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Country music's had a massive year. Seriously, not since 1958 have we seen so many country tunes topping the Hot 100 in a single year \u2013 and it's not been without its share of controversy. Leading this country music revival? Morgan Wallen, for starters. He bounced back from being shunned for dropping a racial slur with his number one single \u201cLast Night.\u201d Then there's Jason Aldean with \u201cTry That in a Small Town,\u201d a song and music video that which unsubtly lynching references. Next up, newcomer Oliver Anthony Music dropped \u201cRichmond North of Richmond,\u201d weaving in QAnon references and welfare shaming into a track largely about government distrust. On a lighter but still contentious note, Luke Combs covered the mega 90s hit \u201cFast Car,\u201d turning Tracy Chapman into the first black woman with a number one country hit. And let's not forget Zach Bryan and Kacey Musgraves' beautiful duet \u201cI Remember Everything\u201d about a past romance, which also climbed to the top. Many of these songs have just been nominated for Grammys, including \u201cLast Night,\u201d \u201cFast Car,\u201d and \u201cI Remember Everything.\u201d\n\nWhen all this started happening, we were scratching our heads. Country songs topping the Hot 100? Sure, but not this many in quick succession. Something felt different. And we think we've finally figured it out after diving into Chris Molanphy's new book: Old Town Road. Chris, a music and charts critic, author of Slate\u2019s Why Is This Song No. 1 column, and host of the excellent music podcast Hit Parade, explores country music's chart history in his latest book \u201cOld Town Road,\u201d part of Duke's Single Series. He zeroes in on Lil Nas X's 2018 \u201cOld Town Road\u201d and its 2019 Billy Ray Cyrus-amped remix as a case study. So, to get the lowdown on 2023's country chart toppers, we've got to rewind to 2018 and re-examine \u201cOld Town Road\u201d with Chris Molanphy's insights.\n\nSONGS DISCUSSED\n\nLil Nas X - Old Town Road\n\nLil Nas X, Billy Ray Cyrus - Old Town Road remix\n\nMorgan Waller - Last Night\n\nJason Aldean - Try That In A Small Town\n\nOliver Anthony Music - Rich Men North of Richmond\n\nLuke Combs - Fast Car\n\nZach Bryan, Kacey Musgraves - I Remember Everything\xa0\n\nLil Nas X - Sonic Shit\n\nNine Inch Nails - 34 Ghosts IV\n\nBilly Ray Cyrus - Achy Breaky Heart\n\nLuke Bryan - Light It Up\n\nMorgan Wallen - Thinking\u2019 Bout Me\n\nJason Aldean - Burnin\u2019 It Down\xa0\n\nDeFord Bailey - Fox Chase\n\nCarter Family - Can The Circle Be Unbroken\xa0\n\nBill Monroe - Mule Skinner Blues\xa0\n\nHank Williams - Wealth Won\u2019t Save Your Soul\xa0\n\nRay Charles - You Are My Sunshine\n\nPine Ridge Boys - You Are My Sunshine\n\nPatsy Cline - Crazy\xa0\n\nLionel Richie - Stuck On You\xa0\n\nBlano Brown - The Git Up\xa0\n\n\nLearn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices