Country Billboard Chart News December 10, 2018

In Brief: Billboard Country Charts (Chart issue week of December 15, 2018)

Country Album Chart ** No.1 (20 non-consecutive weeks) ** THIS ONE’S FOR YOU Luke Combs

Hot Country Songs ** No.1 (3 weeks) ** “Speechless” Dan + Shay

Country Airplay ** No.1 (3 weeks) *** “Best Shot” Jimmie Allen

Country Digital Songs ** No.1 (7 non-consecutive weeks) “Speechless” Dan + Shay

Billboard Top 200 / Country Album Chart News (Chart issue week of December 15, 2018)

The Billboard 200 chart measures multi-metric album consumption, which includes traditional album sales, track equivalent albums (TEA) and streaming equivalent albums (SEA).

Meek Mill's 'Championships' Album Debuts at No. 1 on Billboard 200 Chart

Meek Mill was the winner on the Billboard 200 Top 200 Albums Chart (dated Dec. 15), as his new release CHAMPIONSHIPS debuts at No.1. The set earned 229,000 equivalent album units in the week ending Dec. 6, according to Nielsen Music. Of that sum, 42,000 were in traditional album sales. The album was released on Nov. 30 via Maybach/Atlantic Records and is the hip-hop artist’s second chart-topper, following 2015’s Dreams Worth More Than Money.

Billboard 200/Catalog Albums Chart Update – December 15, 2018

With the release of a new album, LOVE, Michael Buble enjoyed a return to #1 on the Catalog chart on December 1 for his album CHRISTMAS. It just beat Queen’s Greatest Hits on the BB200 (#20 to #21) for the honor. It remained at #1 on the December 8 and 15 charts. This gives Christmas a total of 26 #1 weeks on the Catalog chart, second only to Kenny G’s Miracles – The Holiday Album (27), and also makes Christmas the very first Christmas album to reach the pinnacle of the Catalog chart in five separate seasons (2012-13 through 2014-15, 2017-18, and 2018-19), one more than the aforementioned Kenny G album (1995-96 through 1998-99) and Mannheim Steamroller’s A Fresh Aire Christmas (1991-92 through 1994-95).

Holiday music continued to storm the Billboard Hot 100 chart, as nine seasonal songs debut, re-enter or reach new peaks on the latest list (dated Dec. 15).

As previously reported, Mariah Carey led the pack, as her holiday staple "All I Want for Christmas Is You" leapt from No. 14 to No. 7, hitting a new peak, after it reached the top 10 (No. 9) for the first time last year. The song surges with 30.4 million radio audience impressions (up 11 percent), 28.5 million U.S. streams (up 29 percent), 15,000 downloads sold (up 28 percent) in the tracking week, according to Nielsen Music. With the ascent, Carey achieves her highest rank since "Obsessed" reached No. 7 in 2009.

Billboard Top Country Albums (Chart issue week of December 15, 2018)

Top Country Albums now ranks the most popular country albums of the week, as compiled by Nielsen Music, based on multi-metric consumption (blending traditional album sales, track equivalent albums (TEA), and streaming equivalent albums (SEA)).

10 digital track sales from an album = 1 track equivalent album (TEA) “sale”

1,500 on demand song streams from an album to one streaming equivalent album (SEA) “sale”.

Nielsen Music compiles the sales and streaming data. Billboard continues to publish pure album sales charts (subscription to billboard biz ), exclusively comprising Nielsen’s sales data.

Topping the weeks total consumption figures Luke Combs with THIS ONE’S FOR YOU (River House/ Columbia Nashville/Sony Music Nashville) held at No.1 (#27-28 Billboard 200) to land 20 non-consecutive weeks atop the chart

Elvis Presley with IT'S CHRISTMAS TIME moved 3-2 (#52-45 Billboard 200).

Gene Autry with Rudolph The Red Nosed Reindeer And Other Christmas Classics climbed 6-3 (#68-49 Billboard 200; 9 chart frames).

Former No.1 Kane Brown with sophomore album, entitled EXPERIMENT fell 2-4 (#35-51 BB200).

In its 105th chart frame Brown’s 10 non-consecutive week No.1 SELF-TITLED (released Dec 2, 2016) held at No.9 (#85-86 Billboard 200).

Burl Ives with RUDOLPH THE RED-NOSED REINDEER held at No.5 (#64-53; 11 chart frames).

Former No1 Dan + Shay with their self-titled album (Warner Bros./Warner Music Nashville) fell 4-6 (#57-66 BB200).

Chris Stapleton with the 188-week TRAVELLER (MERCURY/ UMGN) held at No.7 (#65-67 BB200).) as his set From A Room: Volume 1 (Mercury/Universal Music Group Nashville) dropped 16-17 (#169-161 BB200) and From A Room: Volume 2 rebounded 30-25.

