COUNTRY BOY INTERESTED IN MORE THAN PARTYING
Singer cites different music genres and bands as influential to his unique style
Five years ago, Morgan Wallen was eliminated in the playoffs of Season 6 of The Voice. Today, the 26-year-old is sitting pretty atop North American country-music charts with singles like Up Down (featuring Florida Georgia Line) and Whiskey Glasses. Both come from the singer’s debut album If I Know Me, released in 2018. Wallen is currently opening for Luke Combs on the latter’s Beer Never Broke My Heart Tour. We talked to Wallen about growing up in Tennessee, what might surprise people about his music tastes and being labelled a “party country” guy.
Q Is there a broad generalization you can make about Canadian versus American country music fans?
A I think the concerts here probably happen less often, so you can tell how eager people are to be there. You can tell in America too, but it’s awesome to come here because it’s good to feel that hunger and energy from the crowd.
Q You grew up in a small Tennessee town called Sneedville before your family moved to Knoxville. Do you think Knoxville was a better place to be a teen?
A Yeah, I think it probably was. There wasn’t a whole lot going on in Sneedville, which I enjoy now. I enjoyed that then too, getting to do all those small-town things. But I think moving to Knoxville helped me be a little more social and expand my horizons a little bit, and ultimately not be as shocked with what my life is now.
Q Are you still shocked on occasion?
A Yeah. Don’t get me wrong, I can’t believe that this is my life. I’ve always loved to sing, I’ve always had a passion for it. But growing up, it didn’t seem like anything that was remotely near possible. I feel really lucky.
Q You recorded a track (Heartless) with DJ/producer Diplo. Do you think Knoxville helped expand your musical tastes?
A I’ve always enjoyed music. If I like the song, I like the song. I don’t judge it beforehand just because it’s labelled “rap” or “alternative.” I’ve always given music a chance, and that’s led to me liking a lot of different things. I obviously write country, I sound country, that’s just who I am. But I think it’s good to get out there a little bit and spread country music to people who normally wouldn’t give it a chance. I think it’s good for me, it’s good for the genre. I get a little bit of hate about it, people saying, ‘Aw, he’s sold out’ or, ‘He’s not real country.’ Whatever, man. A good song is a good song, and if you want to question my authentic country-ness, my resume will check out.
Q Is there a band or song or genre people might be surprised to find out that you like?
A Yeah. One of my favourite bands is called War on Drugs. It’s definitely in the “alternative-rock” category. To me it sounds like if Pink Floyd, Tom Petty and Bob Dylan had a baby. It’s one of those things I can listen to for hours. It’s good driving music.
Q Do you worry about being categorized as a “party-country” artist because of songs like Happy Hour and Up Down?
A Yeah, but I think there’s a select amount of people that consider me that. And I’m OK with that. I want my concerts to be rowdy, I like the rowdy atmosphere. I do stuff that isn’t exactly family friendly. But if someone really, truly listens to my whole album, they wouldn’t categorize me as that. When I first started writing for that last record, I was 21, 22, and a lot has changed for me. There’s a big difference between a 21-year-old and a 26-year-old, at least for me. There’s definitely going to be some growing up involved on the next one.