You Proof

"Well, my label [Big Loud] just sent me the ‘You Proof’ video and they wanna wait til Monday to drop the video, but I really don’t, so here’s the link [unlisted youtube-link on the day before the official video release]."

(Morgan Wallen / Instagram-Story, September 9, 2022)

About one and a half years later, it seems like the racial slur controversy has all become enough water under the bridge, so that the 29-years old Morgan Wallen has put back on the superstar jersey and started moving back center field. Released right before the scandal at the beginning of 2021, his still current project "Dangerous: The Double Album" has now been holding the number one spot on the Billboard Top Country Albums Chart for an amazing 77 weeks!

A record that reaches beyond the country genre. For the same album has now spent a record-breaking 91 weeks inside of the top-10 of the Billboard 200 pop album charts. An achievment no other solo artist in Billboard music history is able to boast so far.

In addition to this, his current single 'You Proof' has reached the top of the Billboard Country Airplay Chart on October 15, 2022. While it becomes Morgan Wallen's 7th number one hit, it is not part of his second album "Dangerous", hence hinting at a not yet announced follow-up album.

And again the success of the single is not limited to the country genre, as it has already moved up to number 7 on the Billboard Hot 100 pop chart at the same time.

Written by Morgan Wallen, together with Ashley Gorley, songwriter-artist Ernest (K. Smith) and R&B/hip-hop producer Charlie Handsome, the song offers yet another version of the topic that never gets old in country music: falling back on alcohol to deal with the loss of a love. In this case the lyrics make use of the double meaning of the word proof. Which can either mean a guarantee or a description of the volume percentage of alcohol contained in a drink. In the latter case 100 proof would refer to a drink with 50% alcohol, 80 proof to 40% etc.

In the end no drink proves to be strong enough to guarantee the loss of her memory. Or in other words, none turns out to be 'you proof' ...

I need something "You proof"
Something stronger than I'm used to
Yeah, I've been pullin' 90 to 100
Feel like nothing's gonna cut it, that's the hard truth
I need something "You proof".

(You Proof / Morgan Wallen, Ashley Gorley, Ernest K. Smith, Charlie Handsome) 

The video for the song is once again directed by Justin Clough and was shot in Humphreys County, Tenneessee. It features Morgan Wallen as a hallucinating victim of a broken heart and Instagram star and DJane Charly Jordan. The video currently holds at 8 Mio. views on youtube while the song stands at close to 120 Mio. streams on Spotify.

Even though Morgan Wallen may have lost more than a year in his career due to his inconsiderate behavior, it seems he is going to continue right where he left off. As seemless, as if the time in between never did happen ...