Lil Nas X sets new Billboard record for most weeks at No.1

NEW YORK (AP) — It's one sweet day for Lil Nas X: The breakthrough rapper's viral "Old Town Road" has broken the Billboard record set by Mariah Carey's "One Sweet Day" for most weeks at No. 1.

Lil Nas X accomplishes the feat this week as his country-trap song spends its 17th week on top of the Hot 100 chart. Carey and Boyz II Men's duet set the record in 1996, and the only song to come close to breaking it was the ubiquitous international hit "Despacito," which tied the 16-week record in 2017.

"Old Town Road," which has achieved most of its success through audio streaming, was originally a solo song but 20-year-old Lil Nas X added Billy Ray Cyrus to the track. The song also has remix versions featuring Diplo, Young Thug, Mason Ramsey and BTS, and Billboard counts the original song and its remixes as one when calculating chart position, thus helping "Old Town Road" stay on top.

"Old Town Road" initially was in a bit of controversy in March when Billboard removed it from its country charts, deeming it not country enough (it peaked at No. 19 on the country charts). But the drama didn't hurt the song; it only propelled it.

Songs have come close to displacing "Old Town Road" from the top spot — including Billie Eilish's "Bad Guy" and a pair of Taylor Swift singles — but ultimately were unsuccessful.

Swift was successful in 2017 when her song "Look What You Made Me Do" stopped Luis Fonsi, Daddy Yankee and Justin Bieber's "Despacito" from reaching a 17th week at No. 1. Celine Dion's "Because You Loved Me" ended Carey and Boyz II Men's epic run in 1996. </s> Lil Nas X has taken his horse to the old town road and ridden it to the top of the Billboard charts for 16 weeks, tying a record set by Mariah Carey and Luis Fonsi.

"Old Town Road" logs its 16th week at No. 1 on Billboard's Hot 100 chart this week, matching the success that Carey and Boyz II Men's "One Sweet Day" achieved in 1995-1996. Fonsi, Daddy Yankee and Justin Bieber's "Despacito" accomplished the feat in 2017.

No song has spent more than 16 weeks at No. 1 on the all-genre Hot 100 chart in the 61-year history of the Billboard charts.

The country-rap "Old Town Road" was originally a solo song but 20-year-old Lil Nas X added Billy Ray Cyrus to the track and it topped the charts. </s> It’s one sweet day for Lil Nas X: The breakthrough rapper’s viral “Old Town Road” has broken the Billboard record set by Mariah Carey’s “One Sweet Day” for most weeks at No. 1. Lil Nas X accomplishes the feat this week as his country-trap song spends its 17th week on top of the Hot 100 chart.

Carey and Boyz II Men’s duet set the record in 1996, and the only song to come close to breaking it was the ubiquitous international hit “Despacito,” which tied the 16-week record in 2017.

Hours later he posted a video thanking his fans for helping his song set a new record.

“I’m on the toilet right now, but I want to say thank you to every single person who has made this moment possible for me. We just broke the record for the longest-running No. 1 song of all-time,” said Lil Nas X, sporting a cowboy hat as he played “Old Town Road” in the background. “Let’s go!”

“Old Town Road,” which has achieved most of its success through audio streaming, was originally a solo song but 20-year-old Lil Nas X added Billy Ray Cyrus to the track. The song also has remix versions featuring Diplo, Young Thug, Mason Ramsey and BTS, and Billboard counts the original song and its remixes as one when calculating chart position, thus helping “Old Town Road” stay on top.

“17 is my new favorite number,” Cyrus said in a statement Monday, also referring to his debut album “Some Gave All,” which spent 17 weeks at No. 1 in 1992. “My goal was always to make music that would touch people’s lives around the world.”

“Old Town Road” initially was in a bit of controversy in March when Billboard removed it from its country charts, deeming it not country enough (it peaked at No. 19 on the country charts). But the drama didn’t hurt the song; it only propelled it.

Songs have come close to displacing “Old Town Road” from the top spot — including Billie Eilish’s “Bad Guy” and a pair of Taylor Swift singles — but ultimately were unsuccessful.

