What Makes Morgan Wallen So Famous? All About the Famous Country Star
28 July 2025
Morgan Wallen is now a well-known name in the Country music industry. But how did he rise to fame? Did a viral moment help his career? Or was it just talent?
Morgan Wallen is back with his biggest album yet. Titled ‘I’m the Problem’, the country star’s newest project dropped on May 16 and is packed with an impressive 37 tracks. It is his longest album so far and features a mix of familiar songs and all fresh collaborations. Some of his singles include the album’s emotional title track and ‘Love Somebody’, which quickly shot to No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100. Wallen brought more star power into the album mix with a duet featuring Tate McRae on ‘What I Want’. With this album, he also joined forces with Eric Church for the song ‘Number 3 and Number 7’.
That is not all, fans of his earlier work with Post Malone have something for them too. The pair teamed up again for a new single titled ‘I Ain’t Comin’ Back’, released on 18th April. Their last collaboration, ‘I Had Some Help’, was a huge commercial success. It held the top spot on the Billboard Hot 100 for six straight weeks and earned two Grammy nominations. Now, the 31-year-old musician is not stopping with just new music. He has also hit the road for a stadium tour beginning in June. This makes the ‘I’m the Problem’ one of the year’s most anticipated country releases.
So, how did he become this famous? Was there a single viral song? Did he win a big music reality show? Were there any controversies? Well, yes and no. Let’s uncover more about his career and figure out why.
Who is Morgan Wallen?
Morgan Wallen is a Grammy-nominated country singer known for hits like ‘You Proof’, ‘Last Night’, and ‘I Had Some Help’ with Post Malone. He first gained attention on The Voice, the singing reality show, in 2014. Since then, he quickly built a massive fan base. His 2023 album ‘One Thing at a Time’ topped both the Billboard 200 and Top Country Albums charts.
At one point, Wallen held half of the top 10 spots on the Billboard Hot 100 with songs from that album. It included a feat shared with legends like Taylor Swift and The Beatles. Despite his success, the Tennessee native has faced controversy, including two misdemeanor convictions for reckless endangerment. Now 31, Wallen has released his longest and fourth album, ‘I’m the Problem’, on May 16, 2025.
Some quick facts about Morgan Wallen -
Full name - Morgan Cole Wallen
DOB - May 13, 1993
Birthplace - Sneedville, Tennessee
Astrological sign - Taurus
The start of the country star -
Morgan Cole Wallen was born on May 13, 1993, in Tennessee. He grew up with three younger sisters, Ashlyne, Mikaela, and Lacey. These sisters were then adopted by his parents, Tommy and Lesli, in 2021. The family also moved to Knoxville when Morgan was in high school.
He started singing at age 3 in the local Southern Baptist church, where his father was the pastor. Morgan learned the violin at age 5, later adding piano and guitar. His dad’s love for classic rock exposed him to bands like Lynyrd Skynyrd and the Eagles. Although music has always been his passion, Morgan’s original focus was on baseball. He was a standout player at Gibbs High School until a serious elbow injury ended his chances of going pro. After high school, he turned to songwriting and music for healing. Encouraged by family and friends, his big break came through a reality TV show appearance.
Wallen’s journey on The Voice -
Morgan Wallen flew to Los Angeles for the first time in his life in 2014 to audition for season six of The Voice. Singing Howie Day’s ‘Collide’, he impressed judges Shakira and Usher. Shakira praised his unique yet masculine tone, but Wallen chose Usher as his coach on the show. He advanced through two battle rounds where he performed Avicii’s ‘Hey Brother’ and One Direction’s ‘Story of My Life’. Adam Levine later stole him for his team after being impressed by his live performances.
Although Wallen was eliminated during the playoff round, the experience marked a turning point in his music journey and helped launch his path toward country stardom. It may not have been the biggest influence in my life, as far as musically,” he told The New Yorker in 2020. “But once I started writing songs, it just sounded country. And I was like, well, I guess I’ll sing country music, because this is the life I know.”
Life after The Voice -
After The Voice, Wallen moved to Nashville to pursue music further. He briefly formed a band called Morgan Wallen & Them Shadows with Serg Sanchez. Sanchez helped him connect with Panacea Records. The label signed Wallen in 2015, and this is when the singer released his debut EP ‘Stand Alone’ featuring the single ‘Spin You Around’. By August 2016, Wallen had joined Big Loud Records and dropped his debut single with them, ‘The Way I Talk’.
