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Lorrie Morgan and Jesse Keith Whitley React To Morgan Wallen’s New Song That Tributes Keith Whitley
Lorrie Morgan and Jesse Keith Whitley praised Morgan Wallen’s unreleased new song that pays tribute to the late Country Music…
Morgan Wallen; Photo by David Lehr, Keith Whitley; Photo via Facebook
Lorrie Morgan and Jesse Keith Whitley praised Morgan Wallen’s unreleased new song that pays tribute to the late Country Music Hall of Famer, Keith Whitley.
Lorrie Morgan, who is a Grand Ole Opry member and the widow of Whitley, and Jesse Keith, a singer/songwriter and the son of Morgan and Whitley, took to the comments on Wallen’s teaser clip on Instagram to gush over the tune, which has yet to be released.
“Wow!!!! I knew I loved Morgan, now it’s positive. Great job Morgan from the Whitley’s,” Lorrie wrote alongside a broken heart and kiss mark emoji.
“Holy shit!!!!!!!!!!!!” Jesse Keith commented. He later called the song “Phenomenal” in a post on Facebook.
In addition, Jake Owen, Larry Fleet, Cole Swindell, as well as several other artists and thousands of fans took to the comments section to praise the unreleased song.
“Damn bro. That’ll work, 🔥” Owen wrote, while Fleet shared, “Man I love that one!”
“Sheesh,” Swindell swooned.
Wallen first shared the heartbreak tune early Sunday morning (Jan. 8) via Instagram.
“Sittin here waiting on the sun in a deer blind… here’s a new one,” Wallen captioned the work tape.
Throughout the heartbreak tune, Wallen references several of Whitley’s hits, including “Kentucky Bluebird,” “I’m No Stranger to the Rain,” and “I Never Go Around Mirrors.”
“I’m no stranger to the rain / it starts raining I start pouring / I’ll take her like hell in the morning / I’m over feeling this way / there ain’t a mirror in this house anymore / cause it kills me to see / the guy that lets you leave / and walk right out the door / Kentucky bluebird / Kentucky bourbon / sure got this ol’ boy hurtin’ in Tennessee,” Wallen sang on the first verse.
On the chorus, Wallen refers to Whitley’s untimely death at the age of 33 years old as he sings, “Good whiskey / girl it just don’t last when Keith Whitley keeps bringing you up like that / guess I’m drinking about us / and what it was / the things I love got a way of gettin’ gone too soon / kind of like good whiskey, Keith Whitley and you.”
The 29-year-old hitmaker is a longtime fan of Whitley and recently paid homage to the late country star with a cover of “Kentucky Bluebird,” which the East Tennessee native called “one of [his] favorite Keith Whitley songs.”
In the clip, Wallen was seen sitting beside a small colorfully lit Christmas tree singing the Whitley tune while strumming an acoustic guitar.
“Blown down the highway by two different winds / Lord only knows when I’ll see you again / You’re ’bout as close as the stars up above / You’re my long distance love,” Wallen sang in the video. “Kentucky Bluebird, I heard your song today / But when I try to touch you, you fly away / Blue is a feeling I’m learning so well / Turn on the TV in another hotel.”
The unreleased song teaser comes on the two-year anniversary of his record-breaking sophomore project, Dangerous: The Double Album, and weeks after he shared an update from the studio where he has been hard at work on his third studio album. The superstar also spent some quality time with his 2-year-old son, Indie, while working on his new project.
“Album 3 Studio Files,” Wallen captioned the series of photos.
While co-hosting Country Countdown USA alongside Lon Helton in late October of 2022, Wallen shared an update on his new album.
“I definitely have enough songs. I still got a couple more things I think I probably want to say, want to write. So, hopefully get that done in the next month or two and then you know, I don’t know exactly…” he said. “I won’t have the whole record done, I just mean get what I need to say done and written in the next month or two and then just grind it out. So, I don’t know exactly… They got me on a timeline, but that don’t mean I’m going to follow it, but to be fair you do got to put them out. That does got to happen.”
Earlier this year, Wallen also told Helton that he has “already got 12 songs finished, maybe more.”
“I’m just trying to beat what I’ve got. I’m confident in whatever I do next already,” he added at the time. “Overall I feel pretty comfortable. I don’t feel rushed. I’ve got other things, I’ve got the tour, I’ve got my son, so I’m glad that I’ve already spent some time on the next project.”
