"Old Town Road" is the debut single of American rapper
Lil Nas X
Montero Lamar Hill (born April 9, 1999), known by his stage name Lil Nas X ( ), is an American rapper, singer, and songwriter. He rose to prominence with the release of his country rap single " Old Town Road", which first achieved viral popula ...
, first released independently in December 2018. After gaining popularity, the single was re-released by
Columbia Records
Columbia Records is an American record label owned by Sony Music, Sony Music Entertainment, a subsidiary of Sony Corporation of America, the North American division of Japanese Conglomerate (company), conglomerate Sony. It was founded on Janua ...
in March 2019. Lil Nas X also recorded a remix with American country singer
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 ...
, which was released on April 5, 2019. Both were included in Lil Nas X's second EP, ''
7'' (2019).
The song has been widely labeled as "
country rap
Country rap (or country hip hop and sometimes hick hop) is a fusion genre of popular music, blending country music with hip hop–style singing or rapping.
History Prototypes
Early influences on the emergence of country rap as a distinct genre ...
", a genre that had not often reached the mainstream prior to its release. Dutch record producer
YoungKio
Kiowa Roukema (born 3 December 1999), professionally known as YoungKio, is a Dutch record producer and songwriter. He is best known for producing " Old Town Road", by American rapper Lil Nas X in 2019. Since the rise in popularity of "Old Town Ro ...
composed the instrumental and made it available for purchase online in 2018. It features a
sample
Sample or samples may refer to:
Base meaning
* Sample (statistics), a subset of a population – complete data set
* Sample (signal), a digital discrete sample of a continuous analog signal
* Sample (material), a specimen or small quantity of s ...
of "
34 Ghosts IV" by the American
industrial rock
Industrial rock is a fusion genre that fuses industrial music and rock music. It initially originated in the 1970s, and drew influence from early experimental and industrial acts such as Cromagnon, Throbbing Gristle, Einstürzende Neubauten a ...
band
Nine Inch Nails
Nine Inch Nails, commonly abbreviated as NIN and stylized as NIИ, is an American industrial rock band formed in Cleveland in 1988. Singer, songwriter, multi-instrumentalist, and producer Trent Reznor was the only permanent member of the band ...
. The sample was placed behind
trap
A trap is a mechanical device used to capture or restrain an animal for purposes such as hunting, pest control, or ecological research.
Trap or TRAP may also refer to:
Art and entertainment Films and television
* ''Trap'' (2015 film), Fil ...
-style
Roland TR-808
The Roland TR-808 Rhythm Composer, commonly known as the 808, is a drum machine manufactured by the Roland Corporation between 1980 and 1983. It was one of the first drum machines to allow users to program rhythms instead of using preset patte ...
drums and bass. Lil Nas X purchased the instrumental for US$30 and recorded "Old Town Road" in one day. At the time, he had been living with his sister after dropping out of college; his real-world struggles were an influence on some of the lyrics.
The song initially gained popularity on the social video sharing app
TikTok
TikTok, known in China as Douyin (), is a short-form video hosting service owned by the Chinese company ByteDance. It hosts user-submitted videos, which can range in duration from 15 seconds to 10 minutes.
TikTok is an international version ...
and eventually entered the
'' Billboard'' charts in March 2019. The song reached number 19 on the
''Billboard'' Hot Country Songs
Hot Country Songs is a chart published weekly by ''Billboard'' magazine in the United States.
This 50-position chart lists the most popular country music songs, calculated weekly by collecting airplay data from Nielsen BDS along with digital sal ...
chart before the magazine disqualified it from the chart on the grounds that it did not fit the genre, sparking a debate on the definition of
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, ...
. Though it was not re-entered onto the overall country charts, both versions of the song collectively peaked at number one on the general
''Billboard'' Hot 100, for a
record-breaking nineteen consecutive weeks. One or more versions of "Old Town Road" have topped the national singles charts in Australia, Canada, France, Germany, Ireland, the Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway, Switzerland and the United Kingdom, and have charted in the top 10 in various other markets.
The song was certified
diamond
Diamond is a Allotropes of carbon, solid form of the element carbon with its atoms arranged in a crystal structure called diamond cubic. Another solid form of carbon known as graphite is the Chemical stability, chemically stable form of car ...
by the
RIAA
The Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) is a trade organization that represents the music recording industry in the United States. Its members consist of record labels and distributors that the RIAA says "create, manufacture, and/o ...
in October 2019 for selling ten million total units in the United States, the fastest song to be certified diamond. At the
62nd Annual Grammy Awards
The 62nd Annual Grammy Awards ceremony was held on January 26, 2020, at the Staples Center in Los Angeles. It recognized the best recordings, compositions, and artists of the eligibility year, running from October 1, 2018, to August 31, 2019. Al ...
, the remix featuring Billy Ray Cyrus was nominated for
Record of the Year
The Grammy Award for Record of the Year is presented by the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences of the United States to "honor artistic achievement, technical proficiency and overall excellence in the recording industry, without reg ...
and won
Best Pop Duo/Group Performance
The Grammy Award for Best Pop Duo/Group Performance is an award presented at the Grammy Awards, a ceremony that was established in 1958 and originally called the Gramophone Awards. According to the 63rd Grammy Awards category rules, "this category ...
and
Best Music Video
The Grammy Award for Best Music Video is an honor presented at the Grammy Awards, a ceremony that was established in 1958 and originally called the Gramophone Awards, to performers, directors, and producers of quality short form music videos. Hon ...
. In October 2019, Nas X's label
Columbia Records
Columbia Records is an American record label owned by Sony Music, Sony Music Entertainment, a subsidiary of Sony Corporation of America, the North American division of Japanese Conglomerate (company), conglomerate Sony. It was founded on Janua ...
/
Sony Music Entertainment
Sony Music Entertainment (SME), also known as simply Sony Music, is an American multinational music company. Being owned by the parent conglomerate Sony Group Corporation, it is part of the Sony Music Group, which is owned by Sony Entertainment ...
, won the Music & Sound Recordings Award from
SAG-AFTRA
The Screen Actors Guild - American Federation of Television and Radio Artists (SAG-AFTRA, stylized as SAG·AFTRA ) is an American labor union representing approximately 160,000 film and television actors, journalists, radio personalities, record ...
"for work that exemplifies equal access" of
LGBTQ
' is an initialism that stands for lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender. In use since the 1990s, the initialism, as well as some of its common variants, functions as an umbrella term for sexuality and gender identity.
The LGBT term is a ...
and "other misrepresented or underrepresented groups."
