Finishing the year with a bang.
It’s no stretch to say that Morgan Wallen has had one of the most interesting years in recent memory. Between his legal battles after his April arrest, the countless records broken, the opening of his Nashville Bar, placing as the 4th most-streamed artist of the year despite not releasing an album and his first-ever CMA Entertainer of the Year award win back in November, the “Last Night” singer has undoubtedly had a 2024 to remember.
To put a bow on 2024, Wallen decided to surprise fans with the release of his fourth and final single of the year, “Smile.”
“Smile” was actually teased all the way back in August by the “Last Night” singer on Instagram, and instantly had fans clamoring for a release and calling it an instant hit.
Judging by the early reactions both then and now, it does, indeed, look to be another smash hit for Wallen. The haunting backup vocal harmonies coupled with some impressive falsetto throughout make “Smile” one of the most unique tracks we’ve heard from the “Dangerous” singer to date.
Written by Wallen along with ERNEST, Rocky Block, John Byron and Ryan Vojtesak, “Smile” paints a picture of Wallen grappling with a chance encounter with an ex, emphasizing his mixed emotions on the breakup.
Along with the brand new song, Wallen also dropped a music video to go with it, featuring none other than Barstool podcaster and comedian, Caleb Pressley, who recently collaborated with Wallen on a Ryl Tea ad back in August.
Directed by Justin Clough, who has shot nearly all of Wallen’s past projects including the “Cover Me Up” short film, the music video depicts the 31-year-old singer/songwriter preparing for a late-night show hosted by Pressley. Fittingly set on New Year’s Eve, Wallen is set to perform his recent #1 hit, “Love Somebody,” before going off script and singing “Smile” instead with the song’s post-break-up storyline being directly reflected in the music video’s narrative.
Watch here: