"Leave the Night On" is a song co-written and recorded by American

country music Country (also called country and western) is a genre of popular music that originated in the Southern and Southwestern United States in the early 1920s. It primarily derives from blues, church music such as Southern gospel and spirituals, ...

singer

Sam Hunt Sam Lowry Hunt (born December 8, 1984) is an American singer and songwriter. Born in Cedartown, Georgia, Hunt played football in his high school and college years and once attempted to pursue a professional sports career before signing with MCA ...

. It was released to country radio, by

MCA Nashville Universal Music Group Nashville is Universal Music Group's country music subsidiary. Some of the labels in this group include MCA Nashville Records, Mercury Nashville Records, Lost Highway Records, Capitol Records Nashville and EMI Records Nash ...

on June 16, 2014 as the lead single from his debut studio album '' Montevallo'' (2014). The song was written by Hunt,

Shane McAnally Shane McAnally (born October 12, 1974) is an American country music singer, songwriter, and record producer. Originally a solo artist for Curb Records in 1999, McAnally charted three singles on Hot Country Songs, including the No. 31 " Are Y ...

and Josh Osborne.

Critical reception

Matt Bjorke of ''Roughstock'' reviewed the single favorably, saying that "There will be some who see 'Leave The Night On' as nothing but another ' Bro' song but to me, it feels much different. Yes, it's about hanging out and having a good time with a girl you like under the moonlight, but it uses that theme as a vehicle to deliver a seriously strong debut single". ''

Taste of Country Townsquare Media, Inc. (formerly Regent Communications until 2010) is an American radio network and media company based in Purchase, New York. The company started in radio and expanded into digital media toward the end of the 2000s, starting wi ...

'' also reviewed the song favorably, with their review saying that "Lyrically 'Leave the Night On' is thematically similar to some of the most popular country songs but that doesn't mean Hunt has stopped pushing the boundaries of traditional country music just yet. Perhaps the most unique aspect of Hunt's talent, what distinguishes him from other new artists, is his polished, hip-hop inspired cadence." Giving it a "B", Kevin John Coyne of ''Country Universe'' said that "I feel like I've heard this song so many times before that the artist has to work extra hard just to even keep my attention. Sam Hunt works pretty hard to do that. Not as a vocalist, mind you. But as a songwriter, which is what's put him on the map in the first place."

Commercial performance

"Leave the Night On" debuted upon its release at number 26 on the '' Billboard'' Hot Country Songs chart, selling 22,000 copies. The song quickly climbed up the Country Airplay chart, and entered the US ''Billboard'' Hot 100 at number 98 on its second week of release. The song peaked at number 30 on the US ''Billboard'' Hot 100, and number one on both the Hot Country Songs and Country Airplay charts, for the week of November 15, 2014 after Hunt's debut studio album '' Montevallo'' was released. The album also debuted at number one on the

Top Country Albums Top Country Albums is a chart published weekly by '' Billboard'' magazine in the United States. The 50-position chart lists the most popular country music albums in the country, calculated weekly by Broadcast Data Systems based on physical sales ...

chart and number three on the US ''Billboard'' 200, making Hunt only the second solo male country artist in the Nielsen SoundScan-era to simultaneously lead the Top Country Albums and Hot Country Songs charts with a rookie release, more than 22 years after

Billy Ray Cyrus Billy Ray Cyrus (born August 25, 1961) is an American country singer and actor. He has released 16 studio albums and 53 singles since 1992, and is known for his hit single "Achy Breaky Heart", which topped the U.S. Hot Country Songs chart and ...

achieved the same feat with his debut single "

Achy Breaky Heart Achy may refer to: * Suffering from pain Pain is a distressing feeling often caused by intense or damaging stimuli. The International Association for the Study of Pain defines pain as "an unpleasant sensory and emotional experience associate ...

" and his debut studio album ''

Some Gave All ''Some Gave All'' is the debut studio album by American singer Billy Ray Cyrus. It was his first album for Mercury Records in 1992 and became the best selling album of that year in the United States, selling over 9 million copies in the first 12 mo ...

''. The song was certified Platinum by the RIAA on October 28, 2014, and reached its millionth sales mark in the US in February 2015.

Music video

The music video was directed by Brad Belanger and premiered in July 2014. It won the 2015 CMT Breakthrough Video of the Year award.

Charts

Weekly charts

Year-end charts

Certifications

References

External links

{{authority control 2014 singles Sam Hunt songs Songs written by Sam Hunt Songs written by Shane McAnally Songs written by Josh Osborne 2014 songs MCA Nashville Records singles Song recordings produced by Shane McAnally