Before diving into the phenomenon of the number one song on Billboard’s Hot 100 – a catchy tune that became the shortest chart-topper since 1965 – it’s essential to address the chart it was notably absent from, at least initially. To truly grasp the socio-cultural complexities surrounding “Old Town Road,” we must rewind to a similar, yet distinct, Billboard categorization decision from just a few years prior. This historical context illuminates the intricate situation Billboard found itself in, a predicament that unexpectedly thrust the esteemed music industry authority into mainstream discussions about race and genre.
In late 2014, Billboard quietly made a pivotal decision regarding a song rapidly ascending its charts, poised to conquer the Hot 100: Mark Ronson and Bruno Mars’ “Uptown Funk.” This track, despite its undeniable sonic roots, would not be classified as an R&B song, nor would it be permitted to chart on the Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart. At the time, this decision struck many as perplexing. As critics noted, “Uptown Funk” was an overt and comprehensive tribute to early 1980s R&B, reminiscent of icons like Rick James, Zapp, and the Gap Band. Its adherence to that era’s sound was so profound that members of the Gap Band successfully pursued legal action, securing belated songwriting credits. From a music critic’s perspective, excluding the song from the R&B/Hip-Hop chart seemed almost indefensible.
However, adopting the analytical perspective of a chart specialist, the rationale behind Billboard’s category call became somewhat clearer, albeit tinged with cynicism. Had “Uptown Funk” been classified as R&B/Hip-Hop, it would have dominated that chart for an unprecedented duration. Based on Billboard’s genre-chart methodologies, “Uptown Funk” would have reigned supreme for an astounding 19 weeks, from December 2014 through April 2015, shattering all previous records on the R&B chart. This hypothetical reign would have surpassed Drake’s “One Dance,” which held the record at 18 weeks in 2016, and eclipsed the 18-week reigns of “The Honeydripper” by Joe Liggins and “Choo Choo Ch’Boogie” by Louis Jordan in the 1940s, when the chart was controversially labeled “Race Records.” When questioned in early 2015 about retroactively including “Uptown Funk” on the R&B/Hip-Hop chart, especially as it gained traction on urban radio, Billboard maintained its stance. Even as the song climbed to fifth place on R&B/hip-hop radio airplay charts by April 2015, Billboard affirmed its position, deeming the song “a pop hit that is crossing over to R&B radio.” The reluctance to reclassify was understandable: reclassifying “Uptown Funk” as R&B so late would have resulted in an incongruous No. 1 debut on the R&B/Hip-Hop chart, fueled by its massive digital sales and streaming numbers.
The “Old Town Road” Phenomenon: A Genre-Bending Hit
With the “Uptown Funk” categorization in mind, consider the uproar surrounding “Old Town Road” by Montero Lamar Hill, known as Lil Nas X. In April 2019, shortly after his 20th birthday, “Old Town Road” ascended to the pinnacle of the Hot 100, simultaneously claiming the top spot on Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs. Yet, it was conspicuously absent from the Hot Country Songs chart, deemed ineligible for inclusion. This exclusion of Hill’s self-proclaimed “country trap” anthem from the flagship country chart ignited controversy. However, the core issue for chart analysts like myself transcends the immediate genre debate. The real contention lies in what genre charts measure in the digital age and who dictates their contents. Whether “Old Town Road” is definitively country remains debatable, but the country music audience should have the agency to collectively determine its genre affinity, mirroring how audiences organically embraced “Uptown Funk” as an R&B song.
Focusing on the Hot 100, genre limitations are thankfully absent, and the chart-topping success of “Old Town Road” has been largely met with acceptance. The genesis of “Old Town Road” mirrors the viral trajectories of hits like “Panda” and “Bodak Yellow.” Lil Nas X, who cultivated an online presence and was once a Nicki Minaj fan account administrator, began releasing music on SoundCloud. “Old Town Road” emerged in December, built upon a sample from “34 Ghosts IV,” a distinctly twangy instrumental track by Nine Inch Nails from 2008. This unexpected sample source resulted in Trent Reznor’s first No. 1 hit as a songwriter. The song’s charm lies in its self-aware, pastiche nature. The lyrics, seemingly penned as a playful cowboy pastiche, reference quintessential cowboy imagery: horses, hats, boots, and the eponymous old town road. Despite its prominent trap beat, “Old Town Road” is vocally delivered more akin to singing than rapping, drawing comparisons to Drake’s “Hotline Bling” in its genre ambiguity. In an era where Post Malone is frequently labeled a rapper, Lil Nas X’s “country trap” descriptor appears remarkably fitting.