Brenda Lee with The Best Of Brenda Lee: 20th Century Masters The Christmas Collection advanced 11-8 (#118-81 BB200).

Former 6-week non-consecutive week No.1 Jason Aldean with REARVIEW TOWN (Macon/Broken Bow Records) held at No.10 (#112-106 BB200).

Outside the Top 10

Brett Eldredge with GLOW pushed 17-11 (#182-111 BB200) .

Former No.1 Carrie Underwood with CRY PRETTY slipped 8-13 (#80-123 BB200).

Dolly Parton with 12-track DUMPLIN' (Soundtrack; Dolly Records/RCA Nashville | Amazon UK - UK iTunes - Amazon.com) made a debut at No.16 (#160 Billboard 200).
  

Parton teams with a dazzling array of female artists including Miranda Lambert, Rhonda Vincent, Alison Krauss, pop superstar Sia and soul legend Mavis Staples, as well as Elle King, Willa Amai, and Macy Gray featuring Dorothy. 

Produced by songwriter Linda Perry, with whom Parton co-wrote six of the LP’s dozen tracks, the album also features cameos from the film’s stars Danielle Macdonald — who plays the title character — and Jennifer Aniston.

Wheeler Walker Jnr. with the 11-track - WWIII (Pepper Hill Records/ Thirty Tigers | Amazon UK - UK iTunes - Amazon.com) made a debut at No.20 (#187 Billboard 200).  

He shared:  “This new album is a departure for me: The record is about my recent marriage and newborn son. I love them both so much and I want to share that love with you, my audience. (New track “Save Some Titty Milk For Me” is also out now.) Let me know what you think & keep in mind, I don’t give a f*ck what you think.”

Granger Smith with 11-track THEY WERE THERE ORIGINAL SOUNDTRACK (Wheelhouse | Amazon UK - UK iTunes - Amazon.com). made a debut at No.20 (#200 Billboard 200). The soundtrack to the self-produced They Were There: A Hero’s Documentary features 11 songs and contributions from writers including Mitchell Tenpenny (“They Were There”) and Seth Ennis (“Everybody Lives”).

Outside the Top 25

Elvis Presley with Elvis: '68 Comeback Special: 50th Anniversary Edition (Soundtrack) made a debut at No.38.

FALLING SHORT of Top 50:

On the Country Album Sales list (pure sales; old methodology)

Toby Keith with Should‘ve Been A Cowboy: 25th Anniversary Edition made a debut at No.38.

The album that started it all for Toby Keith, his self-titled 1993 debut featuring four hit singles, was celebrated with the special 25^th anniversary release titled Should've Been A Cowboy in honor of his trademark hit anthem that launched the career of arguably the most successful self-directed artist of his era – songwriter, vocalist, musician, producer, entertainer. Available November 30 via Mercury Nashville/UMe, the album has been remastered from the original analog tapes and includes a commemorative cover and liner notes and three rare tracks from Keith's personal vault. It will also be available on vinyl for the first time. 

Included with the 25th anniversary edition are three rare tracks from Keith's personal vault: "Tossin' And Turnin'," "I'll Still Call You Baby" and "Daddy Mac." Keith explains: "Those were all turned in with that pile of songs – everything I'd written before we went in to record. We went back and found a few of them that were written between 1986 and 1990. I got signed in '91 and the album came out in 1993.

Year-To-Date Digital Tracks

13,802,000 (Physical sales 9,843,000 (down -21.4%) + Digital sales 3,969,000 (down -33.1%) which is 25.2% down at the same point in 2017 (18,455,000 sales) 

Year-To-Date Digital Tracks

43,072,000 down 27.8% at the same point in 2017 (59,655,000)

Billboard 2018 Year-End Top Country Albums

RANK TITLE/Artist/Label

1 THIS ONE’S FOR YOU/Luke Combs/River House/Columbia Nashville/SMN

2 KANE BROWN/Kane Brown/Zone 4/RCA Nashville/SMN

3 REARVIEW TOWN/Jason Aldean/Macon/Broken Bow/BMG/BBMG

4 TRAVELLER/Chris Stapleton/Mercury/UMGN

5 LIFE CHANGES/Thomas Rhett/Valory/BMLG

6 WHAT MAKES YOU COUNTRY/Luke Bryan/Capitol Nashville/UMGN

7 FROM A ROOM: VOLUME 2/Chris Stapleton/Mercury/UMGN

8 BRETT YOUNG/Brett Young/BMLG

9 FROM A ROOM: VOLUME 1/Chris Stapleton/Mercury/UMGN

10 CRY PRETTY/Carrie Underwood/Capitol Nashville/UMGN

11 CALIFORNIA SUNRISE/Jon Pardi/Capitol Nashville/UMGN

12 MONTEVALLO/Sam Hunt/MCA Nashville/UMGN

13 GRAFFITI U/Keith Urban/Hit Red/Capitol Nashville/UMGN

14 DIG YOUR ROOTS/Florida Georgia Line/BMLG

15 DAN + SHAY/Dan + Shay/Warner Bros./WMN

16 GREATEST HITS SO FAR.../Zac Brown Band/ROAR/Southern Ground/Atlantic/AG

17 TEXOMA SHORE/Blake Shelton/Warner Bros./WMN

18 HAPPY ENDINGS/Old Dominion/RCA Nashville/SMN

19 TANGLED UP/Thomas Rhett/Valory/BMLG

20 THE ANTHOLOGY: PART I, THE FIRST FIVE YEARS/Garth Brooks/Pearl

21 RIPCORD/Keith Urban/Hit Red/Capitol Nashville/UMGN

22 RELOADED: 20 #1 HITS/Blake Shelton/Warner Bros./WMN

23 THE MOUNTAIN/Dierks Bentley/Capitol Nashville/UMGN

24 THE REST OF OUR LIFE/Tim McGraw & Faith Hill/McGraw/Arista Nashville/SMN

25 HERE’S TO THE GOOD TIMES/Florida Georgia Line/Republic Nashville/BMLG

26 GREATEST HITS: DECADE #1/Carrie Underwood/19/Arista Nashville/SMN

27 CRASH MY PARTY/Luke Bryan/Capitol Nashville/UMGN

28 RED/Taylor Swift/Big Machine/BMLG

29 LIVE IN NO SHOES NATION/Kenny Chesney/Blue Chair/Columbia Nashville/SMN

30 PRECIOUS MEMORIES COLLECTION/Alan Jackson/ARC/EMI Nashville/UMGN

31 CURRENT MOOD/Dustin Lynch/Broken Bow/BMG/BBMG

32 HERO/Maren Morris/Columbia Nashville/SMN

33 HALLELUJAH NIGHTS/LANCO/Arista Nashville/SMN

34 GOLDEN HOUR/Kacey Musgraves/MCA Nashville/UMGN

35 SONGS FOR THE SAINTS/Kenny Chesney/Blue Chair/Warner Bros./WMN

36 MR. MISUNDERSTOOD/Eric Church/EMI Nashville/UMGN

37 NUMBER ONE HITS/Tim McGraw/Curb

38 UNAPOLOGETICALLY/Kelsea Ballerini/Black River

39 KILL THE LIGHTS/Luke Bryan/Capitol Nashville/UMGN

40 DESPERATE MAN/Eric Church/EMI Nashville/UMGN

41 LOSING SLEEP/Chris Young/RCA Nashville/SMN

42 FEARLESS/Taylor Swift/Big Machine/BMLG

43 HOTEL CALIFORNIA/Eagles/Asylum/Elektra/Rhino

44 IF I KNOW ME/Morgan Wallen/Big Loud

45 ALL OF IT/Cole Swindell/Warner Bros./WMN

46 50 NUMBER ONES/George Strait/MCA Nashville/UMGN

47 SEASONS CHANGE/Scotty McCreery/Triple Tigers/RED

48 SWEET SOUTHERN SUGAR/Kid Rock/Top Dog/BMG/BBMG

49 HOME STATE/Jordan Davis/MCA Nashville/UMGN

50 WHEN WAS THE LAST TIME/Darius Rucker/Capitol Nashville/UMGN

Billboard Hot Country Songs (Chart issue week of December 15, 2018)

On Billboard’s Hot Country Songs chart - which blends:

a) All-format airplay, as monitored by BDS

b) Sales, as tracked by Nielsen SoundScan and

c) Streaming, (tracked by Nielsen BDS from such services as Spotify, Muve, Slacker, Rhapsody, Rdio and Xbox Music, among others) according to BDS it results in:

Dan + Shay with “Speechless” (Warner Bros./ WAR) led Hot Country Songs for a third week after becoming pair’s first No.1 and the chart’s third leader of 2018.

Thomas Rhett earned his 12th top 10 on the airplay-, streaming- and sales-based Hot Country Songs chart as “Sixteen” (Valory) pushed 11-10. The song, which he co-wrote with Sean Douglas and Joe Spargur, is from Rhett’s album Life Changes, which debuted as his first No.1 on both Top Country Albums and the all-genre Billboard 200 in September 2017.

“Sixteen” increased by 10 percent to 26.7 million impressions and climbed 8-6 on Country Airplay. It also bumped up by 13 percent to 3,000 downloads sold and 4 percent to 2.8 million U.S. streams.

Rhett’s résumé of 12 Hot Country Songs top 10s includes his lone No. 1 thus far, “Die a Happy Man,” which ruled for 17 weeks beginning in November 2015. He first reached the top 10 with “It Goes Like This,” which hit No. 2 in 2013.

Hot County Songs

** No.1 (3 weeks) ** “Speechless” Dan + Shay **

** Streaming Gainer ** No.2 “She Got The Best Of Me” Luke Combs  

** Airplay Gainer” No.6 “Drunk Me” Mitchell Tenpenny  

** Digital Gainer ** No.14 “Turnin' Me On” Blake Shelton

** Hot Shot Debut ** No.44 “Tomorrow” Kirk Jay

Debut No.48 “Stronger Than Me” Garth Brooks

Billboard 2018 Year-End Hot Country Songs

RANK TITLE/Artist/Label

1 MEANT TO BE/Bebe Rexha & Florida Georgia Line/Warner Bros./BMLG

2 HEAVEN/Kane Brown/Zone 4/RCA Nashville

3 TEQUILA/Dan + Shay/Warner Bros./WAR

4 YOU MAKE IT EASY/Jason Aldean/Macon/Broken Bow

5 MARRY ME/Thomas Rhett/Valory

6 ONE NUMBER AWAY/Luke Combs/River House/Columbia Nashville

7 SIMPLE/Florida Georgia Line/BMLG

8 GET ALONG/Kenny Chesney/Blue Chair/Warner Bros./WEA

9 MERCY/Brett Young/BMLG

10 UP DOWN/Morgan Wallen Featuring Florida Georgia Line/BMLG/Big Loud

11 MOST PEOPLE ARE GOOD/Luke Bryan/Capitol Nashville

12 TAKE BACK HOME GIRL/Chris Lane Featuring Tori Kelly/Big Loud

13 DROWNS THE WHISKEY/Jason Aldean Featuring Miranda Lambert/Macon/Broken Bow

14 BREAK UP IN THE END/Cole Swindell/Warner Bros./WMN

15 BROKEN HALOS/Chris Stapleton/Mercury

16 SUNRISE, SUNBURN, SUNSET/Luke Bryan/Capitol Nashville

17 HOOKED/Dylan Scott/Curb

18 DRUNK GIRL/Chris Janson/Warner Bros./WAR

19 SINGLES YOU UP/Jordan Davis/MCA Nashville

20 HOTEL KEY/Old Dominion/RCA Nashville

21 LOSE IT/Kane Brown/Zone 4/RCA Nashville

22 FIVE MORE MINUTES/Scotty McCreery/Triple Tigers

23 SHE GOT THE BEST OF ME/Luke Combs/River House/Columbia Nashville

24 I WAS JACK (YOU WERE DIANE)/Jake Owen/Big Loud

25 LIFE CHANGES/Thomas Rhett/Valory

26 BEAUTIFUL CRAZY/Luke Combs/River House/Columbia Nashville

27 I LIVED IT/Blake Shelton/Warner Bros./WMN

28 WOMAN, AMEN/Dierks Bentley/Capitol Nashville

29 ALL ON ME/Devin Dawson/Atlantic/WEA

30 BLUE TACOMA/Russell Dickerson/Triple Tigers

31 YOURS/Russell Dickerson/Triple Tigers

32 SPEECHLESS/Dan + Shay/Warner Bros./WAR

33 HANGIN’ ON/Chris Young/RCA Nashville

34 THE LONG WAY/Brett Eldredge/Atlantic/WMN

35 BABE/Sugarland Featuring Taylor Swift/Big Machine

36 WRITTEN IN THE SAND/Old Dominion/RCA Nashville

37 WHAT IFS/Kane Brown Featuring Lauren Alaina/Zone 4/RCA Nashville

38 EVERYTHING’S GONNA BE ALRIGHT/David Lee Murphy & Kenny Chesney/Blue Chair/Reviver

39 CRY PRETTY/Carrie Underwood/Capitol Nashville

40 FOR THE FIRST TIME/Darius Rucker/Capitol Nashville

41 GREATEST LOVE STORY/LANCO/Arista Nashville

42 KISS SOMEBODY/Morgan Evans/Warner Bros./WEA

43 BEST SHOT/Jimmie Allen/Stoney Creek

44 RICH/Maren Morris/Columbia Nashville

45 COMING HOME/Keith Urban Featuring Julia Michaels/Hit Red/Capitol Nashville

46 BODY LIKE A BACK ROAD/Sam Hunt/MCA Nashville

47 I’LL NAME THE DOGS/Blake Shelton/Warner Bros./WMN

48 YOU BROKE UP WITH ME/Walker Hayes/Monument/Arista Nashville

49 BORN TO LOVE YOU/LANCO/Arista Nashville

50 DRUNK ME/Mitchell Tenpenny/Riser House/Columbia Nashville

Billboard Country Airplay (Chart issue week of December 15, 2018)

Jimmie Allen with “Best Shot” (Stoney Creek) rebounded 2-1 for a third total week atop Billboard’s Country Airplay chart dated Dec. 15, attracting 36.7 million audience impressions (down 9 percent) for the tracking week ending Dec. 9, according to Nielsen Music. The song narrowly bests Mitchell Tenpenny’s “Drunk Me” (River House/Columbia Nashville), which surged 5-2 with Most Increased Audience honors (36.5 million, up 13 percent).

