Blake Shelton Marks Milestone 30th Country Airplay Chart Leader

Blake Shelton secures his milestone 30th No. 1 on Billboard’s Country Airplay chart as “Stay Country or Die Tryin’ ” lifts two spots on the ranking dated Jan. 17. The single delivered 29.5 million audience impressions (up 13%) during the Jan. 2-8 tracking week, according to Luminate.

Written by Beau Bailey, Graham Barham, Sam Ellis and Drew Parker, the track marks another collaboration with longtime producer Scott Hendricks. Shelton last reached the summit as featured on Post Malone’s “Pour Me a Drink” for three weeks in October 2024. Before that, his “Happy Anywhere” and “Nobody but You,” both with Gwen Stefani, ruled in 2020. He earns his first leader as the sole billed artist on a song since “God’s Country” in 2019. Shelton first topped the chart, for five weeks, in 2001 with his debut single, “Austin,” which remains his longest-held No. 1.

With 30 Country Airplay leaders, Shelton moves solely into second place on the chart’s all-time leaderboard, trailing only Kenny Chesney’s 33 since the ranking launched in 1990. Tim McGraw places third with 29 No. 1s, while Luke Bryan, Alan Jackson and George Strait each claim 26. Jason Aldean has notched 25, Keith Urban and Thomas Rhett, 21 each, and Brooks & Dunn, Toby Keith and Brad Paisley, 20 apiece. Garth Brooks, Luke Combs and Morgan Wallen follow with 19 each, ahead of Dierks Bentley‘s 18 and Florida Georgia Line and Carrie Underwood’s 16 each.

Westbrook Top 10 ‘Again’

Hudson Westbrook’s “House Again” returns to the Country Airplay top 10 (11-10; 19.6 million, up 6%). Over the holidays, Westbrook became the fifth and final act of 2025 to reach top 10 for the first time, joining Hootie & the Blowfish (“Bottle Rockets,” with Scotty McCreery), John Morgan (“Friends Like That,” featuring Jason Aldean), Josh Ross (“Single Again”) and Zach Top (“I Never Lie”). In 2024, 16 acts logged their first top 10s on the chart.