Morgan Wallen Wasn't at the ACM Awards and Fans Have Some Theories
Morgan Wallen's recent legal woes may have played a part in the singer's choice to stay away from the ACM Awards.
Published May 17 2024, 10:07 a.m. ET
No one can deny that Morgan Wallen is one of the hottest country stars of the moment.
So why wasn't the singer at the American Country Music Awards this year? Fans have questions.
When the telecast kicked off on May 16, 2024, at the Ford Center at The Star in Frisco, Texas, Morgan was nowhere to be seen. Why the snub? Here's what we know about why Morgan Wallen wasn't at the ACM Awards.
So, why wasn't Morgan Wallen at the ACM Awards this year?
With Reba McEntire hosting again, fans were treated to performances by Thomas Rhett, Jason Aldean, Blake Shelton and Gwen Stefani, Kane Brown, and Chris Stapleton with Dua Lipa to name a few.
But they were still wondering why some of the country stars at the top of their game were nowhere to be seen.
On the list of crooners whose absences were notable was mega-star Morgan Wallen, whose hits "Last Night" and "Chasin' You" have gained massive popularity well outside the confines of Nashville.
Per Billboard, the fact that Morgan ended up losing to admittedly huge talent Chris Stapleton in three categories including album of the year, male artist of the year, and artist-songwriter of the year, may have had something to do with the "Whiskey Glasses" singer's decision to lay low this year.
It's also worth noting that he is currently on tour, with a show scheduled in New Jersey on May 17, just one day after the ACM Awards, per Morgan's official website.
From there, Morgan will hit Minnesota, Florida, Virginia, North Carolina, the United Kingdom, and other cities across the pond. So, he's clearly a very busy guy. Perhaps he simply couldn't fit the awards show into his schedule.
Morgan Wallen's presence was still felt at the ACM Awards even if he wasn't there.
There may have been another reason that Morgan didn't show up at the Texas awards show. Indeed, his legal woes may also have played a part in the singer's choice to stay away.
As fans will recall, Morgan stepped in it so to speak when he threw a chair from a rooftop bar in Nashville in April 2024.
The incident became the subject of some ribbing at the ACM Awards, despite Morgan not being in the auditorium.
When Ashley McBryde and Schitt's Creek star Noah Reid presented the award for single of the year, the actor changed up the lyrics to "Last Night" to poke fun at Morgan's cringey night out a month earlier.
"Last night after some alcohol, the chair right over there really started to piss me off. They told me that I threw it at somebody I never met, and my publicist keeps telling me this ain't over yet," Noah sang, getting big laughs.
At the time of Morgan's chair-throwing debacle, he released a statement on Twitter, writing, "I didn't feel right publicly checking in until I made amends with some folks. I’ve touched base with Nashville law enforcement, my family, and the good people at Chief’s. I'm not proud of my behavior, and I accept responsibility."
