Takeaways From Maren Morris and Luke Combs CRS Accountability Discussion

Maren Morris and Luke Combs took part in a panel at CRS 2021 concerning accountability. Read our favorite takeaways from their discussion.

Takeaways From Maren Morris

• Called for the industry to require festivals and events to ban the confederate flag. Morris doesn’t want to play those events in the future.
• “If you were a Black person would you ever feel safe going to a show with those flying in the parking lot?”
• “Learning the actual history is a big part of it and country music particularly we really hold our idols on a massive, massive pedestal, They’re untouchable. They weren’t the first ones, they weren’t the pioneers.”
• History failed us for not knowing the true meaning behind the rebel flag.
• There must be more Black songwriters hired and their stories must be told in the country music industry.
• “I appreciate Morgan [Wallen] saying quit defending me to his fans. It’s indefensible. He knows that, we know that. All we can do, so there isn’t an elephant in the room is say that out loud, hold our peers accountable.”
• “…this whole, ‘We’re family, we’re protecting our own.’ It’s protecting white people. It’s not protecting Black people. And that’s the long and the short of it.”

Takeaways From Luke Combs

• On showing southern pride: “There are so many things beyond the rebel flag that we can do to be proud of being from The South. You can go plant a vegetable garden in your garden of heirloom plants that your family used to grow 200 years ago. That’s something that you can do to be proud of your Southern heritage. You can cook a meal that your grandparents made. Those are the things that I try to do now to say, ‘Hey I am proud to be from North Carolina and a rural guy.’ You don’t need the flag to be proud that you’re from The South.”
• Having this conversation is a good first step. The music industry needs many more conversations to get to the root of the problem.
• Taking a moment to step back and think if you’re giving a Black person the same chance as another person. “Everyone deserves the same chance.”
• Combs said he would consider hiring more Black members to his team in the future, including his live band.
• Combs addressed and apologized for a past music video that featured a confederate flag. Read about it here.