In September 2021, the song set the record as the second highest certified song ever by the
RIAA
The Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) is a trade organization that represents the music recording industry in the United States. Its members consist of record labels and distributors that the RIAA says "create, manufacture, and/o ...
with 16-times platinum status in the United States, meaning it accumulated 16 million equivalent song units. It has sold over 18 million records worldwide, making it one of the
best-selling singles of all time. ''
Rolling Stone
''Rolling Stone'' is an American monthly magazine that focuses on music, politics, and popular culture. It was founded in San Francisco, San Francisco, California, in 1967 by Jann Wenner, and the music critic Ralph J. Gleason. It was first kno ...
'' named it the 490th greatest song of all time in
its 2021 list.
Background and recording
![Lil Nas X (cropped)](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/7/74/Lil_Nas_X_%28cropped%29.jpg)
Country rap, and its subgenre, country trap, emerged onto the mainstream following the American rapper
Young Thug
Jeffery Lamar Williams (born August 16, 1991), known professionally as Young Thug, is an American rapper, singer, and songwriter. He is considered to be an influential figure of his generation, with his music impacting the modern sound of hip ...
's experimental mixtape ''
Beautiful Thugger Girls
''Beautiful Thugger Girls'' is the fifth commercial mixtape by American rapper Young Thug. It was released on June 16, 2017, by 300 Entertainment and Atlantic Records. The mixtape features guest appearances from Millie Go Lightly, Gunna, Future, ...
'' (2017).
Lil Nas X has cited Young Thug as a pioneer of country trap.
In May 2018,
Lil Tracy
Jazz Ishmael Butler (born October 3, 1995), professionally known as Lil Tracy, is an American rapper and singer. He was also known under the name Yung Bruh during the beginning of his career. Tracy is best known for his collaborations with the l ...
and
Lil Uzi Vert
Symere Bysil Woods ( ; born July 31, 1995), known professionally as Lil Uzi Vert, is an American rapper, singer, and songwriter. They are characterized by their face tattoo, facial tattoos, facial piercings, eccentric hairstyles and androgynous ...
ignited the trend with their country rap single "Like a Farmer (Remix)".
In 2018, Lil Nas X dropped out of college to pursue a music career even though he was discouraged by his parents. He moved in with his sister, spending time promoting his music on the Internet while having just three hours of sleep each night. Lil Nas X found the beat for "Old Town Road" in October 2018 and began writing after his sister told him he had to move out soon.
Lil Nas X felt like he was "out of options" and said that his sister's and parents' frustrations with him inspired the song's chorus, "can't nobody tell me nothing". Within a month of writing it, Lil Nas X chose to alter the song's meaning so that the "old town road" would be a symbol of success.
Lil Nas X recorded the song on December 2, 2018,
at the CinCoYo Recording Studio in
Atlanta
Atlanta ( ) is the capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Georgia. It is the seat of Fulton County, the most populous county in Georgia, but its territory falls in both Fulton and DeKalb counties. With a population of 498,715 ...
, and released it the same day on
SoundCloud
SoundCloud is an online audio distribution platform and music sharing website that enables its users to upload, promote, and share audio. Founded in 2007 by Alexander Ljung and Eric Wahlforss, SoundCloud is one of the largest music streaming se ...
under the title "Old Town Road (I Got the Horses in the Back)".
The Dutch record producer
YoungKio
Kiowa Roukema (born 3 December 1999), professionally known as YoungKio, is a Dutch record producer and songwriter. He is best known for producing " Old Town Road", by American rapper Lil Nas X in 2019. Since the rise in popularity of "Old Town Ro ...
produced the beat a year before the song's release and uploaded it to his online store for selling
beats. He sampled
Nine Inch Nails
Nine Inch Nails, commonly abbreviated as NIN and stylized as NIИ, is an American industrial rock band formed in Cleveland in 1988. Singer, songwriter, multi-instrumentalist, and producer Trent Reznor was the only permanent member of the band ...
' track "
34 Ghosts IV", modifying it with studio techniques so that it sounded like an old field recording, then reordering sections in an effort to make the austere original more catchy. He had never heard of Nine Inch Nails before stumbling upon "34 Ghosts IV".
Lil Nas X bought the beat from YoungKio for $30,
but since purchases on his online store were anonymous, YoungKio did not know the song was purchased by Lil Nas X until he saw it in an
Instagram
Instagram is a photo and video sharing social networking service owned by American company Meta Platforms. The app allows users to upload media that can be edited with filters and organized by hashtags and geographical tagging. Posts can ...
meme in December 2018.
Trent Reznor
Michael Trent Reznor (born May 17, 1965) is an American musician, singer, songwriter, record producer, and composer. He serves as the lead vocalist, multi-instrumentalist, and principal songwriter of the industrial rock band Nine Inch Nails, wh ...
later said that, shortly after the song began gaining traction, he received a call from Lil Nas X's manager about the sample, asking for clearance to use it, which he granted. He described the song as "undeniably hooky".
On December 4, 2018, a day after the original version's release, Lil Nas X tweeted that he wanted Cyrus on the song. Lil Nas X knew of Cyrus because of his role on the Disney Channel television series ''
Hannah Montana
''Hannah Montana'' is an American teen sitcom created by Michael Poryes, Rich Correll and Barry O'Brien that aired on Disney Channel for four seasons between March2006 and January2011. The series centers on Miley Stewart (Miley Cyrus), a ...
''. The country singer
Jake Owen
Joshua Ryan Owen (born August 28, 1981), known professionally as Jake Owen, is an American country music singer, songwriter, and actor. Signed to RCA Nashville in 2006, he released his debut studio album, '' Startin' with Me'', that year.
This ...
was originally approached to co-write and record the first remix of "Old Town Road".
The Columbia Records executive,
Ron Perry, reached out to Cyrus' wife
Tish Cyrus
Tish Finley Cyrus (born May 15, 1967) is an American manager and producer. She has managed her daughter, Miley Cyrus, since the beginning of her career, and still manages her along with Jonathan Daniel from Crush Music. Tish is president of Hope ...
saying that he would love it if Cyrus were to hear "Old Town Road". Cyrus first heard the song over coffee on March 16, 2019, when Tish played it to him. Cyrus explained that he loved the original song the first time he heard it. Cyrus also mentioned that he related to the song the first time he heard it, connecting the "old town road" to the Old Town Bridge in
Argillite, Kentucky
Argillite is an unincorporated community on the Little Sandy River in Greenup County, Kentucky, United States. It sits at the southern end of the confluence of Kentucky Routes 1 and 207. The name refers to argillite, a type of stone, related ...
, that he used to play on as a child. In response to ''Billboard'' removing "Old Town Road" from the Hot Country Songs chart, Cyrus tweeted his support for Lil Nas X and noted that the removal put him in the ranks of great outlaws.
Composition
"Old Town Road" has been variously described by publications as a country rap,
-
- trap
A trap is a mechanical device used to capture or restrain an animal for purposes such as hunting, pest control, or ecological research.