Allen’s debut single originally hit No. 1 in its 40th week on the chart dated Nov. 24 and held on for a second week atop the Dec. 1 list. In between the latter and latest frames, Kane Brown’s “Lose It” topped the Dec. 8 tally.

Notably, “Best Shot” is the first song in over a decade to return to No.1 on Country Airplay after descending the chart since Jimmy Wayne’s “Do You Believe Me Now,” which first rose to the apex on Sept. 13, 2008. It revisited the top spot two weeks later, after a week at No. 1 for Brad Paisley’s “Waitin’ on a Woman.”

“Seeing the resurgence of ‘Best Shot’ is a testament to how great of a team I have,” Allen told Billboard. “They have continued to fight for this song when so many others would have given up. I am so thankful to country radio and its listeners for their support.

Adds Allen of the love song, “seeing ‘Best Shot’ connect with the hearts of so many is evidence that we are a lot more alike than we are different.”

Meanwhile, “Shot” is the first debut hit to lead Country Airplay for as many as three weeks since Florida Georgia Line’s “Cruise,” which reigned for three weeks beginning Dec. 15, 2012. As for the last time that an introductory hit by a solo male ruled for at least three weeks? Blake Shelton’s freshman single, “Austin,” dominated for five frames in 2001.

Jason Aldean with “Girl Like You” (Broken Bow) hopped 12-10 on Country Airplay, increasing by 13 percent to 21.9 million in audience. “Girl” is his 29th Country Airplay top 10, lifting him past Clint Black (28) to take sole possession of 13th place for the most top10s since the survey launched Jan. 20, 1990. Among solo males, Aldean ranks 10th, directly behind Blake Shelton, with 31. George Strait leads all artists, with 61 Country Airplay top 10s.

“Girl” is the third single from Aldean’s album REARVIEW TOWN, which debuted at No.1 on both Top Country Albums and the Billboard 200 on April 28. It follows “Drowns the Whiskey,” featuring Miranda Lambert, and the album’s first single, “You Make It Easy,” which topped Country Airplay for two weeks apiece in August and May, respectively.

Aldean first reached the Country Airplay top 10 with his debut single, “Hicktown,” which hit No. 10 in 2005. Next release “Why” in 2006 became the first of his 19 No.1s.

For the first time since the 1990 launch of Billboard’s Country Airplay chart, the chart dated Dec. 8 included no female acts in the top 20. Then history repeated itself for the chart dated Dec. 15.

While the state of female artists on country radio has been dismal for the last few years, Billboard’s 2018 Country Airplay Artists year-end chart further reflected the bleak state of affairs. Coming in at No. 14, Maren Morris is the only woman in the top 20, marking the worst showing for women on the tally in the past five years. Carrie Underwood, the highest-ranked woman on the year-end Top Country Artists chart at No. 13, only reached No. 33. In 2017, four women made the year-end Country Airplay Artists tally.

Billboard asked top Nashville executives their reaction to the female chart drought and what could be done. While some have been quick to blame country radio, other executives stressed solutions have to come from all sides. Label and publishing executives and managers said they are seeing no slow down in signing female artists, despite the lack of airplay.

Leslie Fram, senior vp, music strategy, CMT: It’s time for all of us to come together to solve this problem. We must stop pointing fingers to say it’s radio's problem and radio saying it's the labels problem. Can we all just get in a room together and find a solution before we hurt the careers and livelihoods of so many talents artists?  We are going to start seeing an issue for male artists as well because that lane has grown exponentially and it will be harder with so many new male artists to break through. Radio is on the defensive and their response is that they are not getting enough females to support. Labels are too afraid to challenge radio when one of their female artists stalls on the charts.

Melinda Newman writes: I have talked with many female artists who have no idea what to do next. They’ve been told that radio loves their songs, they do all the free shows, everything they are asked to do and still no support. Again -- instead of pointing the finger, putting a band-aid on this, it's time to have a real conversation. Country Radio Seminar would be the perfect place. Read more.... Billboard

Country Airplay

*** No.1 (3 weeks) *** “Best Shot” Jimmie Allen 36.724 million audience (-3.543 million) / 6,427 radio plays (-788)

** Most Increased Audience ** No.2 “Drunk Me” Mitchell Tenpenny +4.253 million audience gain

** Most Added ** No.22 “Make It Sweet” Old Dominion (24 ADDS)

** Hot Shot Debut ** No.57 “Every Little Thing” Russell Dickerson  

BILLBOARD 2018 Year-End Country Airplay Songs

POS. TITLE/Artist Label AUDIENCE (IN MILLIONS)

