Just one week after Beyoncé became the first Black woman to lead Billboard’s Hot Country Songs chart with her twangy “Texas Hold ‘Em,” the single now reigns over the publication’s all-genre-inclusive Hot 100 songs list.
“Texas Hold ‘Em,”along with the single “16 Carriages,” was released during the Super Bowl and later debuted on the Hot 100 at No. 2. It moves to the peak in its first full tracking week with a total of 29 million streams and an increase of over 200% in radio reach for 16 million airplay impressions, according to data provided by Luminate. It previously debuted with 5 million.
“Texas” becomes the singer’s ninth solo No. 1, and her first since “Break My Soul” topped the chart for two weeks in 2022 (Destiny’s Child, with Beyoncé as a member, previously scored four Hot 100 No. 1s).
With significant numbers of adds at top country stations, “Texas” has also placed Beyoncé on the Country Airplay chart’s top 40 for the first time in her career, as the song rises from No. 54 to No. 34 in the latest tracking week.
Following the arrival of both “Texas” and “16 Carriages,” fans and insiders began speculating whether country songs from Beyoncé, a Black artist whose singles have historically been serviced to pop radio, would get support from country stations. After a couple of days of uncertainty after the Super Bowl about whether her single would be promoted to the country format, it got an official push and some very encouraging initial results. Sony Nashville’s trade ads showing “Texas” got 79 initial adds, representing about half of the reporting stations — the most for any song that week.
Following the song’s debut atop Billboard’s Hot Country Songs list (which combines streaming, sales and radio), where it sits for a second week today, country champions like Dolly Parton shared their support for the historic feat. As Billboard reports, Beyoncé is also the first woman to have topped both Hot Country Songs and Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs. She joins Morgan Wallen, Justin Bieber, Billy Ray Cyrus and Ray Charles are the only acts to have hit No. 1 on both charts.
