"Raised by a Good Time" is a song co-written and recorded by Canadian
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
Steven Lee Olsen
Steven Lee Olsen (born November 25, 1985, in Newmarket, Ontario) is a Canadian country music artist and songwriter. He released his debut single "Now" in 2009 on RGK Records, taken from his 2009 debut album ''Introducing Steven Lee Olsen''. He fol ...
. It was released to digital retailers on November 10, 2014 through
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 ...
and
Columbia Nashville
Columbia Records is an American record label owned by Sony Music Entertainment, a subsidiary of Sony Corporation of America, the North American division of Japanese conglomerate Sony. It was founded on January 15, 1889, evolving from the Amer ...
as the lead single for his forthcoming debut studio album.
The song serves as Olsen's major-label debut as well as his first release in the American country market.
It reached the top 5 on the
Canada Country
The ''Billboard'' charts tabulate the relative weekly popularity of songs and albums in the United States and elsewhere. The results are published in '' Billboard'' magazine. ''Billboard'' biz, the online extension of the ''Billboard'' charts, p ...
chart and was certified Gold by
Music Canada
Music Canada (formerly Canadian Recording Industry Association (CRIA)) is a non-profit trade organization that was founded 9 April 1963 to represent the interests of companies that record, manufacture, produce, and distribute music in Canada. It a ...
.
Background
After a decade of songwriting in Nashville and releasing music on an indie label (RKG) in Canada since 2009, Olsen signed a record deal with
Columbia Nashville
Columbia Records is an American record label owned by Sony Music Entertainment, a subsidiary of Sony Corporation of America, the North American division of Japanese conglomerate Sony. It was founded on January 15, 1889, evolving from the Amer ...
and began working on his debut
studio album
An album is a collection of audio recordings issued on compact disc (CD), Phonograph record, vinyl, audio tape, or another medium such as Digital distribution#Music, digital distribution. Albums of recorded sound were developed in the early ...
.
Around the same time, one of his songs ("Cold Like That") was recorded by popular country music singer
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 ...
for his 2014 "comeback" album, ''
Man Against Machine
''Man Against Machine'' is the ninth studio album by American country music artist Garth Brooks. It was released on November 11, 2014 by RCA Records Nashville and Pearl Records. Brooks confirmed the album in July 2014 while announcing his comeback ...
''.
"Raised by a Good Time" is the first release from these recordings.
Described by critics as "autobiographical," the song is influenced by the writers' personal experiences with teenage misbehavior.
Writing for the song developed out of a conversation between the three (Olsen, Chris Stevens, and
Cary Barlowe
Cary Barlowe (born 1982) is an American country music songwriter, and a former member of the rock band Luna Halo.
Born in Virginia and raised in North Carolina, Barlowe originally performed with his older brother Nathan in the rock group Lu ...
) about the "stupid things we did" in their youth, according to Olsen, "
bout
Bout can mean:
People
*Viktor Bout, suspected arms dealer
*Jan Everts Bout, early settler to New Netherland
*Marcel Bout
Musical instruments
* The outward-facing round parts of the body shape of violins, guitars, and other stringed instrumen ...
how much fun we had and just hell we raised."
Commercial performance
"Raised by a Good Time" entered the
''Billboard'' 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 ...
at number 84 on the chart dated January 24, 2015. The song reached its peak position of 58 in its tenth week, on the chart dated March 28, 2015. It also debuted at number 43 on the
Canada Country
The ''Billboard'' charts tabulate the relative weekly popularity of songs and albums in the United States and elsewhere. The results are published in '' Billboard'' magazine. ''Billboard'' biz, the online extension of the ''Billboard'' charts, p ...
airplay chart dated December 27, 2014 and reached a peak position of 3 on the chart dated March 28, 2015.
"Raised by a Good Time" was certified Gold by
Music Canada
Music Canada (formerly Canadian Recording Industry Association (CRIA)) is a non-profit trade organization that was founded 9 April 1963 to represent the interests of companies that record, manufacture, produce, and distribute music in Canada. It a ...
in August 2015, indicating digital sales of over 40,000 copies.
In January 2024, it was certified Platinum.
In the US, "Raised by a Good Time" was the most-added song on country radio the week of its release (December 1, 2014).
The song debuted at number 59 on the ''Billboard''
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 dated December 27, 2014. It peaked two positions higher, at number 57, on the chart dated January 17, 2015.
Music video
The accompanying music video for "Raised by a Good Time" was directed by Mason Dixon and premiered March 19, 2015 through ''
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 ...
''.
It contains performance footage of Olsen and his backing band as well as scenes depicting "the recklessness of teen rebellion," including sneaking out of the house, flirting with strangers, and bonfires.
Charts and certifications
Weekly charts
Certifications
Release history
References
{{Authority control
2014 songs
2014 singles
Steven Lee Olsen songs
Sony Music singles
Columbia Nashville Records singles
Songs written by Cary Barlowe
Columbia Records singles
Songs written by Steven Lee Olsen