Morgan Wallen is stepped aside due to damage to his vocal cords, while country stars Kenny Chesney and Jason Aldean step in to help him fulfill his commitments.
Wallen, 29, announced earlier this week that he is suspending his tour for six weeks as he recovers from vocal cord trauma – meaning he has also had to withdraw from his scheduled performances at the ACM Awards pre-show and a couple of festivals.
Despite being a big winner at the ACMs on Thursday (he took home the male artist of the year award), he didn’t make it to the show. Instead, Aldean stepped in to replace the pre-show performance.
“I texted him a little yesterday and obviously everyone knows what’s going on with him and his voice, and ACM Lifting Lives put on a show where Morgan was supposed to be the lead and we were in town,” she said. 46, explained fun tonight. “I really didn’t have much to do yesterday so we were able to go and fill his place, help him out. He texted me last night and thanked me for it.”
Meanwhile, Wallen would also make headlines at the Gulf Coast Jam in Florida on June 3 and at the Carolina Country Music Fest in South Carolina next weekend. With the “You Proof” singer counted, Chesney now fills in the blanks.
RELATED VIDEO: Morgan Wallen Cancels Mississippi Concert Minutes Before Kickoff After Losing His Voice
“It’s kind of like a little extra. We love playing those big big stages, and I think everybody knows that,” Chesney, 55, said in a statement. “But this year, at these venues, is unlike anything we’ve done in years – so much fun, so wonderful, a momentary impulse – and I wouldn’t change a thing.”
She continued, “I can’t lie though. I was missing out on those big stages a bit. And now me and the road family are having our cake and eating. It’s basically done, I thought about it, and of course we wanted to be around the fans. The reason we do this is because they’re doing it – and stepping in and doing more. It’s a great opportunity to let one see how warm and wonderful these actors are. It’s great. How funny the way life comes into play!”
Wallen came under criticism for the first time after canceling a show in Oxford, Mississippi, just minutes before she started performing on April 23. She told her fans that she had lost her voice, and she canceled a second show and postponed three more. before stopping his entire tour for six weeks. It announced on Friday that the canceled shows will be rescheduled for various dates between August 2023 and June 2024.
Matt Winkelmeyer / Getty
In a video posted to Instagram on Tuesday, the “Last Night” singer said she suffered “vocal cord trauma” from “overuse and inappropriate use of the voice,” according to the National Institute of Health.
“I’ll go ahead and get straight to the point. Yesterday I got some bad news from my doctors at the Vanderbilt audio center. After 10 days of audio rest, I did three shows in Florida last weekend, and for the third time, Wallen, 29, said in the video, “I felt so bad.”
“Yesterday I went in and had binoculars done and they said I hurt my vocal cords and had vocal cord trauma. Their advice is to go on voice rest for six weeks, I am too. They don’t want me to talk at all, but they said it would be okay if I did.”
The “Whiskey Glass” artist said that in addition to the tension in his vocal cords, he also recently tore his LAT muscle.
“[The doctors] he told me if i did this the right way i would get back to 100 percent. They also said that if I don’t listen and keep singing, my voice will be permanently impaired. So this was the choice I had to make in order for my career to be long-lasting. I hate it, but I love you guys,” Wallen said.