Wallen has yet to confirm a release date for the highly anticipated project however, he has shared several snippets of unreleased new songs such as “Hope That’s True” “Me + Your Reasons,” “Drink U Back,” and most recently “Whiskey Friends.”
In addition, the “Thought You Should Know” singer recently released a trio of new songs on One Thing At A Time – Sampler, which features “One Thing At A Time,” “Tennessee Fan,” and “Days That End In Why.”
“I’ve had so many people ask me if I wanted to take some time off; but the truth is – I have been writing and making so much music in my off-time because I feel as inspired as I ever have. It feels like new songs are pouring out of me, and I love that feeling,” Wallen shared at the time of the three song collection’s release.
Additionally, Morgan Wallen recently announced his massive 2023 One Night At A Time World Tour.
The tour officially kicks off on Wed., March 15 in Auckland, NZ at the Spark Arena. The U.S. leg of the tour begins on April 14 with back-to-back nights at Milwaukee’s American Family Field. The tour will make its way around North America with stops at 17 stadiums as well as various arenas, amphitheaters, and festivals.
Marking one of the largest tours of 2023 so far and the biggest tour of Wallen’s career, the 58-show trek will visit 26 stadiums, plus arenas, amphitheaters and festivals to fans across four countries and two continents. The trek will feature support from ERNEST and Bailey Zimmerman on all dates. HARDY and Parker McCollum will also appear on select dates.
After making his stadium debut with a record-breaking show at Globe Life Field in Texas, Wallen will visit several ballparks throughout North America, including New Jersey’s MetLife Stadium, Milwaukee’s American Family Field, Chicago’s Wrigley Field, Boston’s Fenway Park and more.
Produced by Live Nation, the North American leg of the trek will wrap up on October 7 at Tacoma Dome in Washington.
“Man, what a year 2022 has been with the Dangerous Tour. I had the time of my life, and I cannot begin to express how grateful I am that my fans connected with the Dangerous album the way they did,” Wallen said. “We are going to run it back next year with the One Night At A Time World Tour. Bigger venues. New countries. Bigger memories. See y’all there.”
The One Night At A Time World Tour comes after Wallen’s highly successful Dangerous Tour, which included more than 50 sold-out shows. The record-breaking trek broke records at 30 venues across the U.S. during its 8-month-long run, including historic sellouts at 11 venues, while simultaneously breaking attendance records with stops at XFINITY Theatre, AmericanBank Center and Darien Lake Amphitheater.
In an effort to give back to those in need, Wallen will donate $3 of every ticket sold on the U.S. dates to the More Than My Hometown Foundation. Established in 2021, the foundation benefits causes near and dear to the superstar’s heart, including organizations such as Greater Good Music, Children Are People, the Salvation Army, and the National Museum of African American Music.
Wallen’s “You Proof” continues its wildly successful run at country radio as it reclaimed the No.1 spot on Billboard’s Country Airplay for the 10th non-consecutive week. The tune broke the Billboard Country Airplay Chart record and is now the longest-leading No. 1 in chart’s history.
Meanwhile, his newest single, “Thought You Should Know,” continues to make its way up the charts.
See A Full List Of Morgan Wallen’s 2023 One Night At A Time World Tour Dates Below.
