Morgan Wallen concertgoers break out in 'Let's Go Brandon' chant
The country singer performed at New York City's Madison Square Garden.
Country music star Morgan Wallen's number one hit "Last Night" has the liberal media up in arms about the singer's past, pointing to attempts to cancel him in 2021 after video surfaced of him drunkenly using the N-word shortly after nationwide Black Lives Matter protests dominated headlines.
The incident followed another controversy in which he violated COVID-19 masking protocols at a crowded bar and was temporarily booted from "Saturday Night Live."
But the star has made a name for himself, with "Last Night" claiming the number one spot one month after his new album release "One Thing at a Time." He currently holds 36 spots on the Billboard Hot 100 list, with five ranking in the top ten, making him the first country artist to ever do so.
"Numerically speaking, this new song is not topping the charts by uniting disparate audiences. It’s not (yet, maybe ever) a song for everybody," Slate Magazine's Chris Molanphy wrote of the hit last Friday.
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Morgan Wallen performs onstage during the 2022 iHeartRadio Music Festival at T-Mobile Arena on September 23, 2022, in Las Vegas, Nevada. (Photo by Matt Winkelmeyer/Getty Images for iHeartRadio)
"And whatever its musical merits, you get the sinking feeling it’s being boosted by an audience that’s trying to prove a point, and maybe even … own the libs?" he wrote.
"Is the ascension of "Last Night" a sign of Wallen’s wholesale acceptance by music listeners nationwide? Or is it a kind of niche-driven data activism, by the sort of reactionary fan who chants "Let’s go Brandon" at a Wallen concert?" he later added.
In the piece, he alleged Wallen's fanbase doesn't spread to others invested in other genres as other artists might, concluding by saying, "He’s [Wallen] not a uniter, he’s a triangulator—and when you zoom out, his seemingly crowded tent still looks awfully small."
HARDY (L) and Morgan Wallen perform onstage during Morgan Wallen: The Dangerous Tour, Night 1 at Madison Square Garden on February 09, 2022 in New York City. (John Shearer)
The Guardian labeled him "America's controversial country star," pointing to previous criticism from New York Times music writer Jon Caramanica, who critiqued Wallen's "vague atonement" for his sins, "no mention of racial justice or change" and "no stopping his audience members from turning his success into a political weapon" by shouting remarks about President Biden during his shows after returning to the stage.
At the time, NBC News published an article by cultural critic Elena Sheppard, lamenting Wallen's "redemption arc" as a "sad sign of the times," focusing particularly on the country music community's blatant willingness to welcome him back after a brief cancelation.
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After less than two full years, the arc appears to be complete.
"The Wallen controversy gave country music a real, obvious chance to grow. Instead, it allowed the status quo to triumph again," the article's description read.
"As a country music fan, I'm disappointed," Sheppard wrote. "But I wish I could say I was also surprised," and proceeded to lambast the genre for its history "steeped in a history of racism, confederate flags and good ol' boy sensibilities."
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Critics allege Wallen's music feeds racists and gives those looking to cancel "cancel culture" a way to voice their opinions by supporting his music.
Fox News Digital reached out to Morgan Wallen's team for comment, but did not receive a response.
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