Morgan Wallen is an American country singer and songwriter who became famous through the show The Voice. Morgan began his career in 2014. During his work, he managed to release two successful albums that entered the top Billboard 200. Also in 2020, the artist received the New Artist of the Year award from the Country Music Association (USA).
Childhood and youth Morgan Wallen
The musician's full name is Morgan Cole Wallen. He was born on May 13, 1993 in the US city of Snedville (Tennessee). The artist's father (Tommy Wallen) was a preacher, and his mother (Leslie Wallen) was a teacher. The family loved music, especially modern Christian music. That is why at the age of 3 the boy was sent to sing in a Christian choir. And at the age of 5 he began to learn to play the violin. In his youth, Morgan already knew how to play the guitar and piano.
According to the performer, as a teenager, he often clashed with his father. In an interview, Morgan Wallen also noted that until the age of 25 he had a "wild" character, which was largely inherited from his father. "I think that's one of the things I liked about him," Wallen said. “He really lived. Dad always said that, like me, until the age of 25 he was a rather recklessly bold person.
The first serious hobby was sports. “As soon as I was old enough to move and walk, I immediately went in for sports,” says the artist. “My mom says I didn’t even play with toys. I remember playing with little soldiers for a short time. But once that was over, I became interested in basketball, baseball, football, any kind of ball game."
In high school, Wallen was great at playing baseball. However, due to a serious hand injury, he had to suspend sports. From that moment on, the guy began to consider options for developing a career in music. Before that, he sang only with his mother and sister. He got into the musical sphere thanks to his acquaintance with Luke Bryan, whom he often met at parties and in companies. Morgan's mother did not understand her son's new passion and asked him to stay down to earth.
Morgan Wallen's participation in the TV show "The Voice"
In 2014, Morgan Wallen decided to try his hand at the American vocal show The Voice (Season 6). During the blind audition, he performed Howie Day's Collide. Initially, he got into the team of the American singer Usher. But later, Adam Levine from the Maroon 5 group became his mentor. As a result, Wallen left the project at the playoff stage. However, thanks to his participation in the show, the performer gained wide popularity. He moved to Nashville where he created the band Morgan Wallen & Them Shadows.
The program was filmed in California. While there, the artist began collaborating with Sergio Sanchez (Atom Smash). Thanks to Sanchez, Morgan was able to get acquainted with the management of the Panacea Records label. In 2015, he signed a contract with him and released the Stand Alone EP.
A few years after participating in the project, Wallen shared his impressions: “The show helped me a lot with personal growth and finding my own style. It is worth noting that I was also finally able to understand my voice. Before that, I really didn’t know about warming up before singing, or about any vocal techniques. On the project, I heard about them for the first time.
According to Morgan, the producers of The Voice wanted him to be a pop singer, but he knew his heart was country. He had to go through blind auditions and top 20 rounds of The Voice (Season 6) before he was given the opportunity to perform the music he wanted to sing. Unfortunately, in the first week of his performance, Wallen still dropped out of the tournament.
“I'm not offended by this. On the contrary, I am very grateful for the opportunity, - the artist admitted. “I learned a lot and it certainly was a good start and a stepping stone for a career in music.”
Morgan Wallen's first successes after the project
In 2016, Morgan moved to Big Loud Records, where he released his debut single, The Way I Talk. The song was released as the lead single for the artist's first studio album. It didn't make it to the top charts, but still managed to reach number 35 on the Billboard Hot Country Songs.
The artist released his debut album If I Know Me in April 2018. The album peaked at number 10 on the Billboard 200 and number 1 on the US Top Country Albums chart. Out of 14 songs, only one Up Down (single) features the guest part of country duo Florida Georgia Line. The track peaked at number 1 on the Billboard Country Airplay and number 5 on the Billboard Hot Country Songs. It also peaked at number 49 on the Billboard Hot 100.
About the collaboration song with FGL, the artist had this to say, “When you have a song that people love as much as you do, it's really amazing. I think when we first recorded the song, we knew there was something special about it. It was one of those songs that brought fresh energy to any situation, it made and still makes me smile when I play it or hear it."
Recording the second album
The second studio album Dangerous: The Double Album was released in 2021 under the auspices of Big Loud Records and Republic Records. The album received positive reviews from music critics and was successful. It debuted at number 1 on the Billboard 200 and US Top Country Albums charts. The work includes two discs, each containing 15 songs. Guest appearances for two tracks include country musicians Ben Burgess and Chris Stapleton.
“The 'double album' idea started as a joke between me and my manager because we've collected so many songs over the past few years. Then quarantine came and we realized that maybe we really have enough time to make two discs. I also finished some more tracks during quarantine with some of my good friends. I wanted the songs to talk about different phases of life and have different sounds, ”Wallen said about the creation of the album.
Morgan Wallen's personal life
For a long time, Morgan met with a girl named KT Smith. In July 2020, when the couple broke up, Morgan announced to his fans that he had a son, Indigo Wilder. For unknown reasons, the boy stayed with Morgan. In an interview, the artist admitted that he always expected to raise his children with a partner in a committed relationship.
“You know my parents are still together,” he said. “They raised me and my sisters together. So that became my idea of what my family life would be like. Obviously, this turned out not to be the case. And I was a little desperate when I realized that we would not be able to live and raise a child together.”
Being a single father proved to be a very difficult task for Morgan. But he quickly learned what he should and should not do. Now, with the upbringing of his son, the artist is helped by his parents, who specially moved from Knoxville for this.