From Meme to Mainstream: The Rise of “Old Town Road”
“Old Town Road” transcended its meme origins to become a cultural phenomenon. Digital consumption propelled its meteoric rise, with radio airplay lagging. Initially, radio airplay for “Old Town Road” was modest, insufficient to place it on the Radio Songs component chart. However, digital sales were robust, ranking high on Digital Songs charts. Yet, given its concise runtime of 1:53, the original mix of “Old Town Road” at $1.29 per download arguably became one of the most expensive per-second digital downloads. Streaming platforms, particularly Spotify, became the song’s stronghold. “Old Town Road” dominated Streaming Songs charts, experiencing a significant surge in streams.
The song’s virality narrative is uniquely modern. TikTok, a short-video platform akin to Vine, played a pivotal role, igniting the #YeehawChallenge around the song in January. This meme’s infectious spread propelled “Old Town Road” onto the charts by March, steadily climbing into the Top 40 and then the Top 20. However, the catalyst for its explosive leap to No. 1 was the widespread media coverage surrounding its rejection by the “Country Industrial Complex” and the ensuing Billboard chart categorization controversy. “Old Town Road” evolved from a viral meme into a symbol of a broader debate.
Billboard’s Chart Controversy and Genre Gatekeeping
Recapping Billboard’s controversial decision: Initially, due to Lil Nas X’s digital tagging of the song as country, “Old Town Road” briefly charted on Hot Country Songs, debuting impressively at No. 19. This initial inclusion, in retrospect, was arguably Billboard’s misstep. If genre ineligibility was the ultimate verdict, initial charting should have been avoided. Subsequently, Billboard removed the track from Hot Country Songs just a week later, reportedly bowing to pressure from Nashville-centric gatekeepers who questioned its country authenticity. Billboard’s official justification cited the song’s “references to country and cowboy imagery” but argued it lacked “enough elements of today’s country music to chart in its current version.” Billboard asserted that race was not a factor in this decision, yet the media, fueled by articles highlighting racial undertones in genre classifications, erupted in outrage. Ironically, reports surfaced that the sole country radio station playing “Old Town Road” was Radio Disney Country in Los Angeles.
The ensuing discourse transformed the usually niche world of chart analysis into a mainstream talking point. Opinions on the definition of country music proliferated, often from voices outside the country genre itself, alongside declarations proclaiming the obsolescence of genre distinctions. While genres are culturally constructed, not solely racially determined, audience perception and format expectations are crucial. Country music, with its evolving identity, has become associated with conservative themes. However, fundamentally, it remains a culturally conservative format, with boundaries policed by radio listeners, measured through digital PPM technology, and Nashville industry gatekeepers.
Historically, country radio programmers and listeners have consistently made genre-defining judgments. Creedence Clearwater Revival’s country-infused hits were largely excluded from country radio in the late 1960s and early 70s, perceived as rock. Boys Don’t Cry’s synth-rock “I Wanna Be a Cowboy” was similarly overlooked, despite its thematic resonance with “Old Town Road.” Conversely, Lionel Richie’s country-tinged “Stuck on You” achieved modest country chart success in 1984. More recently, artists of color deeply embedded within the format have found acceptance. Darius Rucker, formerly of Hootie and the Blowfish, has achieved multiple country No. 1 hits since 2008. Within the past year, black artists Jimmie Allen and Kane Brown have been embraced by Nashville and country radio, both reaching No. 1 on Billboard’s Country Airplay chart.
Acknowledging country music’s history of racial and gender biases, including the marginalization of Ray Charles in the 1960s, the tokenism surrounding Charley Pride, and the underrepresentation of women beyond Carrie Underwood, is vital. The convergence of country and rap production and genre elements has been evident for two decades, from collaborations like Tim McGraw and Nelly to artists like Bubba Sparxxx and Cowboy Troy, and Jason Aldean’s “Dirt Road Anthem”. However, these examples don’t automatically classify “Old Town Road” as definitively country. Instead, genre boundaries should ideally be defined organically by the listeners and consumers of that genre, not by external forces like media outrage or even well-intentioned institutions like Billboard.
The Flawed Methodology of Modern Genre Charts
This brings us back to Billboard’s 2010s genre-chart methodology and the “Uptown Funk” dilemma. Why was Billboard hesitant to categorize “Uptown Funk” as R&B in 2015? Why the need to judge its R&B authenticity, paralleling the “country-ness” scrutiny of “Old Town Road”?
