Hayley Williams isn’t usually in the business of naming names, but apparently country singer Morgan Wallen is where she draws the line.
The Paramore frontwoman recently dropped her solo track “Ego Death at a Bachelorette Party”, which includes the line: “I’ll be the biggest star at this racist country singer’s bar”.
Fans quickly started speculating who she was talking about — and on a September 30 episode of The New York Times’ Popcast podcast, Williams herself confirmed it was in fact a nod to Wallen and his Nashville spot, This Bar.
“It could be a couple,” Williams said during the chat, before clarifying, “but I’m always talking about Morgan Wallen, I don’t give a shit”.
She doubled down with a cheeky dare for him to confront her, adding: “Find me at Whole Foods, bitch, I don’t care.”
This isn’t the first time Wallen’s behaviour has been called out, and not just by Williams. Back in 2021, a video surfaced of him using a racial slur, which led to widespread backlash across the music industry. Country stars Maren Morris and Kelsea Ballerini were among those to condemn him at the time.
“The news out of Nashville tonight does not represent country music,” Ballerini wrote in a post on X (formerly Twitter).
Meanwhile, Morris said she wasn’t surprised by Wallen’s language and called out the industry for protecting him regardless, noting in her own post that “we all know it wasn’t his first time using that word”.
Morris also later told Sophia Bush on the Work In Progress podcast that she received death threats for speaking out against Wallen.
“I mean, the death threat portion for me as a young mother was obviously scary,” Morris told Bush.
“I don’t regret it, I don’t apologise.
“I feel the exact same way as I did that day … Don’t be racist. Don’t be transphobic. Don’t be homophobic.”
After the footage was published by TMZ, Wallen apologised, telling E! News: “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 apologise for using the word. I promise to do better.”
His controversies haven’t stopped there, either. In April 2024, Wallen was arrested after allegedly throwing a chair off a rooftop bar in Nashville and later pleaded guilty to two misdemeanor reckless endangerment charges.
He was sentenced to probation and required to attend a DUI education centre.
Wallen also made headlines in March this year for abruptly walking off the Saturday Night Live stage, breaking the long-standing show tradition.
Despite ongoing backlash, the country singer continues to capitalise on chart success with his music still dominating streaming platforms.
Williams’ decision to call him out so explicitly adds her to the list of artists who aren’t tiptoeing around Wallen anymore. Whether or not he responds directly, one thing’s clear: Hayley Williams is not afraid to say exactly what she means — and I’d steer clear of the organic section at Whole Foods if I were you Wallen!
Lead image: Popcast / Getty
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