- Country singer Morgan Wallen was filmed with a racial slur on Sunday, TMZ reported.
- One of the largest radio networks in the United States removed it from its playlists in response.
- Wallen said in a statement to TMZ: “I’m ashamed and I’m sorry.”
- Visit the Insider home page for more stories.
Country singer Morgan Wallen was filmed racially slandering the streets of Nashville on Sunday night, prompting one of the largest radio stations in the United States to remove it from their playlists.
According to TMZ, Wallen was returning home on Sunday night with a group of friends when he was heard by neighbors shouting a series of comments to a man who was with him. A neighbor who heard the commotion filmed the incident.
Wallen can be heard in the video calling his friend “son of a bitch — er, and then referring to the man as an” ass n ——. “
In a statement to TMZ, Wallen said: “I am ashamed and sorry. I used an unacceptable and inappropriate racial slander that I would like to be able to remove. There is no excuse for using this type of language, ever. I sincerely apologize for using the word. I promise to do better. “
Cumulus Media, the country’s second-largest radio network, issued a statement to its stations Tuesday night ordering them to remove Wallen’s songs from their playlists, Variety reported.
The country stars responded to the incident. Singer Kelsea Ballerini I wrote: “Nashville’s news tonight doesn’t represent country music.”
Another country star, Maren Morris answered: “In fact, it is representative of our city because this is not his first ‘fight’ and he just broke a huge streaming record last month. We all know that it is not the first time he has said that word.”
The Country Music Awards “Best New Artist” released their latest album, “Dangerous: The Double Album”, in late January, and quickly reached the top of the country charts. According to Country Insider, the record was broadcast more than 240 million times in its first week.
Wallen had problems earlier in May when he was kicked out of a bar and arrested in Nashville. A police report on the incident seen by Insider said that it “appeared to be a danger to himself and others.”
In October, “Saturday Night Live” canceled Wallen’s performance after he was filmed wearing a mask and ignoring social detachment guidelines. It was later rescheduled and appeared in a December episode.