"Downtown's Dead" 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, o ...

singer

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

. It is Hunt's eighth single release, and the follow-up to his 2017 hit " Body Like a Back Road" as well as the second single from his second studio album '' Southside''. The song, which he wrote with

Zach Crowell Zach Crowell is a songwriter and record producer, who was born and raised in Nashville, Tennessee. Crowell is involved in a joint publishing agreement with Round Hill Music and Taperoom Music. In 2012, he co-wrote and produced the song " Confe$$i ...

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 ...

Josh Osborne Josh Osborne (born c. 1980) is an American songwriter with several number-one singles to his credit. Early life Josh Osborne was born in Pike County, Kentucky, and raised in Virgie, Kentucky. Osborne grew up on US 23, renamed Country Music Hig ...

, and Charlie Handsome, is about the loneliness felt after a break-up. The song is Hunt's lowest charting single of his career, with a peak at number 15 on the

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.

Content and history

Co-writer

told ''

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 wit ...

'' that "It was an idea that Sam brought and we chipped away at over the course of a handful of different writes." The two then presented the idea of "Downtown's Dead" to

and

, who experimented with different sounds before deciding to make the lead instrument an

acoustic guitar An acoustic guitar is a musical instrument in the string family. When a string is plucked its vibration is transmitted from the bridge, resonating throughout the top of the guitar. It is also transmitted to the side and back of the instrument, ...

. The lyrics take inspiration from a breakup that Hunt had with his wife, Hannah, and it expresses the loneliness that the narrator feels when by himself in a public setting. The song was described by ''

Rolling Stone ''Rolling Stone'' is an American monthly magazine that focuses on music, politics, and popular culture. It was founded in San Francisco, California, in 1967 by Jann Wenner, and the music critic Ralph J. Gleason. It was first known for its co ...

'' as featuring a "woozy Latin guitar riff" and a "hungover narrative about a city that no longer holds the same charm it once did." Hunt announced the single's release via

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 ...

in May 2018.

Charts

Weekly charts

Year-end charts

Certifications

References

{{authority control 2018 songs 2018 singles Country ballads 2010s ballads Sam Hunt songs Songs written by Zach Crowell Songs written by Charlie Handsome Songs written by Sam Hunt Songs written by Shane McAnally Songs written by Josh Osborne MCA Nashville Records singles Songs about loneliness Song recordings produced by Zach Crowell