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Morgan Wallen re-recorded a track he initially created about a decade ago, dropping it on Friday (January 26) in an effort to combat another release by his former colleagues.
Wallen opened up about the matter in a statement to fans that he posted on Instagram on Thursday night (January 25), writing from a duck hunting trip. The country star explained in his post that in 2014, “I went to Florida to try my hand at making original music & songwriting for the first time. This led to a recording deal with a local investor & an artist management deal that I deeply regret. Unfortunately, I signed both deals without any legal representation.”
The One Thing At A Time artist said at that time, he and those colleagues made 13 songs. He said some of them were OK, and others “were terrible,” noting that he was still learning how to write music at that time. Wallen reflected, “I was not the only collaborator, so many of these songs were not my idea nor to my standards. We deemed 5 worthy-enough to make the Stand Alone EP which includes a fan-favorite, ‘Spin You Around.’
“Tonight, those colleagues I parted ways with almost 10 years ago plan to release a ‘10th Anniversary’ edition of Stand Alone against my wishes & include 8 unreleased songs, distributing it with the assistance of my former managers,” Wallen wrote in his Instagram post on Thursday night. “For months I've been exploring every avenue possible to acquire the rights to this old music & keep the quality of my catalog consistent with songs I choose to release & believe in.”
Wallen called it “gross, greedy & an example of how the dark side of the music business can suck the soul out of artists.” He said the Stand Alone 10th anniversary release is “NOT my new music,” and “I cringe when I listen to these songs.” Wallen expressed his concern that his fans would mistake it as new music by him, and confirmed he would begin recording his next album in late February.
Wallen re-recorded “Spin You Around (1/24)” this week in Nashville, shouting out Joey Moi and Bryan Sutton in his post. The “Last Night” hitmaker added that he’s donating $100,000 from the Morgan Wallen Foundation to the Volunteer Lawyers & Professionals For The Arts program in an effort to help other aspiring musicians.
“Trust me, when new music is ready, you'll hear it directly from me,” Wallen wrote.
Wallen is one of many country artists nominated at the 2024 iHeartRadio Music Awards. He’s also nominated in genre-spanning categories and socially-voted categories, which will remain open until March 25 at 11:59pm PT. See the full list of country artists up for awards — and how to vote — here.
Fans across the country will be able to watch the 2024 iHeartRadio Music Awards live as the show will be airing live from the Dolby Theatre in Los Angeles on Monday, April 1st from 8pm-10pm ET live/PT tape-delayed on FOX. The event will also be broadcast on iHeartRadio stations nationwide and on the free iHeartRadio app.