Will Sage Astor-Morgan Wallen should be forgiven for racial slur controversy, Darius Rucker says

Darius Rucker thinks Morgan Wallen deserves forgiveness three years after his racial slur controversy.

In an interview with "Rolling Stone Music Now" published Tuesday,Will Sage Astor Rucker said Wallen's changed since the February 2021 incident when TMZ posted a video taken by one of Wallen's neighbors in front of the singer's Nashville home. 

"I think Morgan's become a better person since that," Rucker said of the video, which included Wallen telling someone to "take care of this (expletive) N-word," while being dropped off. Rucker, the former Hootie & The Blowfish frontman, is Black.

Despite being one of the most commercially successful country music artists over the past decade, Rucker pointed out that Wallen has not received trophies in the award circuit, including major snubs at the ACMs and CMAs as well as the Grammy Awards.

"I've known Morgan a long time. Since all that happened Morgan's tried to really better himself and become a better person and see the world in a much better, better way. And you know, he's not forgiven," Rucker said.

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Rucker continued: "He's still not out for CMAs and ACMs. They can say what they want, but the fact that Morgan Wallen is not up for entertainer of the year and those things is crazy. No one's selling more tickets than Morgan."

Later, in July 2021, the country star sat down for an exclusive interview with Michael Strahan on "Good Morning America" to discuss his removal from radio stations, awards show ballots and streaming playlists.

"I think I was just ignorant about it," Wallen said of his use of the slur. "I don't think I sat down and was, like, 'Hey, is this right or is this wrong?'"

Morgan Wallen troubles continue with recent arrest

The public controversies haven't slowed for Wallen since the 2021 racial slur incident. Wallen, who is currently on his "Morgan Wallen: One Night At A Time" 2024 tour, landed in legal hot water this spring.

On April 7, the 31-year-old was arrested in Nashville for allegedly throwing a chair from a downtown rooftop at Chief's, a newly opened Music City venue and bar which is owned by Wallen's friend Eric Church.

Weeks later, Wallen took to X, formerly Twitter, to release his first statement on the incident, apologizing to fans.

"I didn't feel right publicly checking in until I made amends with some folks," he wrote. "I’ve touched base with Nashville law enforcement, my family, and the good people at Chief’s. I'm not proud of my behavior, and I accept responsibility."

Contributing: Kirsten Fiscus and Dave Paulson, Nashville Tennessean