Jason Aldean says he's looking forward to seeing Morgan Wallen get back into full swing in his career after getting sidelined by a headline-making scandal in February. In a new interview, Aldean calls Morgan his current favorite artist, adding that he wants him to return "sooner than later."

Wallen faced enormous consequences after he was caught on video using the N-word on a recording that went viral after TMZ published it on Feb. 2. His music was dropped from country radio and streaming services, he was removed from consideration for the ACM Awards and his recording contract was indefinitely suspended, and while Wallen has apologized, he has remained almost entirely out of the spotlight in the weeks since then.

That hasn't stopped his latest release, Dangerous: The Double Album, from becoming the runaway success story of the year in country music. The album just spent a record tenth week at No. 1 on the Billboard 200 chart, and during an appearance on the Just Being Ernest podcast, Aldean counts himself as one of Wallen's biggest fans and supporters.

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"To me, I think he’s one of the most talented guys that has come through this town in a long time, just from a writer's standpoint, a singing standpoint," Aldean gushes of Wallen. "He was out on tour with me last year and to me — and I even told Morgan this when he was out with us — I was like, 'Man, you're the next superstar of our business, man.'"

"I mean, you could just tell, he just kind of had that thing," Aldean continues. "I love his voice, I love the songs he's cutting, I love his vibe. He's got his own little thing that's him that's nobody else, and I think to me that's what being a star is. He's the guy that I've been the most excited about in this town for a long time."

Aldean adds that he appreciates the "slow build" of Wallen's career over the past few years, which has mushroomed into his current success.

"To be able to come out and sort of listen to his double album, there’s some great stuff on there," he states. "And I think that’s it, it’s being able to continue to pick great songs, and he’s a guy I’m excited about and hopefully, everything that’s going on with him will kind of get straightened out and he'll be back sooner than later. He's a great talent, man."

Wallen has given no indication about his future career plans since news of the video broke.

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