Earlier this month, TMZ released a video that showed country star Morgan Wallen saying the n-word. The video quickly went viral. As a result of his actions, he was dropped from his label and was banned from the Academy of Country Music Awards this year. Regardless, his fans rallied around him in support and caused his music sales to skyrocket.

Wallen issued an apology initially, but he has been silent from the media since. Now, he has taken to Instagram to explain why he has been lying low. In a video, he addresses what he did wrong, what has happened in his life since, and what he’s planning to do moving forward.

First, Wallen explained that in the video when he dropped the n-word, he was “on hour 72 of 72 of a bender and that’s not something I’m proud of either.” 

He went on to explain that he has apologized to the people he let down, like his parents. He regrets his actions and wants to change. As part of that process, he has stopped drinking. He shared that he has been sober for 9 days, and while he realizes that’s not a very long time, it is long enough that he realizes that most of the mistakes that he makes happen when he’s not sober.

Wallen also shared that several Black organizations reached out to him to talk about racism and share stories with him. He mentioned that this grace and kindness truly humbled him.

The country singer went on to explain that he doesn’t want anyone making excuses for him. He explained, “Our actions matter, our words matter, and I just want to encourage anyone watching to please learn from my mistake. There’s no reason to downplay what I did. It matters and please know I’m carefully choosing my next steps in repair.”

Wallen added, “Who knows if I’ll be able to live down all the mistakes I’ve made, but I’m certainly going to try.”

You can watch Wallen’s full apology video below.

 

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Do you believe Wallen has learned from his mistakes and will truly change for the better?