"I Had Some Help" is a song by American rapper and singer Post Malone featuring American country music singer

Morgan Wallen Morgan Cole Wallen (born May 13, 1993) is an American country singer and songwriter. He competed in the sixth season of ''The Voice'', originally as a member of Usher's team, but later as a member of Adam Levine's team. After being eliminated ...

. It was released through

Republic A republic () is a "state in which power rests with the people or their representatives; specifically a state without a monarchy" and also a "government, or system of government, of such a state." Previously, especially in the 17th and 18th c ...

and Mercury Records as the lead single from Malone's sixth studio album, '' F-1 Trillion'', on May 10, 2024. Malone and Wallen wrote the song with producers Louis Bell,

Charlie Handsome Ryan Vojtesak, also known as Charlie Handsome, is a multi-platinum selling record producer and songwriter born in Atlanta, Georgia. Handsome has worked with artists such as Post Malone, Khalid, Drake, Kanye West, Travis Scott, The Weeknd, Youn ...

, and Hoskins, alongside Ernest,

Ashley Gorley Ashley Glenn Gorley (born April 29, 1977) is an American songwriter, publisher, and producer from Danville, Kentucky, who is based in Nashville, Tennessee. Gorley has written 60 number 1 songs and has over 300 songs recorded by artists including ...

, and Chandler Paul Walters. Commercially, "I Had Some Help" debuted atop the ''Billboard'' Hot 100 with the highest weekly sales and streams since 2020, giving Malone his sixth number-one song and Wallen his second. It has now become the second-longest running number-one song of 2024, holding its position for six nonconsecutive weeks. It made history by debuting at number one on both the ''Billboard'' Hot 100 and ''Billboard''s Hot Country Songs chart, and maintaining the top spot on each for its first five weeks, a feat never achieved before. The song also debuted at number one on the ''Billboard''s annual Songs of the Summer chart and was subsequently crowned as the 2024 Song of the Summer at the end of the tracking period. Additionally, it debuted atop the ''Billboard'' Global 200 chart and peaked at number one on charts in Australia, Canada, Ireland, and Norway. "I Had Some Help" has topped the US

Country Airplay Country Airplay is a chart published weekly by ''Billboard'' magazine in the United States since January 20, 1990. This chart lists the 60 most-listened-to records played on 150 mainstream country radio stations across the country as monitored ...

and the all-format US Radio Songs charts, making it the sixth song to achieve this milestone and the fastest to do so. It has also topped the US Pop Airplay chart and also became Morgan Wallen's first Adult Pop Airplay number one hit.

Release and promotion

On March 20, 2024, Malone previewed a snippet of the song through social media after a different snippet of a previous version leaked earlier, which had a problem with the mixing. On May 2, 2024, the two artists took to social media to announce the title of the song and its release date.

Composition

The song is written in the key of

C major C major (or the key of C) is a major scale based on C, consisting of the pitches C, D, E, F, G, A, and B. C major is one of the most common keys used in music. Its key signature has no flats or sharps. Its relative minor is A minor and ...

, with a tempo of 128 beats per minute, the main chord progression is F–C–Am–G.

Music video

On May 10, 2024, Malone and Wallen released the official music video, which was filmed in Joshua Tree, California and directed by Chris Villa, with both artists playing leading roles.

Commercial performance

"I Had Some Help" earned 167 first-week adds at country radio, making it only the second song in history to clear the panel in its first week after

Garth Brooks Troyal Garth Brooks (born February 7, 1962) is an American country music singer and songwriter. His integration of pop and rock elements into the country genre has earned him popularity, particularly in the United States with success on the co ...

in 1997 with "

Longneck Bottle "Longneck Bottle" is a song written by Steve Wariner and Rick Carnes, and recorded by American country music artist Garth Brooks. It was released in November 1997 as the first single from his album '' Sevens''. Wariner also plays acoustic guitar ...

