Oliver Anthony Music’s “Rich Men North of Richmond” became a viral hit and debuted at No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100 songs chart, making him the first artist to achieve this feat and have no prior chart success in any way.
Olivia Rodrigo’s “Bad Idea Right?” reaches No. 10 on the Hot 100, marking her sixth career top 10.
The Hot 100 comprises of all-genre U.S. streaming, radio play, and sales data, with the latter indicating purchases of physical singles and digital tracks from retailers. Digital single sale transactions from D2C sites are not included in the calculation process. All charts will be released on Billboard.com tomorrow (Aug. 22). Follow @billboard and @ballots on Twitter and Instagram for all chart updates.
The Hot 100’s 1,153rd song, “Rich Men North of Richmond,” was coronetted with its debut at No. 1.
“Despite not being promoted to radio, “Rich Men North of Richmond” did not fare well in the tracking week ending Aug. 17, with 17.5 million streams and 147,000 downloads, including a significant number of 553,000 audience impressions on radio airplay by audience members, mostly on country stations, according to Luminate.
The single debuts at No. 1 on the Digital Song Sales chart and No, No4.
Christopher Anthony Lunsford, a singer-songwriter from Farmville, Va. who was once employed in the factory, gained popularity on TikTok and has 1.5 million followers. The song was later featured on the radiowv YouTube account, which showcases Americana and country acts in Virginia/West Virginia.
Both sides of the aisle have lauded and condemned the song, with lyrics that allude to both rich men and poor welfare recipients.
Anthony’s response to the song, as reported exclusively by Billboard, is that it reflects the despair and frustration of our time. The song may not be exceptional, but the people who have supported it are outstanding and deserve recognition.”
The release of “Richmond” was not without its own planning, according to Draven Riffe, who is the sole producer and co-founder of radiowv.
The fact that Oliver Anthony Music had not made it to No. 1 on any Billboard chart before this week makes him the first artist ever to debut on the Hot 100.
He is only the sixth artist to debut a first-time solo Hot 100 entry at No. 1, trailing Zayn, Baauer, Carrie Underwood, Fantasia, and Clay Aiken.
The self-released track “Rich Men North of Richmond” by Oliver Anthony Music was a rare feat as it featured Lisa Loeb’s breakout single “Stay (I Missed You),” which premiered on RCA Records from the Reality Bites soundtrack and later signed with Geffen Records.
Anthony shared on Facebook that the lineup is complete, with bigger accommodations set to follow. He emphasized the importance of taking things slowly and being patient during this process.
“Guideline topped the Hot 100 for five weeks in March-April 2022, and Dave Bayley’s “Heat Waves” became the first solo-written song to reach No. 1 on the charts.”
“Richmond” marks the first time a solo artist has written and sung lyrics for 125 Hot 100 leaders since Ed Sheeran’s “Perfect” reached No. 1 in January 2018.
The song “Rich Men North of Richmond” debuts at the top of Billboard’s Hot Country Songs chart, using the same methodology as the Hot 100.
With Morgan Wallen’s “Last Night” dominating the Hot 100 for 16 weeks, tied for the longest lead in the survey’ 59-year history, and Jason Aldean’S “Try That in a Small Town” leading just one week earlier this month, 2023 is the first year that there have been three shared Top Songs of both the HOT 100 and Hot Country Songs since 1975.
The chart-topping single “Richmond” is the first male solo act to debut at the top of both the Hot 100 and Hot Country Songs, and it is also the second overall position after Taylor Swift’s “All Too Well (Taylor’S Version)” which opened at No. 27, 2021 on both rankings.
The Hot 100 and Hot Country Song Charts have both topped the charts with songs that have reached number one.
Anthony Oliver Music’s “Rich Men North of Richmond” released in 2023.
Jason Aldean, “Try That in a Small Town” 2023.
Morgan Wallen’s “Last Night,” 2023, is available for purchase.