1 HEAVEN Kane Brown Zone 4/RCA Nashville 773.91

2 GET ALONG Kenny Chesney Blue Chair/Warner Bros./WEA 672.52

3 ONE NUMBER AWAY Luke Combs River House/Columbia Nashville 660.36

4 HOTEL KEY Old Dominion RCA Nashville 642.93

5 TEQUILA Dan + Shay Warner Bros./WAR 613.89

6 EVERYTHING’S GONNA BE ALRIGHT David Lee Murphy & Kenny Chesney Blue Chair/Reviver 608.42

7 HOOKED Dylan Scott Curb 600.64

8 FOR THE FIRST TIME Darius Rucker Capitol Nashville 556.62

9 BLUE TACOMA Russell Dickerson Triple Tigers 554.52

10 MOST PEOPLE ARE GOOD Luke Bryan Capitol Nashville 546.43

11 SIMPLE Florida Georgia Line BMLG 545.25

12 I WAS JACK (YOU WERE DIANE) Jake Owen Big Loud 537.87

13 THE LONG WAY Brett Eldredge Atlantic/WMN 532.92

14 BREAK UP IN THE END Cole Swindell Warner Bros./WMN 530.29

15 LIFE CHANGES Thomas Rhett Valory 526.38

16 SUNRISE, SUNBURN, SUNSET Luke Bryan Capitol Nashville 517.96

17 DRUNK GIRL Chris Janson Warner Bros./WAR 515.06

18 I LIVED IT Blake Shelton Warner Bros./WMN 513.20

19 KISS SOMEBODY Morgan Evans Warner Bros./WEA 513.17

20 UP DOWN Morgan Wallen Featuring Florida Georgia Line BMLG/Big Loud 511.59

21 TAKE BACK HOME GIRL Chris Lane Featuring Tori Kelly Big Loud 511.39

22 YOU MAKE IT EASY Jason Aldean Macon/Broken Bow 510.06

23 WOMAN, AMEN Dierks Bentley Capitol Nashville 505.27

24 MARRY ME Thomas Rhett Valory 499.22

25 YOURS Russell Dickerson Triple Tigers 499.00

Billboard Country Digital Singles Chart 

(Chart issue week of December 15, 2018)

Dan + Shay (Dan Smyers and Shay Mooney) with “Speechless” held at No.1 (#12-16 Digital Songs) for a 7th non-consecutive week as “Tequila” dropped 5-9 in its 46th frame.

“Speechless” was fifthteen places behind Halsey’s “Without Me” which hit a new Hot 100 peak, pushing 4-3. It paced Digital Song Sales for a third week (50,000, up 75 percent) and rose 6-4 on Streaming Songs (32.7 million, up 29 percent) and 9-6 on Radio Songs (71.7 million, up 10 percent).

Season 15 The Voice contestant Kirk Jay (Team Blake) made a debut at No.2 (#25 Digital Songs) with a cover of Chris Youngs’ “Tomorrow”. The final performances took place on Monday, December 17 with remaining four contestants, Kirk Jay, Chris Kroeze, Chevel Shepherd, and Kennedy Holmes, gearing up for the big night.

Luke Combs with “She Got The Best Of Me” held at No.3 (#23-30 Digital Songs).

Seasonal chesnutt Brenda Lee with “Rockin' Around The Christmas Tree” rose 6-4 (#44-34 Digital Songs).

Brett Young with new album pre-grat track “Catch” blew in at No.5 (#35 Digital Songs).

Kelsea Ballerini with “Miss Me More” fell 2-6 (22-47 Digital Songs).

Jake Owen with “Down To The Honkytonk” climbed 9-7 (#49 Re-Entry Digital Songs).

Jimmie Allen with “Best Shot” fell 4-8 (#38 to off Top 50 Digital Songs).

Mitchell Tenpenny with “Drunk Me” fell 7-10 in its 20th frame.

Outside the Top 10

Blake Shelton with “Turnin' Me On” made a re-entry at #11.

Former 22 non-consecutive week No1 Bebe Rexha and Florida Georgia Line with “Meant to Be" (Warner Bros. | BMLG) fell 8-13 in their 54th week.

Lee Brice with ballad "Rumor" made a debut at No.25 on Country Digital Song Sales. It rose 30 percent to 3,000 sold, aided by a 69-cent sale tag in the iTunes Store. On Hot Country Songs, “Rumor” bumped 34-30, hitting a new peak.

