In a league of her own.
It’s safe to say we’ve had some massive all-genre hits in country music over the last few years, ranging from the pop and rap-inspired smashes from Morgan Wallen and Shaboozey on “Last Night” and “A Bar Song (Tipsy)” to Zach Bryan’s “Something in the Orange” and Luke Comb’s cover of Tracy Chapman’s “Fast Car.” However, outside of “Something in the Orange,” (and even that’s debatable given its folk-inspired sound), we haven’t had a tried and true country smash hit in what feels like decades,.
That, however, has changed now with the incredible success of Ella Langley’s “Choosin’ Texas.”
In case you haven’t been keeping up with just how widespread and popular this track has become over the past three months, let me give you a brief rundown of just how incredible “Choosin’ Texas’s” run has been so far.
Upon its release on October 7th, it debuted at #37 on the all-genre Billboard Hot 100, also launching all the way to #7 on Billboard’s Hot Country Songs chart, both of which were career-highs for the “hungover” singer.
On December 2nd, it became Langley’s first career #1 hit on the aforementioned Hot Country Songs chart and also became the fastest solo female song to reach the top 10 at US Country Radio this decade, taking just eight weeks to crack the Top 10.
In case that wasn’t enough, on January 5th, “Choosin’ Texas” reached #5 on the all-genre Hot 100, skyrocketing all the way up from #48 two weeks previously. With this entry, “Choosin’ Texas” has become Langley’s first-career Top 5 entry on the chart as well as her first Top 10 entry. In case you were wondering just how rare a feat this was, the Alabama native became just the 12th woman THIS CENTURY to chart a country song inside the Top 10 on the Hot 100.
On January 20th, interestingly, “Choosin’ Texas” received a whole lot of love, not on country radio, but Adult Contemporary (AC) radio. Despite catering typically to genres such pop, R&B and soft rock, the popularity of the track allowed Langley to score the top add that week on US Hot AC Radio, beating out the likes of pop stars, Bruno Mars, Hillary Duff and RAYE
This week, Langley just topped Billboard’s all-genre Streaming Songs chart, totaling a staggering 18 million streams across platforms such as Spotify, Apple Music and Amazon Music. Though she had appeared on the chart multiple times over the years, with “you look like you love me,” “Don’t Mind If I Do” and her BigXthaPlug collaboration, “Hell at Night,” all peaking inside the Top 20, “Choosin’ Texas’” #1 spot on Streaming Songs marks her first-ever all-genre #1 on any of Billboard’s charts.
And as we sit today, on January 30th, “Choosin’ Texas” has now secured its biggest accomplishment so far, reaching #1 all-genre on Spotify in the US as of 8:30 a.m. CT. This comes after it procured a staggering 1.323 million streams on Thursday, January 29th alone, bringing its total on the platform to 113 million in just over three months.
Given that Spotify’s charts fluctuate in real time, unlike Billboard’s which is updated weekly, as of writing, it’s currently sitting at #3 behind Harry Styles’ “Aperture” and Djo’s “End of the Beginning.” However, the fact that it’s not only competing with but surpassing global superstars such as Styles, Bruno Mars, Lil Uzi Vert, Taylor Swift, HUNTR/X and more, is something that should undoubtedly be noted.
Only time will tell just how big it gets, but as of today, “Choosin’ Texas” looks primed to be one of the biggest hits of the decade in country music. Keep in mind, all these accomplishments are being done on all-genre charts, and beyond that, she’s also forcing her way onto country-hesitant formats such as pop and Adult Contemporary radio as well. Simply put, “Choosin’ Texas” is becoming a phenomenon.
“Choosin’ Texas”
