Girl in a Country Song
| "Girl in a Country Song" | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | ||||
| Single by Maddie & Tae | ||||
| from the album Start Here | ||||
| Released | July 15, 2014[1] | |||
| Format | Digital download | |||
| Genre | Country | |||
| Length | 3:38 | |||
| Label | ||||
| Writer(s) |
| |||
| Producer(s) | ||||
| Maddie & Tae singles chronology | ||||
| ||||
"Girl in a Country Song" is a single by American country music duo Maddie & Tae. The duo released it in July 2014 as their debut single. Both members of the duo wrote it with Aaron Scherz. The song acts as an answer to the "bro-country" subgenre in contemporary country music, specifically in how women are portrayed by male stars in their songs, with lyrics containing references to a variety of popular recent country songs.
"Girl in a Country Song" peaked at number one on the Billboard Country Airplay chart, making Maddie & Tae the first female duo to top that chart with their debut single since The Wreckers' "Leave the Pieces" in 2006, and only the second in history. It also charted at numbers 3 and 54 on both the Hot Country Songs and Hot 100 charts, respectively. The song was certified Platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA), and has sold 667,000 units in the US as of September 2015. It achieved similar chart success in Canada, peaking at number 5 on the Canada Country chart and number 61 on the Canadian Hot 100 chart.
The accompanying music video for the song was directed by TK McKamy.
Content
The song is an answer to the contemporary "bro-country" trend in country music, specifically pertaining to the way that top male stars portray women in their songs,[3][4] and its lyrics contain references to a variety of popular recent country songs. Some specific songs include "Get Me Some of That" by Thomas Rhett, "Aw Naw" by Chris Young, "Redneck Crazy" by Tyler Farr, "My Kinda Party", "Dirt Road Anthem" and "Take a Little Ride" by Jason Aldean, "Boys 'Round Here" by Blake Shelton, and the stereotypical sugar shaker line, which was also included in the contemporary song "Get Your Shine On" by Florida Georgia Line. [5][6]
The genesis of the song lay back in early 2014 when the three writers noted how marginalized women were in country music at the time. The song was written in 90 minutes.[7]
Critical reception
Kevin John Coyne of Country Universe rated the single an "A", saying that "Maddie & Tae have written and recorded the antidote to something that ails country music right now, and thankfully, they’re not offering it up with any sugar to help that medicine go down."[8]
Commercial performance
"Girl in a Country Song" debuted at number 58 on the Country Airplay chart dated for the week ending July 19, 2014.[9] After 23 weeks on the charts, it reached number one for the chart dated December 20, 2014, giving Maddie & Tae their first number one hit. It became the first debut single by a female duo to reach number one since The Wreckers did it in 2006 with "Leave the Pieces," and only the second in history.[10] The song was certified Gold by the RIAA on November 17, 2014,[11] and has sold 667,000 copies in the US as of September 2015.[12]
Music video
TK McKamy directed the song's music video.[6] It won Video of the Year at the 2015 Country Music Association awards.
Charts and certifications
Weekly chart
Year-end charts
|
Certifications
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Preceded by "Somewhere in My Car" by Keith Urban |
Billboard Country Airplay number-one single December 20, 2014 |
Succeeded by "Shotgun Rider" by Tim McGraw |
References
- ↑ "R&R :: Going For Adds :: Country". Radio & Records. Retrieved August 14, 2014.
- ↑ "About". Maddie & Tae official website. Retrieved 14 August 2014.
- ↑ "The Bro-Country Backlash Is Here". The Atlantic. 2014-07-07. Retrieved 2015-06-19.
- ↑ Conaway, Alanna (2014-07-07). "Has the Bro-Country "Backlash" Begun?". RoughStock. Retrieved 2015-06-19.
- ↑ Hight, Jewly (2014-07-15). "Maddie & Tae Fire a Shot at 'Bro Country'". Rolling Stone. Retrieved 2015-06-19.
- 1 2 "First Watch: Maddie & Tae, 'Girl In A Country Song'". Retrieved 24 July 2014.
- ↑ Smith, Grady (2015-09-02). "Maddie & Tae: girls singing their own country songs". theguardian.com. Retrieved 2 September 2015.
- ↑ "Single Review: Maddie & Tae, "Girl in a Country Song"". Country Universe. Retrieved 2015-06-19.
- ↑ "Chart Highlights: Usher Lands Lucky 13th No. 1 On R&B/Hip-Hop Airplay". Billboard. Retrieved 2015-06-19.
- ↑ Gary Trust and Wade Jessen (December 8, 2014). "Chart Highlights: Maddie & Tae, Girls in a No. 1 Country Song". Billboard.com. Retrieved December 18, 2014.
- ↑ "American single certifications – Maddie & Tae – Girl in a Country Song". Recording Industry Association of America. If necessary, click Advanced, then click Format, then select Single, then click SEARCH
- 1 2 Bjorke, Matt (September 8, 2015). "Top 30 Digital Country Singles: September 8, 2015". RoughStock.
- ↑ "Maddie & Tae – Chart history" Canadian Hot 100 for Maddie & Tae.
- ↑ "Maddie & Tae – Chart history" Billboard Canada Country for Maddie & Tae.
- ↑ "Maddie & Tae – Chart history" Billboard Hot 100 for Maddie & Tae.
- ↑ "Maddie & Tae – Chart history" Billboard Country Airplay for Maddie & Tae.
- ↑ "Maddie & Tae – Chart history" Billboard Hot Country Songs for Maddie & Tae.
- ↑ "Best of 2014: Country Airplay". Billboard. Prometheus Global Media. 2014. Retrieved December 9, 2014.
- ↑ "Best of 2014: Hot Country Songs". Billboard. Prometheus Global Media. 2014. Retrieved December 9, 2014.
- ↑ "Billboard Country Update for December 14, 2015" (PDF). Billboard. Prometheus Global Media. December 14, 2015. p. 7. Retrieved December 15, 2015.
- ↑ "Best of 2015: Hot Country Songs". Billboard. Prometheus Global Media. 2015. Retrieved December 9, 2015.
- ↑ "American single certifications – Maddie %26 Tae – Girl in a Country Song". Recording Industry Association of America. Retrieved March 21, 2015. If necessary, click Advanced, then click Format, then select Single, then click SEARCH