Did you see Miranda Lambert on Taste of Country Nights? Her video interview with Evan Paul was uploaded on September 12th, and Miranda got real with her opinion on Morgan Wallen.
Evan and Miranda didn’t discuss Morgan until the very end. It was so surprising that the video had the word “BONUS” flashing at the top like some special feature.
Evan steered the conversation in the right direction when he asked Miranda, “Who should win CMA Entertainer of the Year this year?” At first, Miranda admitted, “I don’t even know who’s up” for it.
Then, she outright said, “It doesn’t matter.” So, was Miranda trying to dance around this question without answering?
Of course not! We all know that Miranda always speaks her mind better than that.
For Miranda, it doesn’t matter who else is up for Entertainer of the Year because her mind is already made up. She quickly told Evan, “I have to say, Morgan,” and Miranda set the record straight.
She explained that Morgan was “slaying” right now, and she wasn’t finished. Miranda thinks, “You don’t get to play for that many people in a weekend” without getting your props as one the most impressive entertainers in current country music. Miranda said, “It’s a huge deal.”
When you’ve got Miranda in your corner, your Music City street cred shoots way up. Hopefully, Morgan appreciated what Miranda had to say about him because it’s hugely flattering.
Miranda revealed to Evan how much she respects Morgan “as an artist.” She believes that Morgan is “really authentic to who he is,” and she admires him “playing for stadiums full of people [on] multiple nights.” Miranda told Evan, “That’s entertainment.”
Morgan Performed for a Record-Breaking Audience
Yahoo Entertainment republished a Billboard article on September 23rd. The headline was, “Morgan Wallen Brings Out Surprise Guests Miranda Lambert, Eric Church & Darius Rucker at Knoxville Shows.”
Here’s why this is the kind of “huge deal” that Miranda was talking about. Morgan is from East Tennessee, and Billboard reported that he enjoyed “a triumphant homecoming” beginning on Friday, September 20th.
Morgan headlined two shows in his hometown of Knoxville on September 20th and September 22nd. He brought along “several surprise guests” to perform, including Eric Church on the Friday show and Miranda and Darius Rucker, who “made unexpected appearances at Sunday’s show.” Morgan’s on-and-offstage buddies, HARDY and Ernest, were his opening act for “both shows.”
Knox News reported on September 23rd that Morgan “knows how to put on a show, especially when it’s in his hometown.” The local Knoxville outlet described Morgan as both a “country superstar” and “a Gibbs High School graduate.” They wrote that Morgan played “record-breaking” shows at the beloved Neyland Stadium, home of Morgan’s favorite college sports team, the Tennessee Volunteers.
Only Three Other Artists Have Headlined Neyland
Knox News reported that Morgan’s sold-out shows were enjoyed by “just about 160,000 fans.” Morgan sounded blown away when he confessed to his Sunday night audience, “I don’t think that I have ever been this proud in my entire life, stepping out on this stage.” Morgan added, “Man, this is truly incredible.”
Knox News explained why that was the real truth for Morgan and his fans. Neyland Stadium is “the sixth-largest college football stadium in the United States.” Morgan “is only the fourth artist to headline” the legendary venue.
The actual number of Morgan fans attending both shows totaled 156,161. That was a record-breaking number, beating the previous record of 148,407 people who attended three concerts by Michael Jackson and The Jackson 5 in 1984.
Knox News reported that country legend Garth Brooks put on the “last concert at Neyland” before Morgan’s sold-out shows. Garth’s concert was back in 2019, and he broke the single concert attendance record “with a crowd of 84,000 people.”
Miranda Helped Morgan Write a Song for His Mom
But let’s return to Miranda’s surprise guest appearance at Morgan’s concert on September 22nd. She didn’t appear on stage until “halfway through the show.”
Morgan performed the first half of his show on the “main stage,” and Knox News reported that he left that stage “for a B-stage near the opposite end zone.” There, Morgan played “an intimate, stripped-down set.”
