Nate Smith Threw a Drink at Morgan Wallen on Stage and Says He Should Have Been Kicked Off the Tour

Nate Smith had a spot on one of the biggest country tours of 2024. He almost threw it away literally on the very first night.

In an interview for Billboard’s Takes Us Out series, Smith opened up about a prank that he admits he never should have pulled. While Wallen was on stage during the One Night at a Time tour, Smith launched “literally a whole cup” of liquid at him. He says he was trying to be funny. Nobody laughed.

The story offers a rare, unguarded look at who Morgan Wallen is off the stage separate from the chart records, the stadium sellouts, and the headlines. As he prepares to kick off the 2026 Still The Problem Tour in April, his reputation among fellow artists is clearly part of the story too.

What Nate Smith Said About the Prank

Smith described the moment plainly in the Billboard interview. He threw the drink, it did not go over the way he imagined, and the fallout was swift.

“I was trying to be funny, and it wasn’t funny. And Morgan forgave me. He should have kicked me off the tour, but we laughed about it. We talked it through. And he’s like, ‘Man, I probably would have done the same thing,’ or ‘I’ve done the same thing.’ Like, he understood.”

Smith said he received “a lot of phone calls” after the incident and described the situation as “really serious.” He was not laughing about it at the time, and he still sounds genuinely remorseful when he tells it now.

The part that stuck with him most was what Wallen did not do. For the remainder of the tour, Smith kept expecting retaliation. A return prank. Something. It never came.

“Nobody was happy about this. Morgan, if you’re listening, I love you. I’m still really sorry about that. Thank you for not pranking me back, by the way. You made me think you were going to the entire tour and you didn’t. You held back because you’re a man who walks in grace. Thank you, sir.”

That last line “a man who walks in grace” is not the kind of thing artists say about each other for publicity. It sounds like something earned through a genuinely uncomfortable moment.

Why This Story Matters Beyond the Laugh

The country music world has a complicated relationship with Morgan Wallen’s public image. His career has included serious public missteps, and the criticism he has received has been, at times, warranted. But the touring community the openers, the crew, the artists who share a bill with him across months tends to tell a different story.

This is a version of Wallen that rarely makes the news: the headliner who talked it through, kept the opener on the tour, and quietly decided not to escalate. For a performer of his stature, removing an opener from a stadium run would have been straightforward. He did not do it.

Smith’s account lines up with what Morgan Wallen’s touring history suggests more broadly that he takes artist relationships seriously and manages his live operation with more care than the tabloid version of him would imply.

The Broader Context: Throwing Things at Artists Has Become a Real Problem

Smith’s prank lands in a different light given what has been happening at concerts recently. Objects thrown at performers have moved from isolated incidents to a recurring issue across the live music industry.

Just days before Smith’s interview went public, Riley Green was struck in the ear by a fan’s phone during a show in Australia and required stitches. That is the most severe recent example, but it sits on a long list of similar incidents involving artists across multiple genres.

Smith threw his drink at Wallen as a joke between people who knew each other. A fan hurling a phone at a stranger on stage is a different kind of act entirely. But both incidents land the same way in terms of what they put at risk a performer’s safety, a performer’s ability to finish the show, and the experience of everyone in the stadium.

Smith seems to understand this now. His retelling has the tone of someone who has thought about it a lot since it happened and not just because of the phone calls he received that night.

Nate Smith on the ‘One Night at a Time’ Tour

Smith was part of the rotating opener lineup on Wallen’s 2024 One Night at a Time tour, one of the highest-grossing country tours of that year. The run moved through stadiums across the United States and gave Smith exposure to audiences well beyond his existing fanbase.

For an artist at Smith’s career stage, a slot on a Morgan Wallen stadium tour is a defining opportunity. He knew that. Which is part of why the prank, however lighthearted in intent, carried such obvious professional risk and why Wallen’s decision to keep him on means something beyond the personal.

Morgan Wallen Is Already Hinting at New Music

Smith’s interview arrives at a moment when Wallen is resurfacing publicly after a period of relative quiet. He recently posted on Instagram for the first time in months, sharing photos and writing in the caption that it was time for him to “come out of hibernation for a bit.”

Fans noticed something specific in the third slide: Wallen appears to be in a recording studio. He has not confirmed new music, but the timing just weeks before the 2026 tour opens — has generated real speculation. Fans have already been speculating about a potential deluxe edition of I’m the Problem, and a studio photo adds fuel to that conversation.

His fourth studio album, I’m the Problem, released in May 2025, still dominates. It spent 13 non-consecutive weeks atop the Billboard 200 in both the United States and Canada. Six of its songs have reached No. 1 on the Country Airplay chart. No other artist has matched that kind of chart consistency across two consecutive albums.

The Still The Problem Tour Starts in Two Weeks

Wallen opens his 23-date, 12-city Still The Problem stadium tour on April 10 at U.S. Bank Stadium in Minneapolis, Minnesota. The run closes August 1 at Lincoln Financial Field in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, with most cities hosting two consecutive nights.

AEG Presents promotes the tour, with the exception of the Tuscaloosa, Alabama date, which Live Nation produces. A portion of every ticket sold benefits the Morgan Wallen Foundation, which supports youth sports and music programs.

The rotating direct support lineup includes Brooks & Dunn, HARDY, Ella Langley, and Thomas Rhett. Additional openers rotate by market: Gavin Adcock, Hudson Westbrook, Flatland Cavalry, Jason Scott & The High Heat, Zach John King, Vincent Mason, and Blake Whiten.

Frequently Asked Questions

What did Nate Smith actually do on the Morgan Wallen tour?

During Night 1 of Morgan Wallen’s 2024 One Night at a Time tour, Nate Smith threw a full cup of liquid at Wallen while Wallen was performing on stage. Smith intended it as a joke, but the reaction from those around him made clear it was not received that way. He described the aftermath as “really serious,” with multiple phone calls coming his way that evening. Wallen ultimately forgave him, and Smith remained on the tour for its full duration.

Did Morgan Wallen kick Nate Smith off the tour?

No. Despite the incident, Wallen kept Smith on the One Night at a Time tour.

Where did Nate Smith share this story?

Smith told the story as part of Billboard’s Takes Us Out interview series, published in March 2026. The interview covered multiple topics related to his career, with the prank story surfacing as one of the more candid moments in the conversation.

Is Nate Smith on the 2026 Morgan Wallen Still The Problem Tour?

Nate Smith is not listed among the confirmed openers for the 2026 Still The Problem tour. The rotating direct support lineup for this run includes Brooks & Dunn, HARDY, Ella Langley, and Thomas Rhett, with Gavin Adcock, Hudson Westbrook, Flatland Cavalry, Jason Scott & The High Heat, Zach John King, Vincent Mason, and Blake Whiten filling opening slots across different dates.

When does Morgan Wallen’s 2026 tour start?

The Still The Problem tour opens April 10, 2026 at U.S. Bank Stadium in Minneapolis, Minnesota, with a second night in the same city on April 11. The tour runs through August 1 at Lincoln Financial Field in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, covering 12 cities and 23 total stadium shows. Most markets receive two consecutive nights.