Bebe Rexha & FGL’s ‘Meant to Be’ Passes ‘Cruise’ For Longest Reign by Duo or Group in Hot Country Songs History
Bebe Rexha and Florida Georgia Line's "Meant to Be" leads Billboard's Hot Country Songs chart (dated May 26) for a 25th week, rewriting FGL's personal best. "Cruise," the debut hit for the duo…
Bebe Rexha and Florida Georgia Line‘s “Meant to Be” leads Billboard‘s Hot Country Songs chart (dated May 26) for a 25th week, rewriting FGL’s personal best. “Cruise,” the debut hit for the duo — consisting of Tyler Hubbard and Brian Kelley — led for 24 weeks in 2012-13.
The 25-week reign for “Meant” is the longest for a song by a duo or group in the Hot Country Songs chart’s 59-year history, and the second-longest overall. Sam Hunt‘s “Body Like a Back Road” holds the record, with 34 weeks at No. 1 in 2017.
“From day one, this song has been such a fun, unexpected surprise,” Hubbard tells Billboard. “Essentially, I’ve got to give my wife Hayley the credit here. Before I went in to write [‘Meant’] with Bebe [and Josh Miller and David Garcia], Hayley said to me, ‘if it’s meant to be…,’ and the rest is history. BK [Brian Kelley] and I get inspired by everything in our lives and we’re blessed to have these amazing women in our lives.”
“To think that Tyler and I first started writing songs on the back of a tailgate … to see the kind of reach these songs can have is really humbling,” Kelley says. “It’s something that’s bigger than us, bigger than FGL and we are so grateful to be on this ride.”
As it racks up its 25th frame atop Hot Country Songs, which blends airplay, sales and streaming data, “Meant” rules Country Streaming Songs for a 21st week (20.5 million U.S. streams, according to Nielsen Music). On Country Digital Song Sales, which it led for 19 weeks, it holds at No. 2 (25,000 downloads sold).
On Country Airplay — which “Meant” topped on April 28 — the song ranks in the top 10 for an 11th week, descending 5-8 (28.9 million in audience).
On the all-genre Billboard Hot 100, “Meant” peaked at No. 2 for three weeks (beginning March 31), becoming the highest-charting hit for a country duo or group since Lady Antebellum‘s “Need You Now” in 2010 (and the highest-peaking for FGL; “Cruise” reached No. 4 in 2013).
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