Swift was successful in 2017 when her song “Look What You Made Me Do” stopped Luis Fonsi, Daddy Yankee and Justin Bieber’s “Despacito” from reaching a 17th week at No. 1. Celine Dion’s “Because You Loved Me” ended Carey and Boyz II Men’s epic run in 1996. </s> Lil Nas X's "Old Town Road" Ties Record For Longest-Running Number One Of All Time

For the 16th week in a row, Lil Nas X’s hit “Old Town Road” sits atop the Billboard Hot 100. This means that the track from the 20-year-old ATLien is tied for the longest-running No. 1 of all time.

According to reports, the single from the 7 EP ties Luis Fonsi, Daddy Yankee and Justin Bieber’s ”Despacito," as well as Mariah Carey and Boyz II Men's "One Sweet Day” for the record. If he stays at No. 1 for one more week, he will be the first song in the history of American popular music to reign for an unprecedented 17 weeks.

The initial song made waves earlier this year after getting the boot from Billboard’s Country charts for allegedly not implementing enough elements of the genre. Since then, “Old Town Road” has seen three featured artists on two separate remixes– Billy Ray Cyrus, Young Thug and Mason Ramsey. Last week, country music icon Dolly Parton hinted at hopping on the song’s next remix.

Do you think “Old Town Road” will set a new record next week? Sound off in the comments. </s> NEW YORK (AP) — Lil Nas X has taken his horse to the old town road and ridden it to the top of the Billboard charts for 16 weeks, tying a record set by Mariah Carey and Luis Fonsi.

"Old Town Road" logs its 16th week at No. 1 on Billboard's Hot 100 chart this week, matching the success that Carey and Boyz II Men's "One Sweet Day" achieved in 1995-1996. Fonsi, Daddy Yankee and Justin Bieber's "Despacito" accomplished the feat in 2017.

No song has spent more than 16 weeks at No. 1 on the all-genre Hot 100 chart in the 61-year history of the Billboard charts.

The country-rap "Old Town Road" was originally a solo song, but 20-year-old Lil Nas X added Billy Ray Cyrus to the track and it topped the charts, achieving most of its success through audio streaming.

Lil Nas X is looking forward to setting a new Billboard record next week. He posted a video Monday on social media of the "SpongeBob SquarePants" character Squidward Tentacles saying, "Please stream 'Old Town Road.'"

"Me on the internet this whole week tryna break the billboard record," he wrote in the caption.

"Old Town Road" initially was in a bit of controversy in March when Billboard removed it from its country charts, deeming it not country enough (it peaked at No. 19 on the country charts). But the drama didn't hurt the song; it only propelled it.

"This song has been a uniter not a divider," Cyrus said in a statement Monday. "I'm giving God the glory now for allowing me the gift to be part of such a special song. It's a unique moment in time where people from all over the world and all walks of life find they have more in common than they do different. It's a moment we've all shared and I'm grateful for it."

"Old Town Road" appears on Lil Nas X's debut EP "7," which peaked at No. 2 on Billboard's 200 albums chart earlier this month. The EP also features the Top 40 hits "Panini" and "Rodeo" with Cardi B.

"Old Town Road" is also spending its 16th week on top of both the R&B/Hip-Hop and rap songs charts. The song has several versions, including remixes featuring Diplo, Young Thug and Mason Ramsey; Billboard counts the original song and its remix versions as one when calculating chart position, thus helping "Old Town Road" stay on top.

A number of songs have debuted at No. 2 on the Hot 100 chart, unable to push "Old Town Road" out of its top position, including two tunes from Taylor Swift ("You Need to Calm Down," ''ME!"); Ed Sheeran and Bieber's "I Don't Care"; and two songs from Shawn Mendes ("If I Can't Have You," ''Senorita" with Camila Cabello).

Swift's "Look What You Made Me Do" stopped "Despacito" from reaching a 17th week at No. 1 when the pop smash jumped from No. 77 to No. 1 in 2017. Celine Dion's "Because You Loved Me" ended Carey and Boyz II Men's epic run in 1996. </s> NEW YORK (AP) — Lil Nas X has taken his horse to the old town road and ridden it to the top of the Billboard charts for 16 weeks, tying a record set by Mariah Carey and Luis Fonsi.

“Old Town Road” logs its 16th week at No. 1 on Billboard’s Hot 100 chart this week, matching the success that Carey and Boyz II Men’s “One Sweet Day” achieved in 1995-1996. Fonsi, Daddy Yankee and Justin Bieber’s “Despacito” accomplished the feat in 2017.

