Dan + Shay 'Up' to No. 1 on country airplay; Justin Moore bows atop top country albums
Dan + Shay's "From the Ground Up" rises 2-1 in its 29th week on Billboard's Country airplay chart (dated Sept. 3), increasing by 8 percent to 45.4 million audience impressions, according to Nielsen Music.
The lead single from Dan + Shay's sophomore album, Obsessed, which debuted at its No. 2 peak on Top Country Albums (June 25), is the second consecutive Country Airplay leader for the duo of Dan Smyers and Shay Mooney; "Nothin' Like You" crowned the Country Airplay chart dated Dec. 19, 2015. The pair arrived with the No. 11-peaking "19 You + Me" (2014) and followed up with "Show You Off" (No. 21, 2015) before logging its first two leaders.
Co-written by Smyers and Mooney with Chris DeStefano, "Ground" was inspired by the duo's respective grandparents. "It's special when a song born from real life touches the fans enough to become No. 1," says Cumulus Media vp programming Charlie Cook. "This song had a strong buzz right from the beginning, and a ballad playing all summer and peaking in late August is a testament to Dan + Shay joining the top tier of performers."
"From the moment I heard the song, I knew it was a timeless classic," praises Warner Music Nashville chairman/CEO John Esposito. "I immediately gathered our entire staff with Dan + Shay to share the new music. It was a very special moment listening together for the first time. Its emotion is undeniably palpable."
MOORE SUCCESS: After a three-year wait, Justin Moore's fourth studio full-length, Kinda Don't Care, arrives at No. 1 on Top Country Albums, selling 37,000 copies in its first week (ending Aug. 18). On the all-genre multimetric consumption Billboard 200, the set opens at No. 4 with 42,000 equivalent albums.
The album is Moore's third straight No. 1 (and No. 1 debut) LP on Top Country Albums, following Off the Beaten Path (2013; it launched with 65,000 sold) and Outlaws Like Me (2011; 34,000). On the Billboard 200, those sets reached Nos. 2 and 5, respectively. Moore now boasts four top 10s on both Top Country Albums and the Billboard 200, as his eponymous 2009 debut LP bowed and peaked at Nos. 3 and 10 on the charts, respectively.
"It's so humbling to wake up one day with the No. 1 [country] album in the country," Moore tells Billboard. "Thanks to the fans, I've been able to experience that three straight times we have put an album out. This may be the most special, seeing as how it's been three years since my last one. I hope everyone knows how much it is appreciated."
The lead single from the new set, "You Look Like I Need a Drink," ascends to a new high on Hot Country Songs, rising 18-14. On Country Airplay, "Drink" becomes Moore's sixth top five hit (10-5; 32.1 million, up 13 percent).
HIGH ON THE CHART: On Hot Country Songs, which combines airplay, sales and streaming data, Florida Georgia Line's "H.O.L.Y" rules for a 16th week. It also dominates Country Digital Songs (35,000 sold) for a 16th week and Country Streaming Songs (5.8 million U.S. streams) for a 14th frame. (It holds at No. 8 on Country Airplay after leading the Aug. 6 list.)
The track moves into a fourth-place tie for the most weeks at No. 1 in the Hot Country Songs chart's 58-year history, matching Buck Owens' "Love's Gonna Live Here" (1963-64). FGL is chasing its own record, as its "Cruise" holds the title: 24 weeks at No. 1 in 2012-13.
NO JINX FOR JINKS: I'm Not the Devil, from Texas singer-songwriter Cody Jinks, enters at No. 4 on Top Country Albums with 11,000 sold. It's his first appearance on the tally.
Also on Top Country Albums, Dylan Scott's self-titled debut full-length arrives at No. 5 with 9,000 sold. On Hot Country Songs, Scott's "My Girl" re-enters at a new high point of No. 40.
A GOOD WORD:Blake Shelton's "She's Got a Way With Words" enters the Country Airplay top 10 (11-10, 26.8 million, up 4 percent), marking his 26th top 10 on the tally.
