Is It Time to Forgive Morgan Wallen for His Racist Slur?

Darius Rucker believes it’s time to offer forgiveness to Morgan Wallen for his use of a racist slur in 2021.

“I think Morgan’s become a better person since that. I’ve known Morgan a long time. Since all that happened Morgan’s tried to really better himself and become a better person,” Rucker shared on the Rolling Stone Music Now podcast.

While the “Wagon Wheel” singer is ready to forgive Wallen for his past mistake, he understands that the broader music industry has yet to follow suit.

“He’s still not out for CMAs and ACMs. They can say what they want, but the fact that Morgan Wallen is not up for Entertainer of the Year and those things is crazy. No one’s selling more tickets than Morgan,” Rucker explained.

In 2021, Wallen was filmed using a series of profanities that included the N-word.

Following the release of the footage, Wallen issued an apology expressing his regret and remorse. “I used an unacceptable and inappropriate racial slur that I wish I could take back. There are no excuses to use this type of language, ever. I want to sincerely apologize for using the word. I promise to do better,” the country superstar said at the time.

After the incident became public, Rucker initially expressed his shock at Wallen’s use of the racial slur.

“I know Morgan, and I like Morgan. It’s one of those things where you know that all over the country, there’s a lot of people who use that word just flippantly,” the Hootie & the Blowfish frontman noted on the People in the ’90s podcast.

“And even if they say they don’t mean it in a derogatory way, you just don’t use it. You don’t say it. It’s shocking how prevalent it is. Racism still lives. It lives strong in some people and it’s sad. It should be getting better and it’s getting worse,” Rucker added.