Morgan performed “his version of Jason Isbell’s ‘Cover Me Up.’” Then, he shocked fans in the best way by inviting Miranda on stage to duet with him on his hit, “Thought You Should Know.”
As Morgan explained, that song is special, and he revealed why to his audience. Morgan confessed, “I needed a woman’s perspective to help me write a song for my mama.” Morgan also made a shocking revelation that he hadn’t sung the song with Miranda “since the day we wrote it.”
Billboard reported that Miranda and Nashville songwriter Nicolle Galyon co-wrote “Thought You Should Know” with Morgan. They repeated everything Morgan said about Miranda before she hit the stage, and the crowd went wild.
Morgan said, “Me and this next artist, we got together one day and wrote a few songs, and this is the first song we ever wrote.” Morgan repeated, “We wrote a couple of other songs that day.” He admitted, “I don’t know if they’ll ever see the light of day.”
Morgan also made another crazy confession. He told the crowd that he, Miranda, and Nicolle “drank a lot of vodka and wrote this song right here for my mama.” We’re sure Lesli Wallen is thrilled with everything Morgan said, except for maybe the drinking part.
“Thought You Should Know” Is a Deeply Personal Song
In March 2023, Showbiz Cheat Sheet revealed Miranda’s confession about her part in “Thought You Should Know.”
When the song reached #1 for Morgan on the Billboard Country Airplay chart, Miranda jumped on the former Twitter platform to congratulate him. Miranda’s Twitter message was all heart.
After she wrote, “Congrats, Morgan,” Miranda added how proud she was to be a co-writer “on a song about your mama!” Miranda confessed, “This is the first number 1 song I’ve ever had as a writer.” S
He finished with, “We did good that day, y’all. Cheers, friends.”
“Thought You Should Know” has some deeply personal lyrics. Showbiz Cheat Sheet confirmed that Morgan is addressing his mom in this song and updating her on how “his life is going.”
Morgan also jumped on social media after the song was released. He posted a sweet message to Lesli on Instagram with a cheeky ending.
The message read, “This one’s for you, mama. I know it didn’t always seem like those prayers were getting through.”
Morgan hoped his song, dedicated to his mom, had proved that her years of praying and worrying about him worked. Then, he joked that he was still Lesli’s “only d*** son, Morgan.”
Morgan Has Been Righting His Wrongs
Morgan has indeed pulled some stunts recently, but Knox News reported the kind and generous thing he did before he headlined Neyland Stadium. The Morgan Wallen Foundation donated $140,000 to Gibbs Youth Sports, and it was announced “ahead of Wallen’s two headlining shows.”
Knox News explained that the impressive donation will be used to renovate “Ruritan Park, which serves students from [Morgan’s] alma mater, Gibbs High School, as well as surrounding areas in Knox County.” The money will go specifically to “the inside of the fieldhouse,” allowing for “indoor fielding and batting options” and renovations to the “batting cage and machines, pitching lanes and a fielding area.”
Morgan was a promising baseball player in high school before he got injured, and his path led him to Nashville. Knox News reported that Morgan is a “huge Tennessee baseball fan.” Morgan drove the crowd at his September 20th concert wild when he featured other special guests who were athletes, not musicians.
A popular feature of Morgan’s concerts is his walkout from behind the stage. His walkouts are shown on the jumbotron, and he had very special guests on his Friday night show at Neyland.
Morgan was joined on his walkout by NCAA champions, the Tennessee baseball team, and their coach, Tony Vitello. On the Sunday night show, Morgan’s special guest for his walkout was an NFL legend.
Before he won two Super Bowls, Peyton Manning was a popular quarterback on the University of Tennessee Knoxville football team. When he joined Morgan for his walkout, Peyton proudly wore his “retired college uniform.” The crowd of 80,000 fans went “wild” seeing Peyton “dressed in a full Vols uniform.”
Yahoo Entertainment reported that Morgan “leads all nominees” ahead of the 2024 CMA Awards on November 20th. He’s up for “seven awards,” including male vocalist of the year, song of the year, and the award Miranda knows he deserves, Entertainer of the Year.