". It also broke Spotify's single-day country streaming record with nearly 14 million streams, debuted at No. 1 on the streaming platform's Global Daily chart and became its top male collaboration debut of all time, in addition to topping Apple Music's Global chart and

Pandora In Greek mythology, Pandora (Greek: , derived from , ''pān'', i.e. "all" and , ''dōron'', i.e. "gift", thus "the all-endowed", "all-gifted" or "all-giving") was the first human woman created by Hephaestus on the instructions of Zeus. As Hes ...

's Top Thumb Hundred chart, upon release. In the United States, "I Had Some Help" debuted at number 18 on the ''

Billboard A billboard (also called a hoarding in the UK and many other parts of the world) is a large outdoor advertising structure (a billing board), typically found in high-traffic areas such as alongside busy roads. Billboards present large advertise ...

chart dated May 18, 2024, climbing to number nine the following week, before eventually reaching number one for the week June 29, 2024 after spending seven weeks on the chart. It is the first song to reach the top 10 in two weeks or fewer since Brooks' "

More Than a Memory "More Than a Memory" is a song written by Lee Brice, Billy Montana, and Kyle Jacobs (songwriter), Kyle Jacobs and recorded by American country music artist Garth Brooks. It was released on August 27, 2007 as his 51st single and first single from hi ...

" debuted at number one in September 2007, the fastest trip to number one since "More Than a Memory", as well as the fewest total cumulative weeks to reach number one since Tim McGraw's " Live Like You Were Dying" reached the top spot in its seventh week in July 2004. In addition, it is Malone's first number one on the Country Airplay chart, as well as Wallen's thirteenth. The song would notch a second week at number one for the week of July 6, 2024 while Wallen's " Cowgirls" featuring Ernest held the number two position on the Country Airplay chart the same week, making Wallen the third artist in the chart's history to hold the top two positions concurrently. It would remain at the top for two additional weeks before being displaced by "Cowgirls" on the chart dated July 27, 2024, making it the first time that an act has achieved back-to-back number one singles since 2002 when McGraw topped the chart back-to-back, first as a featured artist on

Jo Dee Messina Jo Dee Marie Messina (born August 25, 1970) is an American country music artist. She has charted six number-one singles on the ''Billboard'' country music charts. She has been honored by the Country Music Association and the Academy of Country ...

's "

Bring On the Rain "Bring On the Rain" is a song written by Billy Montana and Helen Darling and recorded by American country music artist Jo Dee Messina. It was released in September 2001 as the fourth single from her album ''Burn''. In March 2002, it became Mes ...

" then with his own "

The Cowboy in Me "The Cowboy in Me" is a song written by Jeffrey Steele, Al Anderson and Craig Wiseman, and recorded by American country music artist Tim McGraw. It was released in November 2001 as the third single from McGraw's ''Set This Circus Down'' album. Th ...

", and only the second time that such a distinction has been achieved in the chart's history. The song currently ranks at no. 4 on the Adult Pop Airplay chart. On the ''Billboard'' Hot 100, "I Had Some Help" debuted at number one on the chart dated May 25, 2024, with first-week figures of 76.4 million official streams, 31.1 million radio airplay audience impressions and 69,000 copies sold. It registered the highest first-week streaming figure since ''Billboard'' removed YouTube song user-generated content from its chart metrics in year 2020, surpassing Taylor Swift and Post Malone's song " Fortnight". It is Malone's sixth number-one single, fifth as lead artist, and second number-one debut. Post Malone now holds the record as the fastest male artist to accumulate two No. 1 debuts on ''Billboard'' Hot 100 history, "Fortnight" and "I Had Some Help", within just four weeks. "I Had Some Help" is the first song to spend its first five weeks on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100 chart at No. 1 since Miley Cyrus' " Flowers", which held the top spot for its first six weeks in January–March 2023. It is also the first song in nearly a year to spend five consecutive weeks at No. 1 on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100 chart, since Wallen's " Last Night" spent 10 straight weeks at the top out of 16 total weeks in May–July 2023. Additionally, it is the first song to log six weeks at No. 1 on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100 in 2024, surpassing the five weeks on top, of six total dating to late 2023, for Jack Harlow’s “ Lovin on Me.” Furthermore, it's the first song to have debuted atop both in ''Billboard'' Hot 100 and ''Billboard''s Hot Country Songs chart and spent its first five weeks on each at No. 1. On the ''Billboard'' Global 200, it debuted at No. 1 with 119 million streams and 81,000 sold worldwide in the week. It is the third Global 200 No. 1 that has topped ''Billboard''s Hot Country Songs chart, after

Beyoncé Beyoncé Giselle Knowles-Carter ( ; born September 4, 1981) is an American singer, songwriter, and actress. Beyoncé's boundary-pushing artistry and vocals have made her the most influential female musician of the 21st century, according to ...

