In case you didn’t see it, MORGAN WALLEN talked to MICHAEL STRAHAN on “Good Morning America” last Friday. It was his first public interview since the racial slur controversy . Here are some of the highlights.
Asked when he first realized his world was about to change, he said, quote, “My manager called two hours before the video came out and said, ‘Are you sitting down?’ No one’s ever done that. I realized quickly how much my words matter and the weight and influence I have.”
As for WHY he said it. Alcohol. He and his friends had been drinking all weekend. Quote, “It just happened. We say dumb stuff together. In our minds it’s playful. That sounds ignorant but that’s really where it came from, and it’s wrong.”
Michael reminded him that the N-word HAS, and still IS, used to “dehumanize” black people . . . and asked if he understands why it makes them so upset.
Morgan answered, quote, “I don’t know how to put myself in their shoes because I’m not. But I do understand, especially when I say I’m using it playfully or ignorantly, I understand that that must sound, you know, like, ‘He doesn’t understand.’”
Morgan shared that he did reach out to the community. He spoke to members of the Black Music Action Coalition, as well as Gospel star BeBe Winans.
He talked about the irony of his record sales increasing after the controversy. Quote, “We calculated how much the numbers spiked after the incident and got to a number around $500,000, and DONATED it to black music organizations.”
As for the underlying issue that caused his bad behavior. Quote, “I checked myself into rehab. For 30 days, I spent time in San Diego just trying to figure it out. Why am I acting this way? Do I have an alcohol problem? Do I have a deeper issue?”
Asked what he’d like to say to his fans, he answered quote, “I said that word out of ignorance. It doesn’t mean you should follow my lead. I hope my fans know it’s not in my heart, and not something I condone or that I think they should be doing.”
Controversy aside, Morgan is still making music. Yesterday he posted a preview of a brand new song called “You Proof”. You can check it out on his Instagram.
(There are clips of Morgan’s interview at GoodMorningAmerica.com. The call from his manager is at 1:09. “Putting himself in their shoes” comes at 4:07. Donating $500,000 starts at 6:22.)