No song has spent more than 16 weeks at No. 1 on the all-genre Hot 100 chart in the 61-year history of the Billboard charts.

The country-rap “Old Town Road” was originally a solo song, but 20-year-old Lil Nas X added Billy Ray Cyrus to the track and it topped the charts, achieving most of its success through audio streaming.

Lil Nas X is looking forward to setting a new Billboard record next week. He posted a video Monday on social media of the “SpongeBob SquarePants” character Squidward Tentacles saying, “Please stream ‘Old Town Road.'”

“Me on the internet this whole week tryna break the billboard record,” he wrote in the caption.

“Old Town Road” initially was in a bit of controversy in March when Billboard removed it from its country charts, deeming it not country enough (it peaked at No. 19 on the country charts). But the drama didn’t hurt the song; it only propelled it.

“This song has been a uniter not a divider,” Cyrus said in a statement Monday. “I’m giving God the glory now for allowing me the gift to be part of such a special song. It’s a unique moment in time where people from all over the world and all walks of life find they have more in common than they do different. It’s a moment we’ve all shared and I’m grateful for it.”

“Old Town Road” appears on Lil Nas X’s debut EP “7,” which peaked at No. 2 on Billboard’s 200 albums chart earlier this month. The EP also features the Top 40 hits “Panini” and “Rodeo” with Cardi B.

“Old Town Road” is also spending its 16th week on top of both the R&B/Hip-Hop and rap songs charts. The song has several versions, including remixes featuring Diplo, Young Thug and Mason Ramsey; Billboard counts the original song and its remix versions as one when calculating chart position, thus helping “Old Town Road” stay on top.

A number of songs have debuted at No. 2 on the Hot 100 chart, unable to push “Old Town Road” out of its top position, including two tunes from Taylor Swift (“You Need to Calm Down,” ”ME!”); Ed Sheeran and Bieber’s “I Don’t Care”; and two songs from Shawn Mendes (“If I Can’t Have You,” ”Senorita” with Camila Cabello).

Swift’s “Look What You Made Me Do” stopped “Despacito” from reaching a 17th week at No. 1 when the pop smash jumped from No. 77 to No. 1 in 2017. Celine Dion’s “Because You Loved Me” ended Carey and Boyz II Men’s epic run in 1996.

Copyright © 2019 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, written or redistributed. </s> Lil Nas X Ties Chart Record For Longest Streak At No. 1

Lil Nas X's "Old Town Road" rode right into its 16th week at No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100 today, tying the record for longest consecutive time in the top spot.

Only two songs have achieved this long of a streak before in the chart's history. Mariah Carey and Boyz II Men's "One Sweet Day" was first in 1995, and held the record for more than two decades until Luis Fonsi and Daddy Yankee — with an assist from Justin Bieber on the remix — tied it in 2017 with "Despacito."

Lil Nas X seemed confident this weekend, tweeting "what we doing to celebrate the billboard record when we break it y'all." But his chart victory was a close one — especially once Billie Eilish, the artist best positioned to break his streak, seemed to figure out one of the keys to his success.

The rapper had dominated the Hot 100 in part by exploiting Billboard's murky remix policy, which counts the original song and its remixes as one when it comes to calculating chart position (as long as the remixes don't deviate too far in composition). Lil Nas X has released four official versions of "Old Town Road," the newest of which, featuring rapper Young Thug and viral star Mason Ramsey, came just last week, in time to push listening numbers up ahead of week 16.

Eilish effectively deployed the same tactic, enlisting veteran chart-booster Bieber for a remix of her No. 2 song, "bad guy," also released last week. Today's chart unveiled the results of their remix race: Adding Bieber wasn't quite enough for Eilish to catch up to the hundreds of millions of listens "Old Town Road" and its many permutations have generated.

It's worth noting that this deft manipulation is happening at the hands of two very young artists — Eilish is 17, Lil Nas X is 20 — who each clearly understand the power of virality and taking advantage of a moment. The original "Old Town Road" first entered the Hot 100 in March after going viral on the social media platform TikTok, and was propelled upward by attention from a controversy over whether the song belonged on Billboard's country chart, which fatefully led to a collaboration with Billy Ray Cyrus, resulting in the most popular remix of the bunch.