Trap or TRAP may also refer to:
Art and entertainment Films and television
* ''Trap'' (2015 film), Fil ...
,
pop,
country
A country is a distinct part of the world, such as a state, nation, or other political entity. It may be a sovereign state or make up one part of a larger state. For example, the country of Japan is an independent, sovereign state, while the ...
,
rock
Rock most often refers to:
* Rock (geology), a naturally occurring solid aggregate of minerals or mineraloids
* Rock music, a genre of popular music
Rock or Rocks may also refer to:
Places United Kingdom
* Rock, Caerphilly, a location in Wales ...
Southern hip hop
Southern hip hop, also known as Southern rap, South Coast hip hop, or dirty south, is a blanket term for a regional genre of American hip hop music that emerged in the Southern United States, especially in Atlanta, New Orleans, Houston, Memph ...
, or
country trap
Country rap (or country hip hop and sometimes hick hop) is a fusion genre of popular music, blending country music with hip hop music, hip hop–style singing or rapping.
History Prototypes
Early influences on the emergence of country rap as a d ...
song. Lil Nas X himself said that he regards it as the latter.
Produced by YoungKio, "Old Town Road" samples
Nine Inch Nails
Nine Inch Nails, commonly abbreviated as NIN and stylized as NIИ, is an American industrial rock band formed in Cleveland in 1988. Singer, songwriter, multi-instrumentalist, and producer Trent Reznor was the only permanent member of the band ...
' track "34 Ghosts IV" from their sixth studio album ''
Ghosts I–IV
''Ghosts I–IV'' is the sixth studio album by American industrial rock band Nine Inch Nails, released by The Null Corporation on March 2, 2008. It was the band's first independent release following their split from longtime label Interscope Recor ...
'' (2008).
The song prominently features the playing of a
banjo
The banjo is a stringed instrument with a thin membrane stretched over a frame or cavity to form a resonator. The membrane is typically circular, and usually made of plastic, or occasionally animal skin. Early forms of the instrument were fashi ...
along with trap-style
Roland TR-808
The Roland TR-808 Rhythm Composer, commonly known as the 808, is a drum machine manufactured by the Roland Corporation between 1980 and 1983. It was one of the first drum machines to allow users to program rhythms instead of using preset patte ...
drums and bass throughout.
It has been compared to
Lil Tracy
Jazz Ishmael Butler (born October 3, 1995), professionally known as Lil Tracy, is an American rapper and singer. He was also known under the name Yung Bruh during the beginning of his career. Tracy is best known for his collaborations with the l ...
's 2018 single "Like a Farmer", which was later remixed by
Lil Uzi Vert
Symere Bysil Woods ( ; born July 31, 1995), known professionally as Lil Uzi Vert, is an American rapper, singer, and songwriter. They are characterized by their face tattoo, facial tattoos, facial piercings, eccentric hairstyles and androgynous ...
.
The song is composed in the key of
G minor
G minor is a minor scale based on G, consisting of the pitches G, A, B, C, D, E, and F. Its key signature has two flats. Its relative major is B-flat major and its parallel major is G major.
According to Paolo Pietropaolo, it is the cont ...
with a chord progression of Gm-B
add9-F-Cm7. It has an approximate tempo of 68
beats per minute
Beat, beats or beating may refer to:
Common uses
* Patrol, or beat, a group of personnel assigned to monitor a specific area
** Beat (police), the territory that a police officer patrols
** Gay beat, an area frequented by gay men
* Battery ( ...
.
Release and promotion
"Old Town Road" was released independently as a single on December 3, 2018, during the rise of the "Yeehaw Agenda"
meme
A meme ( ) is an idea, behavior, or style that spreads by means of imitation from person to person within a culture and often carries symbolic meaning representing a particular phenomenon or theme. A meme acts as a unit for carrying cultural i ...
, a movement appropriating cowboy fashion and culture. Danny Kang, the manager of the viral country artist
Mason Ramsey
Mason Ramsey (born November 16, 2006) is an American singer. In March 2018, after gaining Internet fame from a viral video of him yodeling " Lovesick Blues" by Hank Williams at a Walmart, Ramsey was signed to Big Loud. He is known for his singl ...
, suggested to ''
Rolling Stone
''Rolling Stone'' is an American monthly magazine that focuses on music, politics, and popular culture. It was founded in San Francisco, San Francisco, California, in 1967 by Jann Wenner, and the music critic Ralph J. Gleason. It was first kno ...
'' that Lil Nas X listed the song under the country music genre on
SoundCloud
SoundCloud is an online audio distribution platform and music sharing website that enables its users to upload, promote, and share audio. Founded in 2007 by Alexander Ljung and Eric Wahlforss, SoundCloud is one of the largest music streaming se ...
and
iTunes
iTunes () is a software program that acts as a media player, media library, mobile device management utility, and the client app for the iTunes Store. Developed by Apple Inc., it is used to purchase, play, download, and organize digital mul ...
as a way to manipulate chart algorithms, as it would be easier to top the country charts than the dominant hip hop/rap charts.
Lil Nas X began creating memes to promote "Old Town Road" before it was picked up by
TikTok
TikTok, known in China as Douyin (), is a short-form video hosting service owned by the Chinese company ByteDance. It hosts user-submitted videos, which can range in duration from 15 seconds to 10 minutes.
TikTok is an international version ...
users.
The song's first music video is composed entirely of footage and clips from the 2018
Western
Western may refer to:
Places
*Western, Nebraska, a village in the US
*Western, New York, a town in the US
*Western Creek, Tasmania, a locality in Australia
*Western Junction, Tasmania, a locality in Australia
*Western world, countries that id ...
action-adventure game
The action-adventure genre is a video game hybrid genre that combines core elements from both the action game and adventure game genres.
Typically, pure adventure games have situational problems for the player to solve to complete a story ...
, ''
Red Dead Redemption 2
''Red Dead Redemption 2'' is a 2018 action-adventure game developed and published by Rockstar Games. The game is the third entry in the ''Red Dead'' series and a prequel to the 2010 game ''Red Dead Redemption''. The story is set in 1899 and f ...
''.
The song gained traction in late December 2018 after becoming the "Yeehaw Challenge" meme on TikTok, where users created short videos set to the song. The challenge is credited with launching the song to enter the
''Billboard'' Hot 100 at number 83,
the chart on which the song has since peaked at number one.
The song's popularity grew so quickly that radio stations had to download the audio from
YouTube
YouTube is a global online video platform, online video sharing and social media, social media platform headquartered in San Bruno, California. It was launched on February 14, 2005, by Steve Chen, Chad Hurley, and Jawed Karim. It is owned by ...
.
On March 22, 2019, the success of the song allowed Lil Nas X to sign to
Columbia Records
Columbia Records is an American record label owned by Sony Music, Sony Music Entertainment, a subsidiary of Sony Corporation of America, the North American division of Japanese Conglomerate (company), conglomerate Sony. It was founded on Janua ...
