Morgan Wallen’s follow-up to the most celebrated or notorious – depending on perspective – album release cycle in a generation arrives on March 3 as the country music singer returns with his third album, “One Thing At A Time.”
If you are wondering how Wallen plans on topping the country genre and overall music industry-impressing success (104-and-counting total weeks spent in Billboard’s Top 10) of his 2021-released quadruple-platinum equivalent-selling “Dangerous: The Double Album,” foremost consider that at 36 tracks in length, it’s two songs longer than Zach Bryan’s 2022 breakout favorite “American Heartbreak.”
“This record represents the last few years of my life, the highs and the lows,” Wallen shared via a press release. “It also brings together the musical influences that have shaped me as an artist – country, alternative and hip-hop. There are 36 songs on this album because we just kept exploring with fresh lyrics, music and production ideas and these are the songs that felt right to me. It was a blast to create, and I was so grateful to be back in the studio to lay this out for my fans.”
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In February 2021, Wallen faced backlash when a video surfaced of him using a racial slur. Wallen apologized, saying it was “unacceptable and inappropriate” with a “promise to do better.” The country star was dropped by his agency and the Academy of Country Music halted his “involvement and eligibility” at that year’s ACM awards.
Despite the controversy, Wallen has still seen success, with his steams and album sales spiking. In 2022, he was back in the running at the ACM Awards, winning 2022 album of the year.
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Wallen also has a tour plans for 2023. Somewhere in the range of over three million fans are likely to witness Wallen playing many of the 36 tracks on his new record during his 63-date/30 stadium show “One Night At A Time” world tour that kicks off overseas March 15-24 in New Zealand and Australia with HARDY as an opener. Then, returning stateside on April 15 at Milwaukee’s American Family Field, he’s on the road for six months with HARDY, plus ERNEST, Parker McCollum and Bailey Zimmerman as supporting acts.
Alongside featuring his regular crew of songwriters, including the previously mentioned ERNEST plus 2022 BMI Country Songwriter of the Year HARDY (and names including Nicolle Galyon and Miranda Lambert, who co-wrote May 2022 No. 1 single “Thought You Should Know,” which is included on the record), Wallen digs back into his childhood roots to pair with his sister, Ashlyne Wallen, on “Outlook.”
“I grew up in church singing three-part harmonies with my two sisters. That’s how I learned to sing, so this was a full-circle moment for Ashlyne and me,” he adds via press release. Those family ties continue via the album’s cover art. Photographed at the home of his deceased grandmother, Wallen states, “My Mamaw Boots helped raise me. I had such a special bond with her, so I wanted to honor her with this new record.”
Owing to his hip-hop adoration, the album also features an interpolation of The Allman Brothers’ “Midnight Rider” on “Everything I Love” and a sample of Young Thug’s “Lifestyle” on “180 (Lifestyle).” For more traditional country fans, collaborations with Eric Church on “Man Made A Bar,” HARDY on “In The Bible,” and “Cowgirls” with ERNEST are also featured.
For more information on Morgan Wallen, visit https://morganwallen.com.
Story Credit: usatoday.com