In 2021, Taylor Swift released “All Too Well (Taylor’s Version)”.
Taylor Swift’s song “We Are Never Getting Back Together” from 2012 was released.
“Amazed,” Lonestar, 1999-2000.
The 1983 duet of Kenny Rogers and Dolly Parton’s “Islands in the Stream” was a memorable one.
The album Eddie Rabbitt – “I Love a Rainy Night” (1981).
1981 saw Dolly Parton perform “9 to 5” on stage.
Kenny Rogers, “Lady,” in 1980.
Glen Campbell’s “Southern Nights” (1977) was released.
C.W. McCall, “Convoy” (1975-76).
John Denver’s “I’m Sorry” recording from 1975.
The 1975 film “Rhinestone Cowboy” by Glen Campbell.
“Thank God I’m a Country Boy” by John Denver, released in 1975.
Freddy Fender’s 1975 album “Before the Next Teardrop Falls” was a classic.
B.J. Thomas’ 1975 album “Hey Won’t You Play” features another person who was deemed to be someone else and the song is not his own.
The 1973 film “The Most Beautiful Girl” by Charlie Rich was released.
Bobby Goldsboro’s “Honey” from 1968.
The 1968 publication of Harper Valley P.T.A. was authored by Jeannie C. Riley.
Jimmy Dean released “Big Bad John” in 1961.
Marty Robbins’ “El Paso” (1959-60) is a work in progress.
In 1959, Johnny Horton authored “The Battle of New Orleans.”
Out of the 23 songs mentioned above, 12 were centered on tracks from 1973-83. In comparison, only four acts, including Glen Campbell, John Denver, Dolly Parton, Kenny Rogers, and Taylor Swift, have won both the Hot 100 and Hot Country Songs.
According to Luminate, the United States’ country music consumption increased by 20.3% year-over-year during its first 26 weeks in the first 26, which is a significant increase from the 2.5% growth of country songs in 2022 and July 6, as reported by Billboard.
The sixth week of the No. 2 Hot 100 high, which was a cover by Luke Combs of Tracy Chapman’s “Fast Car,” sees Wallen’ “Lastig” fall to No3.
The song “Last Night” has been the top-selling song on Billboard’s Songs of the Summer chart for 12 weeks, with each successive week bringing it in for a second spot on the list.
The album “Cruel Summer” drops to No. 4 from its previous No 3 spot on the Hot 100, while Rema and Selena Gomez’s “Calm Down” falls to 4-5 after reaching No 3.
“After debuting at No. 1, Olivia Rodrigo’s vampire holds the top spot on the Hot 100 for six weeks, while Gunna’ uvre “Fukumean” drops to No 5 after dominating the multi-metric Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs and Hot Rap Songs charts for five weeks.
The album “Dance the Night” by Dua Lipa achieves a backward run to No. 8 from its previous Nominated Top 100 hit, while Nicki Minaj and Ice Spice’s “Barbie World” slips 8-9 after reaching No 7.
Olivia Rodrigo’s “Bad Idea Right?” tops the Hot 100 with a debut at No. 10, garnering 19.7 million streams, 5.3 million airplay audience, and 4,000 sold.
Following “Vampire,” “Drivers License,” and “Good 4 U,” Rodrigo has released her sixth top 10 single, complete with “Traitor” making it to the end of last year’s list.
To stay up-to-date on chart news, follow @billboard and @bellboardcharts on Twitter and Instagram, and all charts (up to August 26) will be updated on Billboard.com tomorrow, with the Hot 100 already available for viewing.
Luminate, the independent data provider for the Billboard charts, conducts a thorough analysis of all data submitted during the weekly chart rankings. During verification, luminous also reviews and validates data. In collaboration with Billboarding, any data that is considered suspicious or unverifiable is removed using pre-established procedures before the final calculations are made and released to the public.
More analysis by Alex Vitoulis.