Morgan Wallen's version: Country artist hits back against rumored release of 2014 album

Morgan Wallen is releasing a new version of one of his early hits as he lashes back against rumored plans to release a 2014 album against his wishes.

The new track, "Spin You Around (1/24)," was recorded this week in Nashville with the aid of acoustic guitarist Bryan Sutton and Big Loud co-founder and producer Joey Moi.

It is a redux of one of Wallen's breakout hits, "Spin You Around."

Wallen announced his release via social media, while on a duck-hunting trip. He related the story of how a deal he struck in 2014, when he was 21, went awry. Wallen signed the artist management and recording deal with without legal representation, he said.

"We made 13 songs. Some were ok, most were terrible, as I was just learning how to write &figuring it all out," he said. "I was not the only collaborator, so many of these songs were not really my ideas nor met my standards."

Of those songs, Wallen said five were deemed worthy of the eventual "Stand Alone" EP. The music was released in 2015 by Panacea Records, a Miami-based independent record label founded by Bill Ray and Paul Trust in 1993, Wallen said. The EP includes, "Spin You Around."

The song helped Wallen on his path to stardom.

In April, Trust made an Instagram post celebrating "Spin You Around" achieving 160 million Spotify streams.

"This song has been a wild ride from its creation to its climb. The story could be a chapter in an industry tell-all book. It's streaming more now than it ever has. It will be double platinum in the next few months," wrote Trust.

The record label founder continued: "A shout out to the OG team, the people that believed in the project long before Morgan Wallen was an international star. William Ray, Dirk Hemsath, Sergio Sanchez, Mark Annino, Luke Rice, Dominic Frost, Mike Bachta and of course that boy from some small town in Tennessee, Morgan."

Trust could not immediately be reached for comment.

Morgan Wallen could not acquire rights to his music from label

By 2015 (and through July 2017), Wallen was managed by The Hard 8 Working Group's co-founders Bachta and Hemsath. Currently, Wallen is managed by Big Loud partner and CEO Seth England.

Wallen noted that, while his initial partnership was short-lived, he was unable to acquire the rights to the music he recorded. Alerted to rumors about a planned 10th-anniversary edition of the "Stand Alone" EP -- including eight other unreleased songs -- Wallen pressed into action.

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The "Last Night" performer wanted to "keep the quality of my catalog consistent with songs I choose to release (and) believe in," calling the unwanted release "gross, greedy" and "an example of how the dark side of the music business can suck the soul out of artists."

Wallen continued: "I want you to know this is not my new music" and "I don't want to see this happen to anyone else.

"I cringe when I listen to these songs" and "I'm very concerned my fans may mistakenly believe this is a new release by me," he said. "I begin recording my next project at the end of February ... I'm feeling inspired creatively" and "super excited to make more music I'm proud of."

Alongside his release, Wallen announced he is donating $100,000 from his Morgan Wallen Foundation to the Volunteer Lawyers & Professionals For The Arts (VLPA) program. His reason? He "(hopes) young aspiring musicians read (his) story" and "know they should never have to give up their creative freedoms for an opportunity in this business."

He closed his post, adding: "Trust me, when new music is ready, you'll hear it directly from me."

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This article originally appeared on Nashville Tennessean: Morgan Wallen releases new version of song 'Spin You Around'