Morgan Wallen seems to be leaning into his controversial viral moment from Saturday Night Live, as the country superstar is now selling “Get Me to God’s Country” merchandise on his website.
Wallen caused a stir over the weekend as he walked off stage during the closing moments of the show, then posted a picture on his Instagram story of an airplane along with the caption “Get Me to God’s Country.” T-shirts and trucker hats with the phrase are listed for $45 each.
A source familiar with the matter says it wasn’t a pre-planned moment, and that discussions about the merch had begun between Wallen and Bravado — Universal Music Group’s merchandise arm — as early as Sunday when the singer’s post had turned into a viral moment. Bravado had the design done by Monday, and the merch hit his website Tuesday afternoon.
The “Last Night” singer’s abrupt dip and Instagram post have caused speculation for days on what happened, and Wallen himself hasn’t addressed the situation. A source told The Hollywood Reporter on Tuesday that Wallen also did the walk-off during dress rehearsal. Wallen was also asked to participate in the “Big Dumb Line” musical sketch that aired Saturday, but a source said he wasn’t available, and Joe Jonas did the part instead.
Wallen has courted controversy in the past, most notably when he was caught on video using the N-word back in 2021, putting a temporary setback on his career. He’s got some history with SNL, with his initial debut canceled back in 2020 after a video surfaced of him breaking social distancing protocols at the height of the pandemic. He would make his official debut on the show two months later.
Kenan Thompson weighed in on the move in an interview with Entertainment Weekly earlier this week.
“I don’t know what goes through people’s minds when they decide to do stuff like that,” Thompson said. “I don’t know if he understood the assignment or not or if he was really feeling a certain kind of way.”
SNL writer Josh Patten, who says he’s a fan of Wallen, poked fun at the situation, posting the “God’s Country” phrase to highlight a Krispy Kreme truck.