NPR Music's Rodney Carmichael asked Lil Nas X in April if the rapper was simply trolling the music industry with all these games. His answer was characteristically self-assured: "Even if they like ['Old Town Road'] as a joke, they're not liking this as a joke and putting it at No. 1, too." </s> FILE – This June 1, 2019 file photo shows Lil Nas X performing at HOT 97 Summer Jam 2019 in East Rutherford, N.J. The rapper has taken his “Old Town Road” to the top of the Billboard charts for 16 weeks, tying a record set by Mariah Carey and Luis Fonsi. (Photo by Scott Roth/Invision/AP, File)

NEW YORK (AP) — Lil Nas X has taken his horse to the old town road and ridden it to the top of the Billboard charts for 16 weeks, tying a record set by Mariah Carey and Luis Fonsi.

“Old Town Road” logs its 16th week at No. 1 on Billboard’s Hot 100 chart this week, matching the success that Carey and Boyz II Men’s “One Sweet Day” achieved in 1995-1996. Fonsi, Daddy Yankee and Justin Bieber’s “Despacito” accomplished the feat in 2017.

No song has spent more than 16 weeks at No. 1 on the all-genre Hot 100 chart in the 61-year history of the Billboard charts.

The country-rap “Old Town Road” was originally a solo song, but 20-year-old Lil Nas X added Billy Ray Cyrus to the track and it topped the charts, achieving most of its success through audio streaming.

The song initially was in a bit of controversy in March when Billboard removed it from its country charts, deeming it not country enough (it peaked at No. 19 on the country charts). But the drama didn’t hurt the song; it only propelled it.

“Old Town Road” appears on Lil Nas X’s debut EP “7,” which peaked at No. 2 on Billboard’s 200 albums chart earlier this month. The EP also features the Top 40 hits “Panini” and “Rodeo” with Cardi B.

“Old Town Road” is also spending its 16th week on top of both the R&B/Hip-Hop and rap songs charts. The song has several versions, including remixes featuring Diplo, Young Thug and Mason Ramsey; Billboard counts the original song and its remix versions as one when calculating chart position, thus helping “Old Town Road” stay on top.

A number of songs have debuted at No. 2 on the Hot 100 chart, unable to push “Old Town Road” out of its top position, including two tunes from Taylor Swift (“You Need to Calm Down,” ”ME!”); Ed Sheeran and Bieber’s “I Don’t Care”; and two songs from Shawn Mendes (“If I Can’t Have You,” ”Senorita” with Camila Cabello).

Swift’s “Look What You Made Me Do” stopped “Despacito” from reaching a 17th week at No. 1 when the pop smash jumped from No. 77 to No. 1 in 2017. Celine Dion’s “Because You Loved Me” ended Carey and Boyz II Men’s epic run in 1996. </s> Lil Nas X’s “Old Town Road” has officially tied the record for the most weeks spent on top of the Billboard Hot 100 chart. The song has spent 16 weeks at #1, a feat achieved by only two other songs in history: Mariah Carey and Boyz II Men’s “One Sweet Day” (1995) and Luis Fonsi, Daddy Yankee, and Justin Bieber’s “Despacito” (2017).

The achievement hasn’t come without its own series of modern-day chart finagling. On 7/12, Lil Nas X released a new “Old Town Road” remix featuring Young Thug and Mason Ramsey — the plays for that remix count for this past week’s numbers.

“Old Town Road” has to spend one more week on top of the chart to break the record. Last week, Lil Nas X released an animated Area 51-themed video in an effort to capitalize on its current popularity.

In potential “Old Town Road” competition on the horizon: Billie Eilish’s “Bad Guy,” with help from a new remix featuring Justin Bieber, stays steady at #2 for yet another week. Jumping up to #3 is Ed Sheeran and Justin Bieber’s “I Don’t Care,” which peaked at #2. Post Malone and Young Thug’s “Goodbyes,” which debuted at #3 last week, drops to #7.

Will “Old Town Road” become the longest-reigning #1 single? Stay tuned next week.
Billboard reports that Lil Nas X has broken the all-time record on the Billboard Hot 100 with his song "Old Town Road", as it spends its seventeenth week atop the chart; the previous record-holders are Mariah Carey and Boyz II Men with "One Sweet Day", and Luis Fonsi with "Despacito" featuring Daddy Yankee.