NEWS
Chase Rice
Alexa King*Chase Rice hoists his second leader on Billboard's Country Airplay chart, as "Drinkin' Beer. Talkin' God. Amen," featuring Florida Georgia Line, ascends from No. 2 to No. 1 on the survey dated Aug. 14. It drew 32.5 million audience impressions in the week ending Aug. 8, according to MRC Data.
FGL, which comprises Tyler Hubbard and Brian Kelley, adds its 16th Country Airplay leader.
Rice co-wrote "Beer" with Corey Crowder, Cale Dodds and Hunter Phelps.
"I knew that if I ever did a major collaboration, I wanted it to be natural and meaningful, which is what we were able to accomplish," Rice tells Billboard.
While the song is the first chart hit with Rice and FGL sharing artist credit, he co-wrote the duo's breakthrough smash "Cruise" with Hubbard and Kelley, Joey Moi and Jesse Rice. The track topped Country Airplay for three weeks in December 2012 and dominated the airplay-, sales- and streaming-based Hot Country Songs chart for 24 frames into 2013.
Rice adds, "There's nobody more special in my musical life than Brian and Tyler, so to be able to come back together after first making music together and to not only have a blast doing it, but to also get to see the song reach the top of the chart, is a dream come true. I'm so thankful to everyone who helped make this my second No. 1 as an artist and I can't wait to share what we have coming next."
Rice first ruled Country Airplay as a recording act with "Eyes on You" for two weeks in May 2019. He has also hit the top 10 with "Ready Set Roll" (No. 5, 2014) and "Gonna Wanna Tonight" (No. 2, 2015).
Born in Florida and raised in Asheville, N.C., Rice, 35, previously worked as a NASCAR pit crew member for Hendrick Motorsports and placed second on CBS' Survivor: Nicaragua in 2010.
Florida Georgia Line last led Country Airplay No. 1 with "Long Live" (April 10). The pair moves closer to Brooks & Dunn's record for the most leaders among duos or groups (20) in the chart's 31-year history. Rascal Flatts ranks third with 14 No. 1s.
Meanwhile, FGL's other current single, "Lil Bit," with Nelly, ranks at No. 45 on Country Airplay (1.6 million).
On Hot Country Songs, "Beer" bounds 7-3 for a new high. The track drew 7.1 million streams (up 7%) and sold 1,900 downloads (up 10%) in the week ending Aug. 5.
'WAVES' CRASHES INTO TOP 10 Luke Bryan's "Waves" soars 11-6 on Hot Country Songs, sparked by its 40% swell to 6.5 million streams (helped by more prominent Amazon Music playlist placement). On Country Airplay, the single holds at its No. 6 high, up 4% to 26.7 million impressions.
Bryan earns his 32nd Hot Country Songs top 10. It follows "Down to One," which hit No. 5 in March (and led Country Airplay the same month, becoming his 24th No. 1). Bryan banked his first Hot Country Songs top 10 with his 2007 debut hit "All My Friends," which hit No. 5 that September.
'TIME' FOR ANOTHER TOP 10 Scotty McCreery achieves his sixth Country Airplay top 10 as "You Time" climbs 11-10 with a 2% advance to 17.7 million in audience.
The latest from McCreery, who won American Idol in 2011, follows "In Between," which became his third total and consecutive No. 1 in June 2020. "You Time," which he co-wrote, is the lead single from his fifth LP, Same Truck, due Sept. 17.
'COWBOY' RIDES IN Parker McCollum's first major label LP, Gold Chain Cowboy, debuts at No. 6 on Top Country Albums with 12,000 equivalent album units.
The 10-track set follows his EP Hollywood Gold, which arrived as his first entry at its No. 10 peak last October (9,000).
"To Be Loved by You," the new album's sophomore single, leaps 41-28 for a new high on Hot Country Songs, up 35% to 3.5 million streams. It holds at No. 33 on Country Airplay (4.7 million, up 21%), after reaching No. 32 so far. Launch track "Pretty Heart" led Country Airplay for a week and hit No. 4 on Hot Country Songs last December.
Fontaines D.C. have teamed up with Rosalía for their new collaboration, Where Is Gone?.
The song features on the Irish rock band's forthcoming album, Dopamine Chamber, which arrives on Friday (16.10.26). For guitarist Carlos O’Connell, working with the Spanish superstar is particularly special because of his own Spanish roots.
He explained: “I’ve admired Rosalía ever since her debut album, which I thought was absolutely beautiful.
“What excited me most was the way she continued to preserve Spain's musical traditions, something that felt spiritually connected to what we've been trying to achieve with Irish music. Having roots in both countries, it's been really special to witness. "She's an artist who has continued to amaze me at every point in her career.”
Frontman Grian Chatten has also described the collaboration with Rosalía as one of the most memorable achievements of his career.
He revealed that he felt "humbled" when she agreed to lend her voice to the band's album.
Speaking to NPR, Grian said: “I've always felt there's something almost like a single big idea that I'm personally trying to communicate to the world before I get old and die, if that makes sense. There's one thing I think I'll spend my life trying to express. I have a feeling she has a similar outlook. … I mean, she's an amazing arranger, composer and lyricist. It means so much that she wanted to sing on something we'd put together. It's definitely one of the highlights of my career.”
Rosalía's links to Irish rock music extend beyond Fontaines D.C. She also offered inspiration and helped develop the Spanish lyrics for U2's The Mirror Maker (Rosalía), a track from their forthcoming album, Carnaval de Luz.
During an appearance on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon last week, she spoke about frontman Bono, saying: “I don't know him personally, but he sent me a text explaining that he was working on a new project and had written a song called The Mirror Maker."
Rosalía joked that Bono had invented a few words of his own.
She recalled telling him: “I wasn't sure what to make of it, but I told him he could create his own language if he wanted to.”
She described the opportunity to collaborate with the 66 year old music veteran as a real privilege.
She added: “Bono is a legend.
“It's amazing.”
Bono recently revealed that he was worried about seeming like a stalker when he reached out to Rosalía to ask whether he could name the song after her.