2023 U.S. Tour Dates
Fri, April 14 Milwaukee, WI American Family Field*# NEW
Sat, April 15 Milwaukee, WI American Family Field*#
Thurs, April 20 Louisville, KY KFC Yum! Center
Sat, April 22 Oxford, MS Vaught-Hemingway Stadium*#
Thurs, April 27 Grand Rapids, MI Van Andel Arena
Fri, April 28 Moline, IL Vibrant Arena
Sat, April 29 Lincoln, NE Pinnacle Bank Arena
Thurs, May 4 Jacksonville, FL VyStar Veterans Memorial Arena
Fri, May 5 West Palm Beach, FL iTHINK Financial Amphitheatre
Sat, May 6 Tampa, FL MIDFLORIDA Credit Union Amphitheatre
Thurs, May 18 Hershey, PA Hersheypark Stadium
Fri, May 19 East Rutherford, NJ MetLife Stadium*$ NEW
Sat, May 20 East Rutherford, NJ MetLife Stadium*$
Wed, May 24 Austin, TX Moody Center
Fri, May 26 Houston, TX Minute Maid Park*#
Thurs, June 1 Atlanta, GA Truist Park*$ NEW
Fri, June 2 Atlanta, GA Truist Park*$
Sat, June 3 Panama City Beach, FL Pepsi Gulf Coast Jam^
Thurs, June 8 Virginia Beach, VA Veterans United Home Loans Amphitheater NEW
Fri, June 9 Virginia Beach, VA Veterans United Home Loans Amphitheater
Sat, June 10 Myrtle Beach, SC Carolina Country Music Fest^
Wed, June 14 Pittsburgh, PA PNC Park*& NEW
Thurs, June 15 Pittsburgh, PA PNC Park*#
Sat, June 17 Philadelphia, PA Citizens Bank Park*#
Thurs, June 22 Chicago, IL Wrigley Field*# NEW
Fri, June 23 Chicago, IL Wrigley Field*$
Thurs, June 29 Detroit, MI Ford Field*# NEW
Fri, June 30 Detroit, MI Ford Field*#
Thurs, July 6 St. Louis, MO Busch Stadium*$ NEW
Fri, July 7 St. Louis, MO Busch Stadium*$
Fri, July 14 San Diego, CA Petco Park*# NEW
Sat, July 15 San Diego, CA Petco Park*#
Wed, July 19 Phoenix, AZ Chase Field*# NEW
Thurs, July 20 Phoenix, AZ Chase Field*#
Sat, July 22 Los Angeles, CA SoFi Stadium*#
Thurs, Aug 3 Detroit Lakes, MN WE Fest^
Sat, Aug 12 Columbus, OH Ohio Stadium*#
Thurs, Aug 17 Boston, MA Fenway Park*# NEW
Fri, Aug 18 Boston, MA Fenway Park*$
Sat, Sept 2 Washington, DC FedEx Field*$
Sat, Oct 7 Tacoma, WA Tacoma Dome
2023 International Tour Dates
Wed, March 15 Auckland, NZ Spark Arena #
Sun, March 19 Ipswich, QLD CMC Rocks ^
Tues, March 21 Sydney, NSW Qudos Bank Arena #
Fri, March 24 Melbourne, VIC Rod Laver Arena #
Sat, Aug 5 Camrose, AB Big Valley Jamboree^
Thurs, Sept 14 Toronto, ON Budweiser Stage NEW
Fri, Sept 15 Toronto, ON Budweiser Stage NEW
Sat, Sept 16 Toronto, ON Budweiser Stage
Mon, Sept 18 London, ON Budweiser Gardens
Thurs, Sept 21 Ottawa, ON Canadian Tire Centre
Fri, Sept 22 Quebec City, QC Videotron Centre
Sat, Sept 23 Montreal, QC Bell Centre
Thurs, Sept 28 Winnipeg, MB Canada Life Centre
Fri, Sept 29 Saskatoon, SK SaskTel Centre
Sat, Sept 30 Calgary, AB Scotiabank Saddledome
Tues, Oct 3 Vancouver, BC Rogers Arena NEW
Wed, Oct 4 Vancouver, BC Rogers Arena
* Stadium Dates
^ Festival Dates
# HARDY, ERNEST, Bailey Zimmerman
$ Parker McCollum, ERNEST, Bailey Zimmerman
& HARDY, Bailey Zimmerman
Lauren Jo Black, a University of Central Florida graduate, has immersed herself in the world of country music for over 15 years. In 2008, she co-founded CountryMusicIsLove, eventually selling it to a major record label in 2015. Following the rebranding of the website to Sounds Like Nashville, Black served as Editor-in-Chief for two and a half years. Currently, she assumes the role of Editor-in-Chief at Country Now and oversees Country Now’s content and digital footprint. Her extensive experience also encompasses her previous role as a Country Music Expert Writer for Answers.com and her work being featured on Forbes.com. She’s been spotlighted among Country Aircheck’s Women of Influence and received the 2012 Rising Star Award from the University of Central Florida. Black also spent time in front of the camera as host of Country Now Live, which brought live music directly to fans in 2021 when the majority of concerts were halted due to the pandemic. During this time, she hosted 24 weeks of live concerts via Country Now Live on Twitch with special guests such as Lady A, Dierks Bentley, Jordan Davis, Brett Young, and Jon Pardi. Over the course of her career, she has had the privilege of conducting interviews with some of the industry’s most prominent stars, including Reba McEntire, Blake Shelton, Luke Combs, Carrie Underwood, Luke Bryan, Miranda Lambert, Lainey Wilson, and many others. Lauren Jo Black is a longtime member of the Country Music Association and the Academy of Country Music.
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