Morgan Wallen Digs Into Country-City Tensions on ‘Come Back as a Redneck’ Song Preview
On last weekend’s Saturday Night Live, Morgan Wallen — guesting on the show for the first time since 2020 — performed songs from his upcoming album I’m The Problem, but also sparked controversy for his early exit from the SNL stage.
Though Wallen has yet to directly comment on the SNL controversy, he has promoted some new music since then. On March 31, he posted a video to Instagram teasing a new song, “Come Back as a Redneck,” captioning the video with one of the song’s lyrics, “Maybe then you’ll understand.”
The song’s lyrics take a musical shot at tensions between city dwellers and those raised in the country, with Wallen singing, “I didn’t choose my raisin’ and you didn’t choose yours,” and elsewhere singing, “When you die, I hope you come back as a redneck…I hope you break your back for that barely-gettin’-by paycheck…maybe then you’ll understand.” The video shows Wallen partaking in various outdoor activities, including some target practice with a rifle at an outdoor shooting range and driving deep into the woods on a four-wheeler.
On the March 29 episode of Saturday Night Live, Wallen sang the title track of his upcoming album, I’m the Problem (due May 16), as well as a new song, “Just in Case.”
In keeping with SNL custom, Wallen joined the SNL cast on stage at the end of the show as the credits rolled. He gave a hug to the episode’s host, Oscar winner Mikey Madison, before quickly exiting the stage. Following his SNL exit, he later posted a story on his Instagram: a photo showing a private plane with the caption “Get me to God’s country.” His exit spurred controversy, with many questioning his decision to leave the show’s set, including longtime SNL cast member Kenan Thompson, who called the exit “definitely a spike in the norm.”
While the exit controversy has been at the forefront of fan conversations in recent days, it’s notable that Wallen also used the performance to seemingly tease several song titles from his upcoming album, including “Come Back as a Redneck.” The song was listed as “No. 21: ‘Come Back as a Redneck’ (feat. ______),” suggesting that the full song might involve a collaboration. Other song titles featured during the performance were “I Got Better,” “Skoal, Chevy and Browning,” “Genesis,” “Where’d That Girl Go,” “Miami,” “LA Night,” and two more songs that also seem to be possible collaborations with unnamed artists, “What I Want” and “Number 3 and Number 7.”
Wallen has already released or previewed snippets of several songs from the upcoming album, including his Billboard Hot 100 hits “Love Somebody” and “Just in Case.”
Wallen is a leading contender heading into this year’s Academy of Country Music Awards on May 8, where he is up for seven trophies, among them entertainer of the year, male artist of the year and artist-songwriter of the year.
Jessica Nicholson
Billboard
