Lil Nas X’s “Old Town Road” made history by breaking the record for most weeks at number one on Billboard’s Hot 100!
What We Know:
- Billboard announced on Monday that the song has topped the chart for 17 straight weeks. Lil Nas X surpassed other artists who’ve previously held the record of 16 weeks — 1995’s “One Sweet Day” by Mariah Carey and Boyz II Men and 2017’s “Despacito” remix by Luis Fonsi and Daddy Yankee featuring Justin Bieber.
- The rapper tweeted a thoughtful message after the news broke. “This song has changed my life…and the way i see the world around me…in less than a year,” he said. “Thank you to every single person who has been apart of this journey as i said before, it’s just the beginning.”
- Mariah Carey posted a photo on Twitter of her passing the torch to the 20-year-old rapper along with a special congrats. “Sending love & congrats to @Lilnasx on breaking one of the longest running records in music history!” she writes.
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! ❤ pic.twitter.com/3YorLCg3lx
— Mariah Carey (@MariahCarey) July 30, 2019
- The song created some controversy earlier this year regarding whether it was a country song or a hip-hop song. Billboard removed the song from its Country chart and released a statement saying, “It does not embrace enough elements of today’s country music to chart in its current version.” In response, Lil Nas X added legendary country musician Billy Ray Cyrus to the remix.
The rapper is currently being sued by a company called The Music Force for $25 million for allegedly ripping off a song called “Carry On,” which was written by Bobby Caldwell. The company claims the song was copyrighted back in 1983. Hopefully, he can celebrate his success despite the problems it comes with.