, which now distributes the single.
The first official remix of "Old Town Road", featuring the American country singer Billy Ray Cyrus, was released on April 5, 2019, by
Columbia Records
Columbia Records is an American record label owned by Sony Music, Sony Music Entertainment, a subsidiary of Sony Corporation of America, the North American division of Japanese Conglomerate (company), conglomerate Sony. It was founded on Janua ...
. The remix was recorded in support of "Old Town Road" being recognized as a country song. A limited edition
7-inch vinyl
In music, a single is a type of release, typically a song recording of fewer tracks than an LP record or an album. One can be released for sale to the public in a variety of formats. In most cases, a single is a song that is released separat ...
single was made available for purchase on May 1, 2019, with the remix on the A-side and the original on the B-side.
- The remix was eventually included with the original on Lil Nas X's second EP, ''
7''. The music video for the remix was released on May 17, 2019. It was directed by
Calmatic
Charles Kidd II (born September 25, 1987), known professionally as Calmatic, is an American filmmaker from Los Angeles known for music videos and commercials. He gained widespread fame in 2019 for directing the video for " Old Town Road" by Lil Na ...
, and has guest appearances by
Chris Rock
Christopher Julius Rock (born February 7, 1965) is an American stand-up comedian, actor, and filmmaker. Known for his work in comic film, television and stage, he has received multiple accolades, including three Grammy Awards for best come ...
, HaHa Davis,
Rico Nasty,
Diplo
Thomas Wesley Pentz (born November 10, 1978), known professionally as Diplo, is an American DJ and music producer. He is the co-creator and lead member of the electronic dancehall music project Major Lazer, a member of the supergroup LSD with ...
, Jozzy, Young Kio and
Vince Staples
Vincent Jamal Staples (born July 2, 1993) is an American rapper and singer. Staples was once a close associate of Odd Future, Mike G and Earl Sweatshirt in particular. He is currently signed to Motown and Blacksmith Records.
Staples rose to pr ...
.
On March 29, 2019, Lil Nas X danced to "Old Town Road" with the
Atlanta Hawks
The Atlanta Hawks are an American professional basketball team based in Atlanta. The Hawks compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the league's Eastern Conference (NBA), Eastern Conference Southeast Division (NBA), Sou ...
cheerleaders during a basketball game at
State Farm Arena
State Farm Arena (formerly Philips Arena) is a multi-purpose arena located in Atlanta, Georgia. The arena serves as the home venue for the National Basketball Association (NBA)'s Atlanta Hawks. It also served as home to the National Hockey Leag ...
. On April 29, 2019, Lil Nas X and Cyrus performed the live debut of "Old Town Road" as part of Diplo's set 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, ...
. On June 24, 2019, Lil Nas X and Cyrus performed the song together on a saloon-themed stage for the
2019 BET Awards.
On January 26, 2020, Lil Nas X performed "Old Town Road" at the
62nd Annual Grammy Awards
The 62nd Annual Grammy Awards ceremony was held on January 26, 2020, at the Staples Center in Los Angeles. It recognized the best recordings, compositions, and artists of the eligibility year, running from October 1, 2018, to August 31, 2019. Al ...
with
Diplo
Thomas Wesley Pentz (born November 10, 1978), known professionally as Diplo, is an American DJ and music producer. He is the co-creator and lead member of the electronic dancehall music project Major Lazer, a member of the supergroup LSD with ...
,
BTS
BTS (), also known as the Bangtan Boys, is a South Korean boy band formed in 2010 and debuting in 2013 under Big Hit Entertainment. The septet—consisting of members Jin, Suga, J-Hope, RM, Jimin, V, and Jungkook—co-writes and co-produ ...
,
Mason Ramsey
Mason Ramsey (born November 16, 2006) is an American singer. In March 2018, after gaining Internet fame from a viral video of him yodeling " Lovesick Blues" by Hank Williams at a Walmart, Ramsey was signed to Big Loud. He is known for his singl ...
and
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 ...
, before finishing his performance with "Rodeo" along with Nas.
Genre controversy
![BillboardLogo2013](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/e/e2/BillboardLogo2013.svg)
"Old Town Road" achieved a rare feat in ''
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 ...
'' history when it simultaneously charted on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100,
Hot Country Songs
Hot Country Songs is a chart published weekly by ''Billboard'' magazine in the United States.
This 50-position chart lists the most popular country music songs, calculated weekly by collecting airplay data from Nielsen BDS along with digital sal ...
and
Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs
The Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart ranks the most popular R&B and hip hop songs in the United States and is published weekly by '' Billboard''. Rankings are based on a measure of radio airplay, sales data, and streaming activity. The chart had 100 ...
charts in March 2019. However, ''Billboard'' quietly removed "Old Town Road" from its Hot Country chart for "not
mbracingenough elements of today's country music".
Had it not been disqualified, "Old Town Road" would have been the Hot Country Songs
number-one song, in the chart dated April 6, 2019. Lil Nas X said he was "extremely disappointed" by the decision.
In an interview, ''
Time
Time is the continued sequence of existence and events that occurs in an apparently irreversible succession from the past, through the present, into the future. It is a component quantity of various measurements used to sequence events, to ...
'' reporter Andrew R. Chow brought up ''Billboard''s decision to remove "Old Town Road" from the country chart but to keep it on the R&B/Hip-Hop chart, asking Lil Nas X if he considered "Old Town Road" a country song. Lil Nas X replied, "The song is country trap. It's not one, it's not the other. It's both. It should be on both
harts
Harts may refer to:
* Harts (surname)
* Harts (musician), Melbourne indie musician
* Harts, West Virginia, United States
* Harts Stores, a regional general merchandise chain in the midwestern United States
* Hong Kong Amateur Radio Transmitting S ...
"
Lil Nas X submitted the song for consideration in rap categories at the
62nd Annual Grammy Awards
The 62nd Annual Grammy Awards ceremony was held on January 26, 2020, at the Staples Center in Los Angeles. It recognized the best recordings, compositions, and artists of the eligibility year, running from October 1, 2018, to August 31, 2019. Al ...
, but the award show's rap committee recategorized it in
Best Pop Duo/Group Performance
The Grammy Award for Best Pop Duo/Group Performance is an award presented at the Grammy Awards, a ceremony that was established in 1958 and originally called the Gramophone Awards. According to the 63rd Grammy Awards category rules, "this category ...
, where it ultimately won.
The exclusion of "Old Town Road" brought criticism of the evaluation of the work of non-white artists in the country genre, with the ''Rolling Stone'' writer Elias Leight referring to
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 ...
