I’d say it all worked out for him…
Morgan Wallen is the biggest act in music, has broken multiple records and released several hit albums, all while selling out stadiums all over the world…
But back in 2017 he was just getting started and was an opener on FGL’s Dig Your Roots Tour. He would later release his first hit single “Up Down,” which also featured FGL, and with them being at the top of the charts at the time, it really kickstarted his career.
Morgan got to know them as friends and mentors, and he wrote with them quite a bit too. In fact, they penned Jason Aldean’s hit “You Make It Easy” together, which Morgan debated putting out as his own single.
During a recent segment on his SiriusXM station, Morgan explained that he was coming off of some minor success with his debut single “The Way I Talk,” which peaked at #30 on the US Billboard Country Airplay chart. Most artists would kill to have a song crack the top 30, but it’s a far cry from the kind of insane radio success he’s used to now:
“‘Up Down’ with Florida Georgia Line, some probably would say that was my breakthrough moment. ‘The Way I Talk’ had just not done so well on the radio. ‘Up Down’, with the help of the guys from Florida Georgia Line… their co-sign, it really meant a lot to me in that moment of my life.”
The song was written by Morgan’s longtime friend and collaborator Hardy (who also appears in the music video), as well as Brad Clawson and CJ Solar. The song went on to have huge success, and was included on Morgan’s 2018 album If I Know Me. It peaked at number one on the Billboard Country Airplay chart, in addition to becoming a minor crossover hit, peaking at #49 on the Hot 100 chart. The song has since been certified 5× platinum by the RIAA.
But it was in contention with “You Make It Easy” to be the next single, and Morgan debated using that one instead. He wasn’t sure if he should record it and keep it for himself, and the deciding factor ended up being his live show.
Morgan felt like “Up Down” would be the best choice to play at his concerts, and he was certainly right about that.
He added that he loved what Jason did with the song, and it all worked out because “You Make It Easy” ended up going to #1 too, Morgan’s first as a songwriter:
“To give a little more back story, I had actually just written ‘You Make It Easy’ and I was trying to decide if I was going to keep ‘You Make It Easy’ for myself, or if I was going to give it away. And ‘Up Down’ kind of came in around the same time.
I wanted to focus on what my live show was going to be like so I ended up choosing ‘Up Down’ as my single and letting ‘You Make It Easy’ go to Jason Aldean.
So that was a pretty important moment, I think an important choice that I made to focus on my live show right then and there. I think it was a good decision, and also, Jason Aldean did a great job with that song.”
While Morgan has a pretty large group of writers that help him with most of his music now, it’s easy to forget, like so many other country stars, he started out in Nashville as a songwriter and it’s cool to hear about some of the tough choices he made that ended up being a launching pad for his mega huge career.
I know this song is a pop song, really, but I have to admit… it’s pretty dang catchy:
“Up Down”
