Old Town Road

The song has been widely viewed as "country rap", a somewhat rare musical style not often heard in the mainstream prior to this song's release. Dutch record producer YoungKio composed the instrumental and made it available for purchase online in 2018. It features a sample of "34 Ghosts IV" by the American industrial rock band Nine Inch Nails. The sample was placed behind trap-style Roland TR-808 drums and bass. Lil Nas X purchased the instrumental for US$30 and recorded "Old Town Road" in one day. At the time, he had been living with his sister after dropping-out of college; his real-world struggles were an influence on some of the lyrics.


The song initially gained popularity on the social video sharing app TikTok and eventually entered the Billboard charts in March 2019.^[3] The song also reached number 19 on the Billboard Hot Country Songs chart before the magazine disqualified it from the chart on the grounds that it did not "fit" the genre, sparking a debate on what constitutes the "definition" of country music. Though "Old Town Road" did not re-enter any country charts, both versions of the song collectively peaked at no. 1 on the main Billboard Hot 100, remaining at the top for a record-breaking nineteen consecutive weeks; the remix peaked at no. 50 on Billboard's Country Airplay chart. One or more versions of "Old Town Road" have topped the national singles charts in Australia, Canada, France, Germany, Ireland, the Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway, Switzerland and the United Kingdom, and have charted in the top 10 in various other international markets.


The song was certified diamond by the RIAA in October 2019 for selling 10 million total units in the United States, the fastest song to be certified diamond.^[4] At the 62nd Annual Grammy Awards, the remix (featuring Billy Ray Cyrus) was nominated for Record of the Year and won Best Pop Duo/Group Performance and Best Music Video. In October 2019, Columbia Records and Sony Music Entertainment won the Music & Sound Recordings Award from SAG-AFTRA for "work that exemplifies equal access" to LGBTQ individuals and "other misrepresented or underrepresented groups."^[5] In September 2021, the song set the record for the second-highest certified song in history by the RIAA, at 16x platinum in the United States—meaning it accumulated 16 million equivalent song units.^[6] The single has sold over 18 million copies worldwide,^[7] making it one of the best-selling singles of all time.^[8] Rolling Stone named it the 490th greatest song of all time in its 2021 list.^[9]

Release and promotion[edit]

"Old Town Road" was released independently as a single on December 3, 2018, during the rise of the "Yeehaw Agenda" meme, a movement appropriating cowboy fashion and culture.^[41] Danny Kang, the manager of the viral country artist Mason Ramsey, suggested to Rolling Stone that Lil Nas X listed the song under the country music genre on SoundCloud and iTunes as a way to manipulate chart algorithms, as it would be easier to top the country charts than the dominant hip hop/rap charts.^[37] Lil Nas X began creating memes to promote "Old Town Road" before it was picked up by TikTok users.^[12] The song's first music video is composed entirely of footage and clips from the 2018 Western action-adventure game, Red Dead Redemption 2.^[42]


The song gained traction in late December 2018 after becoming the "Yeehaw Challenge" meme on TikTok, where users created short videos set to the song. The challenge is credited with launching the song to enter the Billboard Hot 100 at number 83,^[43] the chart on which the song has since peaked at number one.^[44] The song's popularity grew so quickly that radio stations had to download the audio from YouTube.^[37] On March 22, 2019, the success of the song allowed Lil Nas X to sign to Columbia Records, which now distributes the single.^[36]


The first official remix of "Old Town Road", featuring the American country singer Billy Ray Cyrus, was released on April 5, 2019, by Columbia Records. The remix was recorded in support of "Old Town Road" being recognized as a country song.^[45] A limited edition 7-inch vinyl single was made available for purchase on May 1, 2019, with the remix on the A-side and the original on the B-side.^[46] The remix was eventually included with the original on Lil Nas X's second EP, 7. The music video for the remix was released on May 17, 2019. It was directed by Calmatic, and has guest appearances by Chris Rock, HaHa Davis, Rico Nasty, Diplo, Jozzy, Young Kio and Vince Staples.^[47][48]


On March 29, 2019, Lil Nas X danced to "Old Town Road" with the Atlanta Hawks cheerleaders during a basketball game at State Farm Arena.^[49] On April 29, 2019, Lil Nas X and Cyrus performed the live debut of "Old Town Road" as part of Diplo's set at the Stagecoach Festival.^[50] On June 24, 2019, Lil Nas X and Cyrus performed the song together on a saloon-themed stage for the 2019 BET Awards.^[51]


On January 26, 2020, Lil Nas X performed "Old Town Road" at the 62nd Annual Grammy Awards with Diplo, BTS, Mason Ramsey and Billy Ray Cyrus, before finishing his performance with the remix of "Rodeo" along with Nas.