, another black artist, whose song "
Daddy Lessons
"Daddy Lessons" is a song recorded by the American singer Beyoncé for her sixth studio album, ''Lemonade'' (2016). The song was written and produced by Wynter Gordon, Beyoncé, Kevin Cossom and Alex Delicata. The song's music video is part of a o ...
" failed to be considered a country song by
The Recording Academy
The Recording Academy (formally the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences; abbreviated NARAS) is an American learned academy of musicians, producers, recording engineers, and other musical professionals. It is famous for its Grammy Aw ...
in 2016.
Leight also pointed out other difficulties faced by black artists making cross-genre music, noting that the rapper
Juice Wrld
Jarad Anthony Higgins (December 2, 1998 – December 8, 2019), known professionally as Juice Wrld (pronounced "juice world"; stylized as Juice WRLD), was an American rapper, singer, and songwriter. He was a leading figure in the emo rap and So ...
's ''
Death Race for Love
''Death Race for Love'' is the second studio album by American rapper and singer Juice Wrld and the last to be released during his lifetime. It was released on March 8, 2019, by Grade A Productions and Interscope Records. The album's artwork and t ...
'' (2019) would "probably be the most commercially successful rock album of 2019", but would never appear on rock charts or playlists, another genre, like country, predominated by white artists.
In the music journalist
Robert Christgau
Robert Thomas Christgau ( ; born April 18, 1942) is an American music journalist and essayist. Among the most well-known and influential music critics, he began his career in the late 1960s as one of the earliest professional rock critics and ...
's opinion, "Taking 'Old Town Road' off the country chart strikes me as racist pure and simple, because
country radio Country radio refers to radio stations that play country music. Most country radio stations are commercial radio stations. Most country radio stations usually play only music which has been officially released to country radio by record labels. The ...
remains racist regardless of the
Darius Rucker
Darius Carlos Rucker (born May 13, 1966) is an American singer, guitarist, and songwriter. He first gained fame as the lead vocalist and rhythm guitarist of rock band Hootie & the Blowfish, which he founded in 1986 at the University of South Ca ...
s and
Kane Brown
Kane Allen Brown (born October 21, 1993) is an American singer. Brown first came to the attention of the public through social media. He released his first EP, titled '' Closer'', in June 2015, and followed it with a new single, " Used to Love ...
s it makes room for." In light of the criticism, ''Billboard'' later stated that the decision to remove "Old Town Road" from the Hot Country Songs chart had nothing to do with Lil Nas X's race.
When asked if he believed the decision by ''Billboard'' had any racial undertones, Lil Nas X replied, "I believe whenever you're trying something new, it's always going to get some kind of bad reception."
Despite being removed from the main Country Songs chart, "Old Town Road" managed to chart on ''Billboard''
's
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 ...
chart, entering at number 53 and peaking at number 50.
In response,
Sony Music Nashville
Sony Music Nashville is the country music branch of the Sony Music Group.
Based in Nashville, Tennessee, Sony Music Nashville includes its three country recording labels Arista Nashville, Columbia Nashville, and RCA Nashville, as well as Ch ...
CEO Randy Goodman told ''Billboard'' that his team had started testing the song in some country radio markets, adding "it would be negligent not to look at it".
Commercial performance
![Billy Ray Cyrus VMA 2015](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/3/35/Billy_Ray_Cyrus_VMA_2015.png)
In the United States, the original version of "Old Town Road" reached number one on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100 in the week ending April 13, 2019; at one minute and 53 seconds in length, it became the shortest number-one single since "
I'm Henry VIII, I Am
"I'm Henery the Eighth, I Am" (also "I'm Henery the VIII, I Am" or "I'm Henry VIII, I Am"; spelled "Henery" but pronounced " 'Enery" in the Cockney style normally used to sing it) is a 1910 British music hall song by Fred Murray and R. P. Westo ...
" by
Herman's Hermits
Herman's Hermits are an English beat, rock and pop group formed in 1964 in Manchester, originally called Herman and His Hermits and featuring lead singer Peter Noone. Produced by Mickie Most, the Hermits charted with number ones in the UK a ...
in 1965 and the fifth-shortest in the history of the chart. In the following week, it and the newly released remix featuring Billy Ray Cyrus received a combined 143 million streams, surpassing
Drake
Drake may refer to:
Animals
* A male duck
People and fictional characters
* Drake (surname), a list of people and fictional characters with the family name
* Drake (given name), a list of people and fictional characters with the given name
* ...
's "
In My Feelings
"In My Feelings" is a song by Canadian rapper Drake from his fifth studio album ''Scorpion'' (2018). It was released to rhythmic and contemporary hit radio on July 10, 2018, as the album's fifth single. The song features additional vocals by t ...
", which in the previous year had amassed 116.2 million in the same period, as the song with the highest single-week streaming figure in the country.
This song also became Cyrus's biggest hit in the U.S. since "
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 ...
" peaked at number four on the
Billboard Hot 100
The ''Billboard'' Hot 100 is the music industry standard record chart in the United States for songs, published weekly by '' Billboard'' magazine. Chart rankings are based on sales (physical and digital), radio play, and online streaming ...
27 years ago. "Old Town Road" continued to exceed 100 million streams in each of the eight following weeks, and in June 2019, was responsible for the three highest weekly U.S. streaming totals in the history of digital music, as well as nine of the eleven highest overall.
In October 2019, "Old Town Road" became the fastest single in RIAA history to receive diamond certification in the United States. The certification, which is awarded to singles that attain national combined sales and streams of ten million units, was achieved by the song in its eleventh month of release.
The single had sold 1.6 million digital copies in the United States by February 2020.
"Old Town Road" topped the Hot 100 for nineteen consecutive weeks from April 13 to August 17, 2019. On August 24, it was finally unseated by
Billie Eilish
Billie Eilish Pirate Baird O'Connell ( ; born December 18, 2001) is an American singer-songwriter. She first gained public attention in 2015 with her debut single " Ocean Eyes", written and produced by her brother Finneas O'Connell, with whom ...
's "
Bad Guy
A bad guy or villain is a type of character in fiction and other narratives.
Bad Guy or Bad Guys or ''variation'', may also refer to:
Film
* ''Bad Guy'' (1937 film), a film starring Virginia Grey
* ''Bad Guys'', a 1986 film starring Adam Bal ...
" which had waited in the runner-up spot for nine nonconsecutive weeks. "Old Town Road"'s overall run at number one is the longest in chart history, surpassing the previous record of sixteen weeks achieved by both "
One Sweet Day
"One Sweet Day" is a song recorded by American singer-songwriter Mariah Carey and vocal group Boyz II Men. The song was released on as the second single from Carey's fifth studio album, ''Daydream'' (1995) by Columbia Records. The artists co- ...
