Grammy-nominated country singer Morgan Wallen has jumped into the public pile-on of that Coldplay “couple” with a shout-out to cheaters at a concert in Arizona.
“If there’s anybody here with their side chick or whatever, I think, I think you’re safe here,” Wallen said with a smile to his audience at State Farm Stadium in Glendale, as seen in a video posted to TikTok. ”I don’t condone cheating… anymore.”
Morgan Wallen performs at the 2023 Billboard Music Awards in Atlanta, Georgia on Nov. 19, 2023. / Christopher Polk/Getty Images
The comments drew both applause and laughter as the audience clearly understood that the “Last Night” singer was referencing the now-viral kiss cam at a Coldplay concert outside Boston that unwittingly exposed a canoodling couple who just happened to be co-workers—and both married to other people.
When the couple realized they were being featured on a Jumbotron screen, they looked horrified as they ducked for cover. It only took a moment for lead singer Chris Martin to suspect that they might be “having an affair.”
The pair was quickly identified as Andy Byron and Kristin Cabot, CEO and HR Chief, respectively, at the software company Astronomer. Byron has since resigned, while the internet has gone wild with parodies and memes.
However, the so-called “bad boy of country” is perhaps not the man to be ridiculing the ethics of others. In 2021, he was filmed using the N-word during a night out with friends. He subsequently apologized and made a $300,000 donation to the Black Music Action Coalition, but his music was temporarily removed from streaming services.
Astronomer CEO Andrew Byron and Kristin Cabot, who is Astronomer’s “Chief People Officer.” / TikTok
As Wallen alluded to jokingly in his riff, he is also no stranger to accusations of infidelity. In 2019, he separated from his fiancée over allegations that he had cheated on her. Their son, Indigo, was born in 2020.
While Wallen may not be a model monogamist, it’s safe to say that if Byron and Cabot had been fans of American country music rather than British indie-pop, they would probably still be, in Wallen’s words, “safe.”