BILLBOARD 2018 Year-End Digital Song Sales

RANK TITLE/Artist/Label

1 MEANT TO BE/Bebe Rexha & Florida Georgia Line/Warner Bros.

2 HEAVEN/Kane Brown/Zone 4/RCA Nashville/SMN

3 YOU MAKE IT EASY/Jason Aldean/Macon/Broken Bow/BMG/BBMG

4 TEQUILA/Dan + Shay/Warner Bros./WMN

5 MARRY ME/Thomas Rhett/Valory/BMLG

6 SIMPLE/Florida Georgia Line/BMLG

7 TENNESSEE WHISKEY/Chris Stapleton/Mercury/UMGN

8 BROKEN HALOS/Chris Stapleton/Mercury/UMGN

9 WHAT IFS/Kane Brown Featuring Lauren Alaina/Zone 4/RCA Nashville/SMN

10 MERCY/Brett Young/BMLG

11 GET ALONG/Kenny Chesney/Blue Chair/Warner Bros./WMN

12 UP DOWN/Morgan Wallen feat. Florida Georgia Line/Big Loud

13 MOST PEOPLE ARE GOOD/Luke Bryan/Capitol Nashville/UMGN

14 BEAUTIFUL CRAZY/Luke Combs/River House/Columbia Nashville/SMN

15 ONE NUMBER AWAY/Luke Combs/River House/Columbia Nashville/SMN

16 EVERYTHING’S GONNA BE ALRIGHT/David Lee Murphy & Kenny Chesney/Blue Chair/Reviver

17 DROWNS THE WHISKEY/Jason Aldean feat. Miranda Lambert/Macon/Broken Bow/BMG/BBMG

18 FIVE MORE MINUTES/Scotty McCreery/Triple Tigers/RED

19 GREATEST LOVE STORY/LANCO/Arista Nashville/SMN

20 YOU BROKE UP WITH ME/Walker Hayes/Monument/SMN

21 BODY LIKE A BACK ROAD/Sam Hunt/MCA Nashville/UMGN

22 CRY PRETTY/Carrie Underwood/Capitol Nashville/UMGN

23 SPEECHLESS/Dan + Shay/Warner Bros./WMN

24 SINGLES YOU UP/Jordan Davis/MCA Nashville/UMGN

25 LOSE IT/Kane Brown/Zone 4/RCA Nashville/SMN

Country Aircheck MEDIABASE Chart

December 10, 2018

Mitchell Tenpenny Hits #1 With 'Drunk Me'

Congrats to Mitchell Tenpenny, Steve Hodges, Shane Allen and the Columbia promotion crew on landing this week’s No.1 with “Drunk Me.” The song is Tenpenny’s debut single and was written by Jordan M. Schmidt, Justin Wilson and Tenpenny. The tune marks TENPENNY's first-career #1.

“Drunk Me” (Riser House/Columbia) climbed 5-1 logging 7,964 radio spins (+1234), 47.418 million audience impressions (+5.234 million) with 25357 Total Points (+3621) from 155 tracking stations (155 ADDS) for the tracking week December 2 to December 8, 2018 and published chart dated December 10, 2018.

MITCHELL TENPENNY ACHIEVES FIRST NO. 1 HIT WITH “DRUNK ME”

 Lead Single From Riser House/Columbia Nashville Debut Album TELLING ALL MY SECRETS (released Friday, December 14, “Drunk Me” Tops Mediabase/Country Aircheck Chart

Five days before the release of his Riser House/Columbia Nashville debut album Telling All My Secrets on Friday, December 14, Mitchell Tenpenny’s lead single, “Drunk Me,” took the No. 1 position on the week’s Mediabase/Country Airplay chart. Co-produced by Tenpenny and Jordan M. Schmidt and co-written by Tenpenny, Schmidt and Justin Wilson, the Gold-certified “Drunk Me” reaches the summit of the country radio airplay chart while concurrently amassing over 120 million streams.

"I recorded 'Drunk Me' after pitching it to other artists in town for over six months,” remarks Tenpenny. “I believed in my heart it was such a special song and that it would be a hit for someone. I never dreamt it would be the song labels first heard from me, resulting in a record deal ... or that it would go on to bring us our first single, yet alone a number one.” He continues, “It's been a two-year journey with this song, yet so many believed, and so, this is one of those moments we all share together - my co-writers, our band and record label, country radio and all the fans that have streamed it over 120 million times. I can't get over you. You've changed my life."

Ranked No. 22 on its Best Song of the Year all-genre list, the New York Times recently published this Jon Caramanica review of the No. 1 country airplay single: The country singer Mitchell Tenpenny has a growing hit with “Drunk Me,” a soft-rock power ballad that blends raw, brute tension and doubled-over pain: “I’ve been sober since you broke my heart in two/’cause drunk me can’t get over you.” He’s one of the singers helping to displace the genre’s reigning gentlemen, playing up his brawn while doubling down on his feelings.

Other year-end accolades for “Drunk Me” include Amazon Music’s Best of lists for the all-genre categories of Most Played Songs, Most Played Global Songs and Best Songs of 2018 and also the year’s Best of Country category. Mitchell Tenpenny recently made Pandora’s Artists to Watch in 2019 list and became a MusicRow 2019 Next Big Thing honoree.

