Lil Nas x beats US singles chart record with Old Town Road

30 July 2019

Old Town Road has become a viral rap song and is now the longest running number one in US chart history. The song by Lil Nas X has topped the Billboards Hot 100 for 17 weeks. It has gained 72.5 million streams and 46,000 downloads in the past seven days.

The rapper’s real name is Montero Hill and recorded the song last October using a backing track he bought online for £24.70 ($30). By March this year, Lil Nas X had signed a deal with Columbia Records and the song gained early press coverage after it was banned by Billboard’s country charts for failing to “embrace enough elements of today’s country music”.

The longest reigning number ones in the US are:

13 April 2019: Old Town Road, Lil Nas X feat. Billy Ray Cyrus (17 weeks)
27 May 2017: Despacito, Luis Fonsi & Daddy Yankee feat. Justin Bieber (16 weeks)
2 December 1995: One Sweet Day, Mariah Carey & Boyz II Men (16 weeks)
17 January 2015: Uptown Funk, Mark Ronson feat. Bruno Mars (14 weeks)
11 July 2009: Gotta Feeling, The Black Eyed Peas (14 weeks)
4 June 2005: We Belong Together, Mariah Carey (14 weeks)
11 October 1997: Candle in the Wind/Something About the Way You Look Tonight, Elton John (14 weeks)
3 August 1996: Macarena (Bayside Boys Mix), Los Del Rio (14 weeks)
27 August 1994: I’ll Make Love to You, Boyz II Men (14 weeks)
28 November 1992: I Will Always Love You, Whitney Houston (14 weeks)

Mariah Carey has congratulated the rapper on Instagram, saying: “Sending love & congrats to @lilnasx on breaking one of the longest running records in music history! We’ve been blessed to hold this record with a song that means a great deal to @BoyzIIMen and myself and has touched so many.

“Keep living your best life! One Sweet Day will always hold a special place in my heart and I want to thank anyone who’s ever told me how this song has affected them and their loved ones.”

Lil Nas X took to all social medias to comment on the news and he thanked everyone for helping him/supporting his music, “thank you to every single person☝️ who has been apart of this journey”.