Hmm, not sure “country fans don’t care that an artist used the n-word” is the heartwarming underdog story this article thinks it is.
Controversies
On February 2, 2021, TMZ released a video recorded on January 31 showing Wallen using the [n-word] with friends as they were entering his Nashville home. He issued a statement apologizing for using the racial slur.
[…]
In April 2021, following the surge in album sales, Wallen donated $300,000 to the Black Music Action Coalition in the names of 20 people who had counseled him following the incident.
[…]
On July 23, 2021, Wallen publicly spoke of his comments on Good Morning America, where he said that “he was around some of his friends, and they say dumb stuff together” and said that “he was wrong” to express those words. […] Wallen was nominated for Favorite Male Country Artist and Favorite Country Album for the 2021 American Music Awards, but was not invited to attend the ceremony, and was consequently unable to accept any awards if he won, which he did not.
[…]
Wallen performed with Ernest at the Grand Ole Opry in January 2022 to perform the latter’s single “Flower Shops.” This performance was immediately met with criticism by some fans and other musicians, especially as it came only six months after the Grand Ole Opry’s Twitter account made a statement against racism at the institution.