Debuting with ‘Whiskey Glasses’ -
Morgan Wallen released his debut studio album ‘If I Know Me’ in April 2018. The labrum reached the top 20 on the Billboard 200 and featured hits like ‘Up Down’ with Florida Georgia Line and ‘Whiskey Glasses’. ‘Whiskey Glasses’ became a breakout hit for the country artist, topping the Country Airplay chart and peaking at No. 17 on the Billboard Hot 100 in 2019. He also toured with Florida Georgia Line in that same year. Continuing his rise, Wallen was named New Artist of the Year at the CMA Awards in 2020. This win confirmed his place as a rising force in the country music scene.
Reaching heights with ‘Dangerous: The Double Album’ -
Morgan Wallen’s second album is called ‘Dangerous: The Double Album’, and it dropped in January 2021. The album debuted at No. 1 and set a record for the biggest streaming week ever for a country album. The project featured hits like ‘7 Summers’ and ‘Wasted on You’, which reached No. 6 and No. 9 on the Billboard Hot 100. His second album had a lasting impact, spending 86 nonconsecutive weeks in the Billboard 200’s top 10 by 2022. This broke a decades-old record once held by Peter, Paul, and Mary’s 1960s debut album.
Living with success with ‘One Thing at a Time’ -
Wallen kept his momentum going after ‘Dangerous’ with the 2022 release of ‘You Proof’. This became his highest-charting single at the time, peaking at No. 5 on the Billboard Hot 100. That same month, another single, ‘Thought You Should Know’, debuted and later reached No. 7.
Next year in March 2023, Wallen dropped his 36-track album ‘One Thing at a Time’, which shot to NO. 1 and fueled a 65-show world tour. The hit ‘Last Night’ topped the singles chart, and four more tracks landed in the Hot 100’s top 10. He won ACM Male Artist of the Year 2023. He then ended the year with the top-streamed song and album on Spotify.
Then, in the next year, Wallen extended his tour and earned major nominations. This won him CMA Entertainer of the Year in September. His Post Malone collaboration titled ‘I Had Some Help’ brought him his first Grammy nominations in 2025. This marked a major career milestone for Morgan Wallen.
Controversies -
Though Morgan Wallen is best known for his music, he has also faced backlash for several offstage incidents. In 2020, the singer was arrested for public intoxication and disorderly conduct after an altercation at Kid Rock’s bar in Nashville. In October that year, he was pulled from an SNL episode after videos showed him partying maskless after a football game. He later returned to the show and poked fun at the situation in a skit with Jason Bateman.
In February 2021, TMZ released a video of the singer using the N-word and other profanities. He apologized but was pulled from the radio stations. He was also dropped by his label and disqualified from the ACM Awards. Wallen later said he had donated $500,000 to organizations like Black Music Action Coalition and entered rehab to reflect on his behavior and alcohol use. In April 2024, the country singer was arrested again for throwing a chair off a bar rooftop. He pleaded guilty to reduced charges and was sentenced to probation and time at a DUI education center.
His controversies followed him this year, too. In March 2025, Wallen sparked online buzz after walking off the SNL stage mid-closing. He skipped the cast sendoff, which made some negative buzz online. He later posted a cryptic message on Instagram: “Get me to God’s country”.
The colorful dating life -
Morgan Wallen, currently single, has had several public relationships. He was previously engaged to Katie “KT” Smith. With Smith, the country star shares a son, Indigo, born in July 2020. Though they had split by then, Wallen says they co-parent the best they can with the support from his parents. In 2023, Indigo was hospitalized after being bitten by Smith’s dog, but recovered with stitches. The experience of fatherhood inspired Wallen’s song ‘Superman’, which he said took years to write.
Wallen briefly dated influencer Paige Lorenze in 2021, though they broke up in early 2022 shortly after going public. That same year, he had a short-lived romance with Kristin Cavallari. This was confirmed by her in a podcast appearance. In 2023, rumors linked him to country singer Megan Moroney. She later confirmed they had dated casually but never exclusively. She said their busy lives did not allow the relationship to grow. Today, they remain friends, and Wallen has not been linked to anyone since.
Although he did not win any singing reality show or did not have a single viral hit, Wallen became famous through his continuous grind and pure talent!
