Tate McRae has been revealed as the woman with whom Morgan Wallen recorded his first male/female duet, “What I Want,” and not everyone is on board with it.
Wallen has been teasing his first-ever female duet since he began promoting his new album, I’m the Problem, which dropped on April 16, 2025.
Fans of McRae were quick to react to the news online, with many of them splitting along predictable sociopolitical lines:
“I was rooting for you, we were all rooting for you! How dare you?” one user demanded (quote via USA Today).
“Now why would you go and do that?” asked another, while still another commented, “Girl we love you pls cancel that collab with Wallen pls.”
Wallen has certainly attracted his fair share of controversy over the years.
Fans are already familiar with his arrest on May 23, 2020. Nashville police arrested Wallen that night after he was kicked out of Kid Rock‘s bar in downtown Nashville for reportedly kicking glass items inside the establishment.
Alcohol also played a role in the infamous February 2021 incident in which Wallen was caught on camera using the N-word, which he later admitted happened at the tail end of a 72-hour drinking bender.
That resulted in his label suspending him, while country radio dropped his music for a time and he was barred from participating in the major awards shows that year. Police were not involved in that incident, and Wallen was not arrested.
Wallen also got arrested after throwing a chair off the top floor of Eric Church‘s bar in Nashville in April of 2024. He is set to serve 11 months and 29 days of supervised probation for each count. They will run consecutive to each other for an effective sentence of two years, with all but seven days of that time suspended.
Wallen’s new album, I’m the Problem, dropped on April 16.
Timeline of Morgan Wallen Controversies + Accomplishments
Here is a timeline of his most notable accomplishments and most controversial moments.
Gallery Credit: Billy Dukes
12 Revealing Morgan Wallen Lyrics That Show the Dark Side of Fame
Morgan Wallen has got his fair share of party songs, drinking songs and good ol’ country boy anthems. But he’s got sad songs aplenty, too.
Not only that, but on multiple occasions, Wallen has opened up about his struggles with fame and his personal demons in his lyrics. Read through the gallery below for a list of Morgan Wallen songs that pull back the curtain on the dark side of his fame.
Gallery Credit: Carena Liptak
