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Morgan Wallen’s New Song Helps Us Reorient How We Think About Life

His new song "Smile" reminds us that appearances can be beguiling.

   DailyWire.com
KNOXVILLE, TENNESSEE - SEPTEMBER 22: Morgan Wallen performs onstage for night two of his One Night At A Time tour at Neyland Stadium on September 22, 2024 in Knoxville, Tennessee. (Photo by John Shearer/Getty Images for for Morgan Wallen's One Night At A Time 2024)
John Shearer/Getty Images

Adapted from “The Michael Knowles Show,” January 6, 2024.

Today’s Music Monday song is “Smile,” by Morgan Wallen — of chair-throwing fame and fellow Nashvillian.

His new song has nearly 3.5 million views on YouTube.

 

I quite like this. Art is supposed to make you see. That is what the purpose of art is. Joseph Conrad wrote that the scientist has one job, the thinker has another, some deal in facts, some deal in ideas; but the primary role of an artist is to make you see something.

Morgan Wallen does this right at the beginning. He is calling your attention to something — something we can all recognize but, at the same time, are probably not all that conscious of — which is that, sometimes, our loved ones react differently when they are in a group than when it is just us. We fall into our ruts and our routines. But when they are in a group, they do not behave the same way. Instead, they behave and react a little differently, and we recognize the old person, the way they once behaved with us. Many people have probably had this experience before, and Wallen calls your attention to that in this song. That is artistic.

I like the image he describes in the chorus: It was good to see you smile. You haven’t really smiled like that with me in a while, but it was good to see you smile. Is it because we are just having fun in this bar? Is it because this is what we used to do, and we don’t really do it anymore? Or, is it simply artifice? Is it because we are about to take a picture so your muscle memory just went right back to that old smile? Is it just a habit? What is it? What that real? Is there really hope that we might recover something that has been lost that is desirable? Or are you just going through the motions? Is that just an artifact of your former self — and really there is no hope?

WATCH: The Michael Knowles Show

His conclusion makes a good point about behavior, about how human beings really work. It implicitly addresses the question of if an action should not be performance-motivated, driven by pure and authentic desire. Or, can you “fake it til you make it”? If you just smile enough, will you eventually become happy? Wallen’s conclusion is: It doesn’t really make much of a difference to me. It was nice to see you smile anyway.

Then, Wallen sings the last couplet: “If someone were to see this they’d think everything’s alright / At least we got a pretty little moment frozen in time.” Everyone knows couples like this, couples who post pictures on Instagram looking so in love. They are all smiles in their really happy, cute photo. But because you know the behind-the-scenes, you know their life is a complete disaster and they are always at each other’s throats.

He reminds us that appearances can be beguiling. Images are beguiling. When an artist calls your attention to that, they are often calling your attention to something about their own art. Here, Morgan Wallen is dealing with moving pictures, with images he is creating in your mind that happiness, joy, and a flourishing life are not about a moment frozen in time. Anyone can fake a moment or experience an accidental smile. He is emphasizing that what matters is the course of one’s life.

A human life moves through time so flourishing occurs through time. We live in this snapshot culture that denies time. We live in the Insta-culture, the “smile for the camera” culture. But the more we focus on that artifice and the ephemeral, fleeting little smile, the more likely we are to come back to our dressing room and our lady is gone, as he does. This song sends the message that you have to reorient how you think about life.

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