Lil Nas X's "Old Town Road" Smashes Billboard's #1 Single Record
The Billy Ray Cyrus remix has become the longest-running chart-topper in history.
Despite the success of recent remixes featuring BTS members and yodeling wunderkind Mason Ramsey, nothing quite tops the initial impact imparted by Billy Ray Cyrus’ feature on Lil Nas X’s “Old Town Road” back in April. In the months since the song first hit Billboard’s charts, “Old Town Road” hasn’t left the top spot; this week it finally took the throne as the music charting service’s longest #1 single of all time.
The first “Old Town Road” remix drew attention the likes of which hasn’t been seen for years in viral music — perhaps since Psy’s Gangnam Style, which eventually garnered over 3 billion Youtube views alone — and knocked out established stars like Taylor Swift, leading the way for his debut 7 EP to take the #2 slot on the Billboard 200 chart several months later. As “Old Town Road” enters its 17th week of topping the charts, it heads into uncharted territory, enjoying the longest reign on the Billboard charts since the format’s inception. It takes over for previous record holders Mariah Carey and Boyz II Men’s “One Sweet Day” and Luis Fonsi, Daddy Yankee and Justin Bieber’s “Despacito,” which each enjoyed 16 week runs.
Below, relive the original “Old Town Road” remix’s music video.
Unsurprisingly, Nielsen revealed that Lil Nas X’s signature song is dominating in other mediums aside from Billboard.
— nope (@LilNasX) July 29, 2019
