Just because country music star Morgan Wallen picked up two nominations at the American Music Awards doesn't mean he's actually invited to the show.
The nominations for 2021 American Music Awards were unveiled on Thursday, and Olivia Rodrigo and the Weeknd picked up the most nods. But also earning two nominations was Morgan Wallen, who was embroiled in scandal earlier this year after he was caught on video using the N-word. Despite being nominated, though, Wallen isn't actually welcome at the awards ceremony.
"Morgan Wallen is a nominee this year based on charting," a statement from MRC Live & Alternative said, per Variety. "As his conduct does not align with our core values, we will not be including him on the show in any capacity (performing, presenting, accepting)."
The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
The statement noted the nominees are "determined by performance on the Billboard Charts and are not chosen by a voting committee or membership organization," although it added that "winners are voted entirely by fans," which Variety points out seemed to leave open the possibility Wallen could win the awards he's nominated for. Wallen is up for Favorite Male Country Artist and Favorite Country Album, being nominated in the latter category for Dangerous: The Double Album. Sales of his music spiked following his racist slur scandal.
As far as whether Wallen could eventually be invited back to the awards ceremony, the MRC Live & Alternative statement said "we plan to evaluate his progress in doing meaningful work as an ally to the Black community and will consider his participation in future shows." Wallen has apologized over his use of the N-word, telling told Good Morning America over the summer, "I was around some of my friends, and we say dumb stuff together. It was, in our minds, it's playful ... that sounds ignorant, but that's really where it came from, and it's wrong."
-
Music reviews: Chance the Rapper, Cass McCombs, and Molly TuttleFeature "Star Line," "Interior Live Oak," and "So Long Little Miss Sunshine"
-
Film reviews: Eden and Honey Don't!Feature Seekers of a new utopia spiral into savagery and a queer private eye prowls a high-desert town
-
Critics' choice: Three chefs fulfilling their ambitionsFeature Kwame Onwuachi's grand second act, Travis Lett makes a comeback, and Jeff Watson's new Korean restaurant
-
Florida erases rainbow crosswalk at Pulse nightclubSpeed Read The colorful crosswalk was outside the former LGBTQ nightclub where 49 people were killed in a 2016 shooting
-
Trump says Smithsonian too focused on slavery's illsSpeed Read The president would prefer the museum to highlight 'success,' 'brightness' and 'the future'
-
Trump to host Kennedy Honors for Kiss, StalloneSpeed Read Actor Sylvester Stallone and the glam-rock band Kiss were among those named as this year's inductees
-
White House seeks to bend Smithsonian to Trump's viewSpeed Read The Smithsonian Institution's 21 museums are under review to ensure their content aligns with the president's interpretation of American history
-
Charlamagne Tha God irks Trump with Epstein talkSpeed Read The radio host said the Jeffrey Epstein scandal could help 'traditional conservatives' take back the Republican Party
-
CBS cancels Colbert's 'Late Show'Speed Read 'The Late Show with Stephen Colbert' is ending next year
-
Shakespeare not an absent spouse, study proposesspeed read A letter fragment suggests that the Shakespeares lived together all along, says scholar Matthew Steggle
-
New Mexico to investigate death of Gene Hackman, wifespeed read The Oscar-winning actor and his wife Betsy Arakawa were found dead in their home with no signs of foul play