" by
Mariah Carey
Mariah Carey (; born March 27, 1969) is an American singer, songwriter, actress, and record producer. Referred to as the " Songbird Supreme", she is noted for her five-octave vocal range, melismatic singing style and signature use of the whi ...
and
Boyz II Men
Boyz II Men (pronounced ''boys to men''), also known as B2M, is an American vocal harmony group from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, best known for emotional ballads and a cappella harmonies. They are currently a trio composed of baritone Nathan M ...
(1995–96), and "
Despacito
"Despacito" (; "Slowly") is a song by Puerto Rican singer Luis Fonsi featuring Puerto Rican rapper and singer Daddy Yankee as the lead single from Fonsi's 2019 studio album ''Vida''. Released on January 12, 2017, the song was written by Fonsi, ...
" by
Luis Fonsi
Luis Alfonso Rodríguez López-Cepero (born April 15, 1978), known by his stage name Luis Fonsi (), is a Puerto Rican singer. He is known for multiple songs, one of them being "Despacito" featuring rapper Daddy Yankee.
Fonsi received his first ...
and
Daddy Yankee
Ramón Luis Ayala Rodríguez (born February 3, 1976), known professionally as Daddy Yankee, is a Puerto Rican rapper, singer, composer, and actor. Known as the " King of Reggaetón" by music critics and fans alike, he is the artist who coined ...
featuring
Justin Bieber
Justin Drew Bieber ( ; born March 1, 1994) is a Canadian singer. Bieber is recognized for his genre-melding musicianship and has played an influential role in modern-day popular music. He was discovered by American record executive Scooter ...
(2017).
In July 2019, "Old Town Road" also became the first number-one single on the
''Rolling Stone'' Top 100 chart when it held the position in the chart's inaugural edition. In accordance with their methodologies, ''Billboard'' and ''Rolling Stone'' each assign a single position to "Old Town Road" on their respective charts by combining the performance figures of every released version of the song determined to be sufficiently similar to the original.
The former publication credits the entirety of the song's chart run solely to the remix featuring Cyrus.
Elsewhere, the original version of the song topped the national singles charts in at least ten other countries — Australia (thirteen weeks), France and Norway (eight weeks each), Austria (six weeks); Switzerland (five weeks), Denmark, Germany and Ireland (four weeks each), Portugal (three weeks), and the United Kingdom (two weeks) — and charted within the top ten in more than five others. The remix featuring Cyrus achieved a record 19-weeks run at number one on the
Canadian Hot 100
The Canadian Hot 100 is a music industry record chart in Canada for songs, published weekly by '' Billboard'' magazine. The Canadian Hot 100 was launched on the issue dated March 31, 2007, and is currently the standard record chart in Canada; a n ...
,
and peaked within the top five in more than five other markets. Both versions of the song were credited as number-one singles in Belgium, the Netherlands and New Zealand.
Track listing
Vinyl release
Credits and personnel
Credits and personnel for "Old Town Road" and the four official remixes adapted from
Tidal
Tidal is the adjectival form of tide.
Tidal may also refer to:
* ''Tidal'' (album), a 1996 album by Fiona Apple
* Tidal (king), a king involved in the Battle of the Vale of Siddim
* TidalCycles, a live coding environment for music
* Tidal (servic ...
.
*
Lil Nas X
Montero Lamar Hill (born April 9, 1999), known by his stage name Lil Nas X ( ), is an American rapper, singer, and songwriter. He rose to prominence with the release of his country rap single " Old Town Road", which first achieved viral popula ...
– lead artist, songwriter
*
YoungKio
Kiowa Roukema (born 3 December 1999), professionally known as YoungKio, is a Dutch record producer and songwriter. He is best known for producing " Old Town Road", by American rapper Lil Nas X in 2019. Since the rise in popularity of "Old Town Ro ...
– producer, songwriter
*
Trent Reznor
Michael Trent Reznor (born May 17, 1965) is an American musician, singer, songwriter, record producer, and composer. He serves as the lead vocalist, multi-instrumentalist, and principal songwriter of the industrial rock band Nine Inch Nails, wh ...
– producer, songwriter, background vocals
*
Atticus Ross
Atticus Matthew Cowper Ross (born 16 January 1968) is an English musician, record producer, composer, and audio engineer. Along with Trent Reznor, he won the Academy Award for Best Original Score for ''The Social Network'' in 2010. In 2013, th ...
– producer, songwriter
* Cinco – recording engineer
*
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 ...
– featured artist, songwriter
* Jocelyn "Jozzy" Donald – background vocals, songwriter
* Andrew "VoxGod" Bolooki – vocal producer, mix engineer
* Joe Grasso – engineer
* Eric Lagg – mastering engineer
*
Diplo
Thomas Wesley Pentz (born November 10, 1978), known professionally as Diplo, is an American DJ and music producer. He is the co-creator and lead member of the electronic dancehall music project Major Lazer, a member of the supergroup LSD with ...
– re-mixer
*
Young Thug
Jeffery Lamar Williams (born August 16, 1991), known professionally as Young Thug, is an American rapper, singer, and songwriter. He is considered to be an influential figure of his generation, with his music impacting the modern sound of hip ...
– featured artist, songwriter
*
Mason Ramsey
Mason Ramsey (born November 16, 2006) is an American singer. In March 2018, after gaining Internet fame from a viral video of him yodeling " Lovesick Blues" by Hank Williams at a Walmart, Ramsey was signed to Big Loud. He is known for his singl ...
– featured artist, songwriter
*
Jake Owen
Joshua Ryan Owen (born August 28, 1981), known professionally as Jake Owen, is an American country music singer, songwriter, and actor. Signed to RCA Nashville in 2006, he released his debut studio album, '' Startin' with Me'', that year.
This ...
– background vocals, songwriter
* Ernest K. Smith – songwriter
* A Bainz – recording engineer
* Shaan Singh – recording engineer
* Alex Tumay – vocal producer
*
Joey Moi
Joey Moi is a Canadian record producer, audio engineer, mixer, songwriter, and musician. He is known for his work with the rock groups Nickelback and My Darkest Days, and country music acts Chris Lane, Dallas Smith, Florida Georgia Line, Jake Ow ...
– vocal producer
*
RM – featured artist, songwriter
Awards and nominations
Listed below are awards and nominations for both "Old Town Road" and "Old Town Road (Remix)" featuring Billy Ray Cyrus.
Charts
Weekly charts
Monthly charts
Year-end charts
Decade-end charts
All-time charts
Certifications
Old Town Road
Old Town Road (feat. RM of BTS)
Other remixes and versions
The single's second official remix, "Old Town Road (Diplo Remix)", was released on April 29, 2019, with additional production by the American DJ
Diplo
Thomas Wesley Pentz (born November 10, 1978), known professionally as Diplo, is an American DJ and music producer. He is the co-creator and lead member of the electronic dancehall music project Major Lazer, a member of the supergroup LSD with ...
