Lil Nas X is laughing at Billboard now.
Two months after the people who run the Billboard charts removed Lil Nas X’s runaway smash hit “Old Town Road” from the country music charts — claiming it was not a real country song, despite having Billy Ray Cyrus on the hook — the song has set a new chart record.
“Old Town Road” has remained No. 1 on the Billboard charts for the 13th consecutive week, breaking the old record for a rap song to remain at the pinnacle of the pop charts in history.
Who says a little controversy doesn’t sell? Then again, according to fans and especially kids, the song was infectious enough to blast into orbit without any help from the headlines.
According to Billboard magazine, the previous record for a rap song to remain atop the Billboard charts was 12 weeks, which was shared by three rap acts: “Lose Yourself” by Eminem back in 2002-03; “Boom Boom Pow” by The Black Eyed Peas exactly 10 years ago; and “See You Again” by Wiz Khalifa in 2015.
Billboard adds that Lil Nas X’s song has also stayed atop the charts for the longest period of time since Justin Bieber was a guest singer on the Luis Fonsi and Daddy Yankee joint “Despacito,” which stayed at No. 1 for 16 consecutive weeks in 2017.
