I mean… you’d think a fellow artist would know better than to throw something on stage at someone like Morgan Wallen.
Nate Smith was part of the rotating group of openers on Morgan’s 2024 One Night at a Time tour, but it sounds like he was lucky to play all of them, because he was afraid a prank (if that’s what you want to call it) gone wrong might have jeopardized the entire opportunity.
During an interview as part of Billboard’s Takes Us Out series, Smith revealed that he once threw a drink at Morgan during that tour while he was on stage, and he obviously did it as a joke and to be funny, as he threw “literally a whole cup” at Morgan on night one.
He explained that Morgan forgave him, saying he should have “kicked me off the tour,” but they had a laugh about it, talked it through, and Smith explained that Morgan was very understanding about it:
“I was trying to be funny, and it wasn’t funny. And Morgan forgave me. He should have kicked me off the tour, but we laughed about it. We talked it through. And he’s like, ‘Man, I probably would have done the same thing,’ or ‘I’ve done the same thing.’ Like, he understood.”
Smith said he got “a lot of phone calls,” calling it a “really serious” situation, and obviously no one thought it was all that funny, and he still sounds remorseful about the whole thing. Smith said he htought Morgan would try to get him back the entire tour, but he held back because he’s “a man who walks in grace,” saying Morgan is very “forgiving”:
“Nobody was happy about this. Morgan, if you’re listening, I love you. I’m still really sorry about that. Thank you for not pranking me back, by the way. You made me think you were going to the entire tour and you didn’t. You held back because you’re a man who walks in grace. Thank you, sir.”
It’s nice to hear a story like that about Morgan because he’s so often villainized in the press (and sometimes rightfully so), but this is a great example of his kindness and a different side of him we really don’t get to hear about too often.
It sounds like Smith also learned a lesson in the process, because as many of you know, the whole throwing things at artists on stage has actually became real issue, and just a couple weeks ago, Riley Green had to get stitches after a fan in Australia threw their phone at him on stage and it hit him in the ear and caused some serious damage.
That’s the most extreme example I’ve seen recently, but still, I think both of these incidents once again go to show why fans need to refrain from tossing anything on stage, except maybe a bra if we’re takling about Morgan and Riley… I mean, imagine getting kicked off of Morgan Wallen’s massive tour because you wanted to throw a drink at him on the first night… not a good look.
You can watch the full video below.
Speaking of Morgan and tours, he is getting ready to kick off his Still The Problem 2026 stadium tour run, which officially starts in April in Minneapolis, Minnesota at U.S. Bank Stadium, and it will run through August ending in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania at Lincoln Financial Field.
Yesterday, Morgan posted on Instagram for the first time in a while, sharing some photos of what he’s been up to as he gets closer to this huge tour, and he shared in the caption that it’s time for him to “come out of hibernation”:
“I guess it’s about time I come out of hibernation for a bit.”
And of course, fans noticed in the third slide that Morgan appears to be in a studio, which certainly hints at the fact that he’s been working on music:
‘Still The Problem’ Tour Dates
April 10 || Minneapolis, Minn. || U.S. Bank Stadium w/ Thomas Rhett, Gavin Adcock, Vincent Mason
April 11 || Minneapolis, Minn. || U.S. Bank Stadium w/ HARDY, Gavin Adcock, Vincent Mason
April 18 || Tuscaloosa, Ala. || Saban Field at Bryant-Denny Stadium w/ Ella Langley, Vincent Mason, Zach John King
May 1 || Las Vegas, Nev. || Allegiant Stadium w/ Brooks & Dunn, Gavin Adcock, Vincent Mason
May 2 || Las Vegas, Nev. || Allegiant Stadium w/ Thomas Rhett, Gavin Adcock, Vincent Mason
May 8 || Indianapolis, Ind. || Lucas Oil Stadium w/ Brooks & Dunn, Hudson Westbrook, Zach John King
May 9 || Indianapolis, Ind. || Lucas Oil Stadium w/ Ella Langley, Flatland Cavalry, Zach John King
May 15 || Gainesville, Fla. || Ben Hill Griffin Stadium w/ Thomas Rhett, Gavin Adcock, Zach John King
May 16 || Gainesville, Fla. || Ben Hill Griffin Stadium w/ Ella Langley, Gavin Adcock, Zach John King
May 29 || Denver, Colo. || Empower Field at Mile High w/ Brooks & Dunn, Gavin Adcock, Vincent Mason
May 30 || Denver, Colo. || Empower Field at Mile High w/ Ella Langley, Gavin Adcock, Vincent Mason
June 5 || Pittsburgh, Penn. || Acrisure Stadium w/ Brooks & Dunn, Gavin Adcock, Zach John King
June 6 || Pittsburgh, Penn. || Acrisure Stadium w/ Ella Langley, Gavin Adcock, Zach John King
June 19 || Chicago, Ill. || Soldier Field w/ Brooks & Dunn, Gavin Adcock, Zach John King
June 20 || Chicago, Ill. || Soldier Field w/ Ella Langley, Gavin Adcock, Zach John King
June 26 || Clemson, SC. || Clemson Memorial Stadium w/ Brooks & Dunn, Gavin Adcock, Jason Scott & The High Heat
June 27 || Clemson, SC. || Clemson Memorial Stadium w/ Ella Langley, Gavin Adcock, Jason Scott & The High Heat
July 17 || Baltimore, Md. || M&T Bank Stadium w/ Brooks & Dunn, Gavin Adcock, Jason Scott & The High Heat
July 18 || Baltimore, Md. || M&T Bank Stadium w/ Ella Langley, Gavin Adcock, Jason Scott & The High Heat
July 24 || Ann Arbor, Mich. || Michigan Stadium w/ Thomas Rhett, Hudson Westbrook, Blake Whiten
July 25 || Ann Arbor, Mich. || Michigan Stadium w/ HARDY, Hudson Westbrook, Blake Whiten
July 31 || Philadelphia, Penn. || Lincoln Financial Field w/ Brooks & Dunn, Hudson Westbrook, Blake Whiten
August 1 || Philadelphia, Penn. || Lincoln Financial Field w/ Ella Langley, Hudson Westbrook, Blake Whiten