Video of country star Morgan Wallen saying the N-word on camera surfaced this week, and despite the controversy his album sales have increased.
The video surfaced online early this week and was filmed by one of his neighbors, who overheard Wallen coming home after what appeared to be a gathering with friends. Berating one of the people with him, he can be heard in the clip, “Take care of this pussy-ass n****.” He quickly apologized after the video circulated social media, and promised to do better. Despite that, his airplay has effectively died out as radio stations and streaming platforms have taken his music off their respective playlists. Despite the dramatic decrease in airplay, his sales have increased, Billboard reports.
According to MRC Data, his albums sold 22,500 copies in the United States on Feb. 3, which marks an increase of 339 percent from Feb. 2. His most recent release, Dangerous: The Double Album, sold around 7,000 copies on Feb. 3, a 511 percent increase to the 1,000 sold on Feb. 2. The increase comes just as Dangerous had its third consecutive week at the top of the Billboard 200 album chart.
MRC Data also suggests that his radio airplay across all genres in the U.S. on Feb. 3 fell by 71 percent from Feb. 2. Numerous radio station groups, including the largest in the U.S. (iHeartMedia), have announced plans to pull Wallen’s music from rotation. His current single, “7 Summers,” suffered a similar drop to his entire catalog, falling by 70 percent from Feb. 2 to Feb. 3, on which it only received 490 plays nationwide.
In the fallout of the clip, Wallen’s label Big Loud Records, under the Republic umbrella, announced it “has made the decision to suspend Morgan Wallen’s contract indefinitely.” The statement adds: “Republic Records fully supports Big Loud’s decision and agrees such behavior will not be tolerated.”