's " Texas Hold 'Em" and Taylor Swift's "

All Too Well (Taylor's Version) "All Too Well" is a song by American singer-songwriter Taylor Swift. Its five-minute version is part of her fourth studio album, '' Red'' (2012), whereas its re-recording and uncut 10-minute version is part of her second re-recorded album, '' ...

". On the US Radio Songs chart, "I Had Some Help" is the fastest song to hit in the top five since Miley Cyrus' " Flowers" in 2023. It's also the first song to reach the top five in as few as four weeks that has also hit the US Country Airplay chart's top five. The song also reaches number one on the US Radio Songs chart, becoming the sixth song to achieve this milestone and the fastest to do so, topping both the US Country Airplay and all-format US Radio Songs charts. The song debuted at number one on ''Billboard''s Annual Songs of the Summer chart and was subsequently crowned as the 2024 Song of the Summer at the end of the tracking period.

Accolades

Live performances

On April 28, 2024, Malone and Wallen both performed their own sets at the

Stagecoach Festival The Stagecoach Festival is an outdoor country music festival held annually at the Empire Polo Club in Indio, California. Various artists attend, whether they be mainstream or relatively unknown, ranging from folk, mainstream country, bluegrass, ...

in Indio, California, and Wallen brought Malone out to perform the song with him for the first time ahead of its release. On May 16, 2024, Malone performed the song at

59th Academy of Country Music Awards The 59th Academy of Country Music Awards are set to be held in May 16, 2024 at the Ford Center at The Star Ford Center at The Star is a 12,000-seat indoor stadium located in Frisco, Texas. Its main use is as the Dallas Cowboys' practice facility ...

in Frisco, Texas. On May 28, 2024, Malone performed the song at Louvre Museum in Paris. On June 7, 2024, Malone performed the song at Governor's Ball in New York City.

Personnel

* Post Malone – vocals *

– vocals * Louis Bell – producer, recording engineer, vocal engineer *

– producer * Hoskins – producer, co-producer *

Aaron Sterling Aaron Sterling (born July 9, 1980) is an American drummer, producer, engineer, and session musician who lives in Los Angeles. The son of professional musicians, Sterling grew up in Texas and Nashville, Tennessee, before moving to L.A. in 2000. K ...

– drums * Craig Young – bass guitar * Derek Wells – electric guitar * Bryan Sutton – acoustic guitar * Dave Cohen – keyboards * Paul Franklin –

pedal steel guitar The pedal steel guitar is a Console steel guitar, console-type of steel guitar with pedals and knee levers that change the pitch of certain strings to enable playing more varied and complex music than any previous steel guitar design. Like all s ...

Larry Franklin The Lawrence Franklin espionage scandal involved Lawrence Franklin passing classified documents regarding United States policy towards Iran to Israel. Franklin, a former United States Department of Defense employee, pleaded guilty to several espi ...

–

fiddle A fiddle is a bowed string musical instrument, most often a violin. It is a colloquial term for the violin, used by players in all genres, including classical music. Although in many cases violins and fiddles are essentially synonymous, th ...

* Ryan Gore – mixing * Ted Jensen – mastering

Charts

Weekly charts

Monthly charts

Certifications

References

{{Morgan Wallen 2024 singles 2024 songs Billboard Global 200 number-one singles Billboard Hot 100 number-one singles Canadian Hot 100 number-one singles Irish Singles Chart number-one singles Male vocal duets Mercury Records singles Morgan Wallen songs Number-one singles in Australia Number-one singles in Norway Post Malone songs Republic Records singles Songs written by Post Malone Songs written by Morgan Wallen Songs written by Ashley Gorley