Morgan Wallen’s Music Floods iTunes Chart Despite Racial Slur Controversy

Rising country singer Morgan Wallen may be facing immense repercussions following his use of a racial slur, but the backlash isn’t stopping his music from climbing the charts. In the wake of the controversy, which has brought about condemnation from some of the genre’s biggest stars, Wallen’s music is enjoying sky-high streaming numbers and are making their way onto the iTunes songs chart.

As of 9:30 p.m. ET Wednesday, Wallen held five of the Top 10 positions on the US iTunes song sales chart, ranking among artists including Justin Bieber, The Weeknd, Tom MacDonald, Olivia Rodrigo, and CJ, who all have one entry on the chart. His song “Wasted On You” sat in the No. 2 spot, just behind MacDonald’s “Fake Woke,” with “More Than My Hometown,” “Sand In My Boots,” “7 Summers,” and “Whiskey Glasses,” taking the No. 3, 5, 7, and 10 spots.

Wallen also claims the Top 3 positions on the US iTunes album chart, according to MEAWW. The explicit version of his recent Dangerous: The Double Album is No. 1. That album has raked in plenty of success since its release, also hitting three weeks atop the Billboard 200 chart prior to the controversy. His 2017 debut album, If I Know Me, sits at No. 2 on the iTunes chart. The clean version of Dangerous: The Double Album ranks at No. 3.

It isn’t all good news for Wallen, though, who has since issued an apology for his use of “an unacceptable and inappropriate racial slur” that he wishes he “could take back.” While his music may be enjoying soaring numbers on iTunes, it will enjoy no success on other platforms, which have opted to pull his music from their stations. Cumulus Media, the second-biggest radio chain in the United States that boasts 400-plus stations, was the first to react to the video, ordering the program directors of all of its stations Tuesday night to remove Wallen’s music “from our playlists without exception.” SiriusXM, Pandora, iHeartMedia, and Entercom have done the same, with a spokesperson for the latter chain stating, “In light of Morgan Wallen’s recent use of a racial slur, we’ve discussed the incident with our Country brand leadership team and together have made the decision to remove Morgan’s music from Entercom’s playlists.”

The repercussions extend past radio stations, though. Along with his fellow country music stars and fans condemning his use of the N-word, the ACM Awards has since halted his eligibility to receive awards or perform at this year’s show, and CMT announced its plan to remove him from programming. Meanwhile, his record label, Big Loud, announced that his contract had been suspended indefinitely.