. The country music website, ''The Boot'', described it as a "remix of
remix" as it still retained vocals from Billy Ray Cyrus.
The remix was premiered at Diplo's set for the country music
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, ...
alongside the first-ever live performance of "Old Town Road" by Lil Nas X and Cyrus. Just before Lil Nas X and Cyrus' surprise on-stage appearance at Stagecoach 2019, Diplo claimed. "Let me tell you,
Old Town Road" isa country song."
The Diplo remix peaked at number 24 on the
RMNZ
Recorded Music NZ (formerly the Recording Industry Association of New Zealand (RIANZ)) is a non-profit trade association of record producers, distributors and recording artists who sell recorded music in New Zealand. Membership of Recorded Mu ...
New Zealand Hot Singles chart. The remix is included on Diplo's second studio album, ''
Diplo Presents Thomas Wesley, Chapter 1: Snake Oil'' (2020).
A third official remix, titled "Old Town Road (Remix)", was released on July 12, 2019. It retains Cyrus' guest appearance and adds the American rapper
Young Thug
Jeffery Lamar Williams (born August 16, 1991), known professionally as Young Thug, is an American rapper, singer, and songwriter. He is considered to be an influential figure of his generation, with his music impacting the modern sound of hip ...
and the American singer
Mason Ramsey
Mason Ramsey (born November 16, 2006) is an American singer. In March 2018, after gaining Internet fame from a viral video of him yodeling " Lovesick Blues" by Hank Williams at a Walmart, Ramsey was signed to Big Loud. He is known for his singl ...
. The remix was released in an effort to keep "Old Town Road" at number one on the
''Billboard'' Hot 100, as the song was two weeks away from tying for the all-time Hot 100 record held by "
One Sweet Day
"One Sweet Day" is a song recorded by American singer-songwriter Mariah Carey and vocal group Boyz II Men. The song was released on as the second single from Carey's fifth studio album, ''Daydream'' (1995) by Columbia Records. The artists co- ...
" by
Mariah Carey
Mariah Carey (; born March 27, 1969) is an American singer, songwriter, actress, and record producer. Referred to as the " Songbird Supreme", she is noted for her five-octave vocal range, melismatic singing style and signature use of the whi ...
and
Boyz II Men
Boyz II Men (pronounced ''boys to men''), also known as B2M, is an American vocal harmony group from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, best known for emotional ballads and a cappella harmonies. They are currently a trio composed of baritone Nathan M ...
and "
Despacito
"Despacito" (; "Slowly") is a song by Puerto Rican singer Luis Fonsi featuring Puerto Rican rapper and singer Daddy Yankee as the lead single from Fonsi's 2019 studio album ''Vida''. Released on January 12, 2017, the song was written by Fonsi, ...
" by
Luis Fonsi
Luis Alfonso Rodríguez López-Cepero (born April 15, 1978), known by his stage name Luis Fonsi (), is a Puerto Rican singer. He is known for multiple songs, one of them being "Despacito" featuring rapper Daddy Yankee.
Fonsi received his first ...
featuring
Daddy Yankee
Ramón Luis Ayala Rodríguez (born February 3, 1976), known professionally as Daddy Yankee, is a Puerto Rican rapper, singer, composer, and actor. Known as the " King of Reggaetón" by music critics and fans alike, he is the artist who coined ...
; it has since broken that record.
In an interview with ''Billboard'' in March 2019, the producer YoungKio said that he would want Young Thug for a remix of "Old Town Road", saying, "I've listened to every single song of his, and I think he's qualified to do this remix. I've listened to ''Beautiful Thugger Girls'', and he has some country vibes on there."
Young Thug has been previously credited with bringing country trap into the mainstream with his experimental mixtape, ''
Beautiful Thugger Girls
''Beautiful Thugger Girls'' is the fifth commercial mixtape by American rapper Young Thug. It was released on June 16, 2017, by 300 Entertainment and Atlantic Records. The mixtape features guest appearances from Millie Go Lightly, Gunna, Future, ...
'' (2017).
Lil Nas X called him a pioneer of bridging the gap between country and trap.
The single's fourth official remix, "Old Town Road (
Seoul
Seoul (; ; ), officially known as the Seoul Special City, is the capital and largest metropolis of South Korea.Before 1972, Seoul was the ''de jure'' capital of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (North Korea) as stated iArticle 103 ...
Town Road Remix)", featuring the South Korean rapper
RM of
BTS
BTS (), also known as the Bangtan Boys, is a South Korean boy band formed in 2010 and debuting in 2013 under Big Hit Entertainment. The septet—consisting of members Jin, Suga, J-Hope, RM, Jimin, V, and Jungkook—co-writes and co-produ ...
was released on July 24, 2019. It is the only official remix to not feature Cyrus. Lil Nas X announced shortly afterwards that "Seoul Town Road" would be the final remix. It reached number eight on the RMNZ
New Zealand Hot Singles
Recorded Music NZ (formerly the Recording Industry Association of New Zealand (RIANZ)) is a non-profit trade association of record producers, distributors and recording artists who sell recorded music in New Zealand. Membership of Recorded Mus ...
chart.
The American country singer
Jake Owen
Joshua Ryan Owen (born August 28, 1981), known professionally as Jake Owen, is an American country music singer, songwriter, and actor. Signed to RCA Nashville in 2006, he released his debut studio album, '' Startin' with Me'', that year.
This ...
and the American rapper
Lil Wayne
Dwayne Michael Carter Jr. (born September 27, 1982), known professionally as Lil Wayne, is an American rapper, singer, songwriter, and record executive. His career began in 1995, at the age of 12, when he was signed by rapper Birdman (rapper), ...
both recorded verses for planned remixes that were unofficially released. Owen's remix was shared on ''
The Bobby Bones Show
''The Bobby Bones Show'' is an American nationally syndicated country music radio show aired during the morning drive. The Bobby Bones Show originated in Austin, Texas, but now originates from studios at WSIX-FM in Nashville. The show is syndica ...
'' in May 2019 and his verse was later replaced by Ramsey.