On March 26, singer/songwriter Mitchell Tenpenny officially impacted country radio with his Riser House/Columbia Nashville debut single, “Drunk Me,” garnering 60 combined Billboard and Country Aircheck/Mediabase stations. With 52 Mediabase adds, this cinched Tenpenny’s impact add week total to be the best for a country debut single in two years. In fact, the last country artist to achieve this many impact week adds was Tenpenny’s label mate Maren Morris with her debut single, “My Church” in January 2016.

Upon its release, “Drunk Me” also made chart history by achieving the highest entry ever for a new artist on Nielsen’s On Demand Audio Core Country Streaming chart. The single debuted at No. 39 with a total of 1.5 million streams.

Growing up on Music Row under the watchful eye of his grandmother, industry veteran and first female CEO of Sony/ATV Music Publishing, Donna Hilley, Tenpenny is no stranger to the Music Row houses where he crafted his major label debut album. The soulful vocalist wrote 56 songs in preparation for the album narrowing it down to 11 strong tracks that tell his story including his brand-new No. 1 single.

Luke Combs Is Most-Added For Second Consecutive Week With 'Beautiful Crazy'

And kudos to Allen and Columbia on the Daily Double, landing 28 adds for Luke Combs’ “Beautiful Crazy”.  The song topped the "Most Added" board this chart week, making it the most-added record at Country radio for the second consecutive week.

Mediabase Adds (Selective)

Artist/Title (Label) TW Total Historic Adds

LUKE COMBS/Beautiful Crazy (River House/Columbia)  28         105      

DEVIN DAWSON/Dark Horse (Atlantic/WEA)      22         24        

LEE BRICE/Rumor (Curb)          21         98        

BRETT ELDREDGE/Love Someone (Atlantic/WMN)        19         118      

CODY JOHNSON/On My Way To You (CoJo Music/WMN)          14         125      

GARTH BROOKS/Stronger Than Me (Pearl)       14         61        

OLD DOMINION/Make It Sweet (RCA)    13         139      

RUSSELL DICKERSON/Every Little Thing (Triple Tigers)            13         59        

BRAD PAISLEY/Bucked Off (Arista)       12         91        

BRETT YOUNG/Here Tonight (BMLGR) 12         136      

ADAM HAMBRICK/Rockin' All Night Long (Buena Vista/Capitol)  11         55        

COLE SWINDELL/Love You Too Late (Warner Bros./WMN)        11         65        

KELSEA BALLERINI/Miss Me More (Black River)            11         117      

CARLY PEARCE/Closer To You (Big Machine)   10         74        

BIG & RICH/Brand New Buzz (B&R/New Revolution)      9          31        

FLORIDA GEORGIA LINE/Talk You Out Of It (BMLGR)   9          92        

LAUREN ALAINA/Ladies In The '90s (19/Mercury)           8          68        

PISTOL ANNIES/Got My Name Changed Back (RCA)     8          28        

CARRIE UNDERWOOD/Love Wins (Capitol)      7          144      

MADDIE & TAE/Friends Don't (Mercury) 2          101      

WATERLOO REVIVAL/Wonder Woman (Show Dog)      2          34        

ASHLEY MCBRYDE/Girl Goin' Nowhere (Atlantic/WAR)  1          4         

CARLY PEARCE/Catch Fire (Big Machine)         1          1         

FLORIDA GEORGIA LINE/Colorado (BMLGR)    1          4         

HARPER GRAE/Monster (Grae Area)     1          1         

RACHEL WAMMACK/Damage (RCA)     1          48        

RUNAWAY JUNE/Buy My Own Drinks (Wheelhouse)      1          92        

RUNAWAY JUNE/Sleigh Ride (Wheelhouse)       1          1

Top 10 Songs of 2018

1 KANE BROWN/Heaven (RCA)

2 LUKE COMBS/One Number Away (River House/Columbia)

3 JORDAN DAVIS/Singles You Up (MCA)

4 DAN + SHAY/Tequila (Warner Bros./WAR)

5 LUKE BRYAN/Most People Are Good (Capitol)

6 D.L. MURPHY f/K. CHESNEY/Everything’s Gonna Be Alright

 (Blue Chair/Reviver)

7 KENNY CHESNEY/Get Along (Blue Chair/Warner Bros./WEA)

8 BEBE REXHA f/FGL/Meant To Be (WBR/BMLGR)

9 JASON ALDEAN/You Make It Easy (Broken Bow)

10 DYLAN SCOTT/Hooked (Curb)

For a detailed report check out Country Aircheck Weekly December 10, 2018, Issue 631 -  Magazine View  

For the very latest up to the minute Mediabase Chart (Past 7 Days) go here - www.mediabase.com

Billboard Boxscores (Selective Country concerts)

Rank Artist:

Event Venue City/State:

Dates:  Gross Sales: Attend:

Shows/ Sellouts: 1/1 ** SOLD OUT ** (1** unsold tickets) Prices:

Promoters:

Latest Billboard Boxscore Chart