In 2012, Billboard revamped its genre charts – R&B/Hip-Hop, Country, and Latin – into hybrid charts incorporating sales, airplay, and streaming data, mirroring the Hot 100 formula. This modernization, intended to include digital data, inadvertently disconnected the charts from genre-specific audience preferences. Previously, the R&B chart’s sales component focused on sales from black-owned retailers or stores catering to predominantly black clientele, reflecting black audience consumption patterns. This approach identified songs like Hall & Oates’ “I Can’t Go for That” as R&B hits based on sales in these retail outlets and airplay on black radio. However, the digital era and the decline of physical music retail rendered this methodology obsolete. Billboard transitioned to using the same digital data pool as the Hot 100 and broadened the radio component beyond “urban” stations to encompass all radio formats. Similarly, Hot Country Songs, historically a radio-only chart, incorporated digital sales and streams post-2012, without filtering data for core country music consumers. A prime example of the immediate impact of this change was Taylor Swift’s pop-crossover single “We Are Never Ever Getting Back Together,” which surged to No. 1 on Hot Country Songs due to digital sales, despite limited country radio airplay.
Essentially, these revamped genre charts became miniature Hot 100s, mirroring the main chart’s rankings. Billboard then assumed the role of genre gatekeeper, deciding song eligibility and excluding those deemed unsuitable. This shift has been a long-standing point of contention for chart analysts. While respecting Billboard’s historical significance and often defending its methodologies, these post-2012, digital-fueled genre charts represent a significant flaw. They overemphasize the consumption habits of general pop music fans, who may sporadically engage with genre-specific singles, and undermine the charts’ ability to measure genuine crossover success, where songs organically transition from niche genre audiences to broader mainstream appeal. Conversely, they fail to capture how genre-specific audiences collectively embrace mainstream songs, like “Stuck on You,” as belonging to their format.
This flawed methodology intensifies the pressure on Billboard to arbitrate genre eligibility. The absence of organic, genre-specific data – no longer are there distinct black or country fan bases dictating genre preferences through targeted purchases and radio requests – puts Billboard in an untenable position. Once a pop-leaning song gains entry into a genre chart, its crossover appeal can ensure prolonged chart dominance, as “Uptown Funk” might have achieved on the R&B chart or as “Old Town Road” potentially could on the country chart. The country chart, in particular, has become increasingly pop-driven and unreliable. The record for longest reign at No. 1 on Hot Country Songs has been broken three times since 2012 by pop-leaning country hits: Florida Georgia Line’s “Cruise,” Sam Hunt’s “Body Like a Back Road,” and Bebe Rexha’s “Meant to Be” featuring Florida Georgia Line, with the latter achieving an unprecedented 50-week reign. Consequently, industry experts and chart historians now favor Billboard’s Country Airplay chart, based solely on country radio airplay, as a more credible gauge of genuine country hit status.
The Billy Ray Cyrus Remix and Chart Methodology in Crisis
The media furor surrounding “Old Town Road” centers on its exclusion from Hot Country Songs, the chart Billboard presents as its country music flagship. Will Billboard reverse course and reinstate “Old Town Road” on the country chart, where its crossover popularity could lead to an extended No. 1 reign? The primary justification for exclusion – limited country radio airplay – is weakening. The original mix of “Old Town Road” debuted on Country Airplay, signaling growing terrestrial radio traction. Billboard’s initial statement, noting the song lacked “enough elements of today’s country music to chart in its current version,” hinted at potential flexibility.
Enter Billy Ray Cyrus. The veteran country artist, known for his 90s hit “Achy Breaky Heart,” lent his support to “Old Town Road” with a hastily recorded remix. This remix added verses to Lil Nas X’s original track, extending its runtime to a still-brief two minutes and 37 seconds. Released at the start of a new Billboard tracking week, the remix’s impact on the charts was yet to be determined when “Old Town Road” initially reached No. 1 on the Hot 100 based solely on its original mix. Cyrus’s collaboration generated further media attention, and the remix’s impact on chart performance became a focal point. The remix amplified “Old Town Road’s” Hot 100 dominance but raised the question: would Billy Ray Cyrus’s presence render “Old Town Road” country-eligible according to Billboard’s criteria?
Reinstating “Old Town Road” to the country chart after initially removing it, especially with the addition of a white artist, carried significant optics, potentially reinforcing accusations of racial bias in the initial exclusion. While assuming Billboard’s initial decision wasn’t solely racially motivated, reversing course based on the remix would fuel such perceptions.
From a chart analysis perspective, reinstating “Old Town Road” on Hot Country Songs would likely result in an immediate No. 1 debut, mirroring the hypothetical scenario with “Uptown Funk” on the R&B chart in 2015. This trajectory – from a No. 19 country hit to a country non-hit, potentially back to a No. 1 country hit within six weeks – underscores the fundamental flaws in the current chart methodology. This Nine Inch Nails-sampled, trap-infused, TikTok-fueled hit’s chart journey exposes the broken system of genre classification in the digital music landscape.