Lil Wayne's remix was leaked on July 25, 2019, and he performed it live at
Lollapalooza
Lollapalooza (Lolla) is an annual American four-day music festival held in Grant Park in Chicago. It originally started as a touring event in 1991 but several years later made Chicago the permanent location for the annual music festival. Musi ...
the next month. The American rapper
Cupcakke
Elizabeth Eden Harris (born May 31, 1997), known professionally as Cupcakke (often stylized as CupcakKe; pronounced ), is an American rapper from Chicago, Illinois. She is known for her hypersexualised, brazen, and often comical persona and mus ...
released her leaked remix of "Old Town Road", titled "Old Town Hoe", on April 17, 2019. The remix reinterprets the lyric "I'm gonna ride 'til I can't no more" in a sexually explicit way. A music video was released in May 2019 and has Cupcakke and her
backup dancer
A backup dancer also known as background dancer is a performer who dances with or behind the lead performers in a live musical act or in a music video. Their movements (especially where there are many moving together) improve the visual aesthetic ...
s riding
toy horses
Toy Horses are a Welsh indie rock band, originating from Cardiff during the late 2000s, composed of Adam D. Franklin (b. Cardiff 1984) and his step-father Tom Williams (b. 1971). The duo are multi-instrumentalists, but with Franklin on lead voc ...
and handling
phallic objects, including
lollipop
A lollipop is a type of sugar candy usually consisting of hard candy mounted on a stick and intended for sucking or licking. Different informal terms are used in different places, including lolly, sucker, sticky-pop, etc. Lollipops are availa ...
s,
water bottle
A water bottle is a container that is used to hold liquids, mainly water, for the purpose of transporting a drink with oneself while travelling or while otherwise away from a supply of potable water.
A water bottle is usually made of plastic, g ...
s and
corn on the cob. Lil Nas X responded favorably to the remix.
The actor-comedian
Omi Vaidya
Omi Vaidya (born January 10, 1982) is an American actor of Indian descent who works in Bollywood films. He is best known for his performance as Chatur Ramalingam or "Silencer" in the 2009 buddy-drama film, ''3 Idiots''. In addition, Vaidya has ...
parodied the song with "Oak Tree Road", a song about
Asian Indian
Indian Americans or Indo-Americans are citizens of the United States with ancestry from India. The United States Census Bureau uses the term Asian Indian to avoid confusion with Native Americans, who have also historically been referred to ...
culture in the US.
Postmodern Jukebox
Postmodern Jukebox, also widely known by the initialism PMJ, is a rotating musical collective founded by arranger and pianist Scott Bradlee in 2011. PMJ is known for reworking popular modern music into different vintage genres, especially early ...
also covered the song, doing it in the style of a
blues song.
Miche Braden sang the lead vocals.
The song was featured in an episode of ''
The Proud Family: Louder and Prouder'', fittingly titled "Old Towne Road", with Lil Nas X guest starring as one of the voices. Rather than Billy Ray Cyrus' section of the song, the character of Bobby Proud, voiced by
Cedric the Entertainer
Cedric Antonio Kyles (born April 24, 1964), better known by his stage name Cedric the Entertainer, is an American stand-up comedian and actor. He hosted BET's ''ComicView'' during the 1993–1994 season and ''Def Comedy Jam'' in 1995. He is bes ...
, joins in with newly written lyrics.
See also
*
List of best-selling singles in Australia
This is a list of highest-certified singles in Australia according to the Australian Recording Industry Association (ARIA). Since 1983, ARIA certifies a single Platinum for shipment of 70,000 copies across Australia. Single figures can include "q ...
*
List of number-one singles of 2019 (Australia)
The ARIA Singles Chart ranks the best-performing singles in Australia. Its data, published by the Australian Recording Industry Association, is based collectively on the weekly physical and digital sales and streams of singles. In 2019, 10 ...
*
List of number-one hits of 2019 (Austria)
This is a list of the Austrian number-one singles and albums of 2019 as compiled by Ö3 Austria Top 40, the official chart provider of Austria.
References
{{AustrianNumber1s
Number-one hits
Austria
2019
File:2019 collage v1.png, From top ...
*
List of Canadian Hot 100 number-one singles of 2019
*
List of number-one hits of 2019 (Denmark)
Tracklisten is a chart that ranks the best-performing singles and tracks in Denmark. Its data, published by IFPI Denmark and compiled by Nielsen Music Control, is based collectively on each single's weekly digital sales.
Chart history
Reference ...
*
List of number-one hits of 2019 (Germany)
The GfK Entertainment charts are record charts compiled by Media Control on behalf of the German record industry. They include the "Single Top 100" and the "Album Top 100" chart. The chart week runs from Friday to Thursday, and the chart compila ...
*
List of number-one singles of the 2010s (Hungary)
This is a list of the songs that have reached number one on the Mahasz ''Rádiós Top 40'' airplay chart during the 2010s. The issue date is the date the song began its run at number one.
References
*{{in lang, hu}Hungarian Airplay Chart- ...
*
List of number-one singles of 2019 (Ireland)
The Irish Singles Chart ranks the best-performing singles in Ireland, as compiled by the Official Charts Company on behalf of the Irish Recorded Music Association.
Number-one artists
References
{{Irish Music Charts
2019 in Irish music, ...
*
List of number-one singles from the 2010s (New Zealand)
*
List of number-one songs in Norway
This list shows the songs which have been number one on the official chart list (VG-lista) in Norway. The single list started in 1958, and the albums list in 1967. The show is broadcast every Wednesday by NRK P3, one of Norwegian Broadcasting ...
*
List of number-one hits of 2019 (Switzerland)
*
List of UK Singles Chart number ones of the 2010s
The UK Singles Chart is a weekly record chart compiled by the Official Charts Company (OCC) on behalf of the British record industry. As of 10 July 2015, the chart week runs from Friday to Thursday with the chart-date given as the following Thu ...
*
List of ''Billboard'' Hot 100 number-one singles of 2019
*
List of ''Billboard'' Hot 100 top 10 singles in 2019
*
List of number-one dance airplay hits of 2019 (U.S.)
These are the ''Billboard'' magazine Dance/Mix Show Airplay number-one hits of 2019.
See also
*2019 in music
*List of number-one dance singles of 2019 (U.S.)
* List of number-one Billboard Dance/Electronic Songs
References
Externa ...
*
List of ''Billboard'' Rhythmic number-one songs of the 2010s
*
List of viral music videos
This is a partial list of viral music videos, that gained rapid attention on the Internet. Like Internet memes, viewership of such videos tend to expand rapidly and become more widespread because the instant communication facilitates word of mout ...
Notes
References
{{CMA Musical Event of the Year
2018 songs
2018 debut singles
2019 singles
Lil Nas X songs
Songs written by Lil Nas X
Billy Ray Cyrus songs
Songs written by Billy Ray Cyrus
Young Thug songs
Mason Ramsey songs
Songs written by Trent Reznor
Songs written by Atticus Ross
Canadian Hot 100 number-one singles
Columbia Records singles
Country rap songs
Novelty songs
Race-related controversies in music
Irish Singles Chart number-one singles
Number-one singles in Australia
Number-one singles in France
Number-one singles in New Zealand
Number-one singles in Norway
Number-one singles in Portugal
2019 controversies in the United States
Billboard Hot 100 number-one singles
UK Singles Chart number-one singles
Songs about horses
Internet memes introduced in 2018
Grammy Award for Best Short Form Music Video
Grammy Award for Best Pop Duo/Group Performance
Viral videos
2010s fads and trends
2019 controversies
Male vocal duets