Every Country Song with Over One Billion Streams on Spotify

Whether you love it or hate it, there’s no denying that Spotify is king of music streaming. Boasting over 626 million total users and 246 million subscribers, Spotify dominates the music streaming industry, taking up around 31% of total market share according to the Seattle Times. It’s a pretty good litmus test to see how well an artist or a song is doing based on Spotify streaming numbers alone. Of course, that doesn’t tell the entire picture; some artists work the system and have their label get them on highly followed playlists, which can artificially inflate their numbers while not being able to do the most important thing in music—get asses in seats. Nonetheless, it’s a good metric, especially when looking at just how big of a hit a certain song is.

To date, six country songs have hit the 1 billion streams mark on Spotify, though not all of them are country in the strictest sense.

Zach Bryan’s “Something In The Orange” is the latest to crack this short list. From his 2022 album American Heartbreak, “Something In The Orange” has become the biggest song in Zach Bryan’s short career and is bound to be a fan favorite for a long time.

Chris Stapleton’s “Tennessee Whiskey” is another song to join the billion streams club. Not many people remember that this one’s a cover at this point. It’s become Chris Stapleton’s signature song and is one of the few country songs to ever be certified Diamond, so it’s no surprise that it crossed the billion streams mark earlier this month.

Morgan Wallen’s “Last Night” begins the part of the list that can be referred to as “Questionable.” The streaming success of Morgan Wallen’s last two albums is something that’s going to be studied by music historians, but nothing has been quite as successful as the third single from his 2023 album One Thing At A Time. It became the first song to stream a billion times in a single year, hitting the mark just six months after it had been released.

Noah Kahan’s “Stick Season” is another entry on the list, though it’s not strictly a country song. It’s a heck of a lot more country than some other entries, and thus included here. “Stick Season” was the lead single and title track for Noah Kahan’s 2023 album and his ticket to superstardom. Country artists like Kelsea Ballerini and Zach Bryan have collaborated with him, and his catalogue would fit nicely in the country genre, if only so he could be added to country festival lineups.

Bebe Rexha and Florida Georgia Line’s “Meant To Be” represents the least country of the country songs on the list. The lyrics might be seen as painfully hard to listen to for some, but its success is undeniable. It’s hard to imagine it being written by four fully grown adults and not a third grader. Here’s a snippet for those unfamiliar: So, come on, ride with me, ride with me / See where this thing goes / So, come on, ride with me, ride with me / Baby, if it’s meant to be / Maybe we do / Maybe we don’t / Maybe we will / Maybe we won’t / But if it’s meant to be, it’ll be, it’ll be / Baby, just let it be.

Finally, we have Dan + Shay’s collaboration with Justin Bieber, “10,000 Hours.” Admittedly, this is one of Dan + Shay’s better tracks. It was the first country song to ever reach the 1 billion streams mark, a significant milestone for the genre. However, it’s a bit disappointing that it took a Justin Bieber feature to get there.

Source: Seattle Times