Department.
An Instagram photo showed Morgan reportedly shouting in the back of a cop car outside Chief’s.
“I work there and the chair damn near took out 2 cops. He threw it from the 6th floor,” one Instagram user who claimed to work at the bar commented.
“At 10:53 pm Sunday evening Morgan Wallen was arrested in downtown Nashville for reckless endangerment and disorderly conduct. He is cooperating fully with authorities,” his attorney told local Fox affiliate WZTV in a statement.
The 11-time Billboard Music Awards winner is due in court on May 3, 2024, per the Davidson County Criminal Court website.
Last week, Morgan addressed his recent arrest with a statement on X, formally Twitter.
“I didn’t feel right publicly checking in until I made amends with some folks,” the hitmaker began.
“I’ve touched base with Nashville law enforcement, my family, and the good people at Chief’s.”
He continued, “I’m not proud of my behavior, and I accept responsibility.”
“I have the utmost respect for the officers working every day to keep us all safe,” Morgan wrote in another tweet.
“Regarding my tour, there will be no change. -MW”
MORE ARRESTS
In 2020, Morgan was arrested during another wild night in Nashville.
The singer was charged with public intoxication and disorderly conduct after he was forced to leave Kid Rock’s Big Ass Honky Tonk Rock N’ Roll Steakhouse for “kicking glass items” cops said, according to The Tennessean.
Police added that he then got into verbal fights with pedestrians on the streets of Nashville as officers watched him.
“Officers gave [Morgan] several opportunities to walk away with his friends, but he refused to walk away,” the arrest warrant stated.
Morgan would later apologize for his actions and the charges were dropped by authorities.
“We didn’t mean any harm, and we want to say sorry to any bar staff or anyone that was affected,” Morgan said in a since-deleted X post.
He continued, “Thank you to the local authorities for being so professional and doing their job with class.”
The singer’s rap sheet goes back even further as Morgan was charged with a DUI in 2016, according to the New York Post.
The case, however, was later dismissed.
RACIAL SLUR
In 2021, TMZ released a video recorded by Morgan’s neighbors capturing the country singer yelling profanities after a night out.
The Way I Talk singer and a group of his buddies arrived at Morgan’s home around midnight being extremely loud.
The group was reportedly loud enough to anger neighbors, as one began recording the country star’s antics.
The video showed Morgan stumbling toward his house.
In it, he tells someone to watch over a member of his group and hurls the N-word and other profanities.
“Take care of this “p***y a** motherf**ker,” Morgan yelled.
He then added, “Take care of this p***y a** n***a,” before heading inside his home.
Morgan later issued an apology to TMZ.
The statement read, “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.”
He continued, “I want to sincerely apologize for using the word. I promise to do better.”
The country singer had his contract with Big Loud Records “suspended” following the scandal.
The record label announced at the time, “In the wake of recent events, Big Loud Records has made the decision to suspend Morgan Wallen’s contract indefinitely.”
Additionally, Republic Records, the Universal Music-owned label that distributes his recordings, supported “Big Loud’s decision” and agreed that such behavior would not be tolerated.
Morgan recently signed a publishing deal with Warner Chappell Music in February 2024.
A month after the recording was leaked, the singer filmed a video apologizing again, asking his fans not to defend his actions.
In April 2021, he donated $300,000 to the Black Music Action Coalition and later said on Good Morning America that “he was wrong” and “he was around some of his friends, and they say dumb stuff together.”
He added that he did not “mean it in any derogatory manner at all.
“It’s one of my best friends — he was, we were all clearly drunk.”
Morgan Wallen’s legal issues and controversies
The country singer has faced several public backlashes and arrests over the years.
- 2016: Wallen was charged with a DUI but the case was later dismissed.
- May 23, 2020: He was kicked out of a Nashville bar then arrested and charged with public intoxication and disorderly conduct.
- October 2020: A video of Wallen parting and making out with girls without a mask during lockdown in Alabama surfaced online.
- October 7, 2020: His debut appearance on SNL was canceled due to the video and he later released an apology video on Instagram.
- February 2, 2021: A video of Wallen referring to his friend using the N-word was shared online.
- February 3, 2021: He was pulled from radio stations, suspended by his record label, and posted an apology video a week later.
- October 28, 2021: He was banned from attending and receiving awards at the American Music Awards.
- April 23, 2023: He canceled his concert in Mississippi moments before the show was set to start and said this was because he had lost his voice.
- April 25, 2023: A concertgoer filed a federal lawsuit against the country singer for breach of contract and negligence.
BREACH OF CONTRACT
On April 23, 2023, Morgan pulled out of his concert in Oxford, Mississippi, around 80 miles south of Memphis, seconds before he was set to come out, according to Business Insider.
A message came up on the stage screen to tell fans the news.
The message revealed that Morgan had lost his voice and that refunds would be available at the point of purchase.
Mogan later took to Instagram to apologize to his fans and concert attendees.
“After last night’s show I started losing my voice so I spent the day resting up, talking to my doctor, and working through my vocal exercise trying to get better,” he said.
“I am so sorry, I promise you guys I tried everything I could.”
The cancelation landed the singer in legal trouble as a concertgoer, Brandi Burcham, filed a federal lawsuit for breach of contract and negligence, according to TMZ.
SATURDAY NIGHT LIVE
Morgan faced a pandemic-related backlash following a video that surfaced of him partying during lockdown.
In 2020, Saturday Night Live fired the Had It singer for breaking Covid-19 guidelines at a massive college party.
The then-27-year-old was set to make his musical guest debut on the NBC variety show until a video surfaced that showed an unmasked Morgan at an Alabama bar – drinking and kissing women a week before he was scheduled to appear on the long-running sketch show.
The state of Alabama had a mask and social distancing mandate in place at the time.
Morgan’s appearance on the show was canceled after the video emerged.
The Wasted on You singer addressed his firing in an Instagram video.
In the clip, Morgan stated, “It’s a tough video for me to make, but a necessary one.”
The singer continued, “I’m in New York City in a hotel room. I was getting ready for SNL this Saturday and I got a call from the show letting me know that I would no longer be able to play and that’s because of Covid protocols, which I understand.
“I’m not positive from Covid, but my actions from this past weekend were pretty short-sighted, and have obviously affected my long-term goals and my dreams.”
He continued, “I respect the show’s decision because I know that I put them in jeopardy and I take ownership of this.
“I’d like to apologize to SNL, to my fans, to my team for bringing me these opportunities and I let them down.”
Morgan added, “On a more personal note, I think I have some growing up to do.
“You know, I think I’ve lost myself a little bit. I’ve tried to find joy in the wrong places and – I don’t know – it’s left me with less joy, so I’m going to try to work on that.”
The country singer said he was going to “take a step back from the spotlight for a little while” to “work” on himself.
He concluded, “Lastly, I know that I’m taking some heat. A lot of heat, but I just wanted to let you guys know that your messages of encouragement haven’t gone unnoticed.”
After the most recent incident at Chief’s bar fans have begun to beg the singer to change.
“Hope Wallen learns from this incident. Reckless actions have consequences. Let’s all strive for responsible behavior,” one X user wrote.
“Seriously! @MorganWallen do better! You have a child for the love of God!” another said.
Morgan has a 3-year-old son, Indigo Wilder, with his ex-fiancée Katie Smith.
