Country Music Now Reigns at #1 in All of Music
It really is hard to put into words the kind of moment country music is having, and more specifically, the moment country women are having. It’s worth regarding it as unprecedented, because it’s truly never happened before. And it comes during an era when conventionally, women, traditional country songs, and earnest songwriters have struggled. But we very well might be witnessing the end of that era.
This week, Ella Langley’s traditional country song “Choosin’ Texas” is once again the #1 song in all of music at the top of the Billboard Hot 100, regaining the spot it first achieved three weeks ago. That means “Choosin’ Texas” isn’t just a mega hit, it’s one of those songs that’s here to stay. Who knows at this point, it might end up being the 2026 Song of the Summer if this continues.
But that’s not all. Just as remarkable and unprecedented, simultaneous to Ella Langley’s continued dominance, Megan Moroney’s new album Cloud 9 crests the Billboard 200 all-genre albums chart upon its debut. Though the album is fair to label as country pop, it’s much more country than you would expect from a big mainstream album, including multiple straight traditional country songs. It also includes a lot of first-person songwriting, which is the reason Moroney is resonating so significantly.
In the nearly 70-year history of Billboard’s two biggest charts, there has never been a moment when two country women have landed #1 simultaneously on the Hot 100 and Billboard 200. There are only four other instances when it’s happened for a combination of any two country artists.
But it’s not just what Ella Langley and Megan Moroney have done collectively. It’s also what they’ve accomplished individually that’s unprecedented.
Megan Moroney’s Cloud 9 sold 147,000 albums in physical copies and streaming equivalents on its debut week. For comparison, Zach Bryan’s With Heaven On Top released earlier this year went #1, but with only 134,000 albums. That means Megan Moroney is all of a sudden in the elite class of performers.
Interestingly, 78,000 of those albums were physical sales, bolstered by multiple vinyl color variants. This also puts Moroney at #1 on the Top Albums Sales chart, and beats out her streaming equivalents of 69,000 (71.54 million total streams) according to Billboard. What this means is that Moroney’s fans are dedicated, and many are of the grassroots kind who are willing to purchase actual albums.
Moroney’s Cloud 9 reaching #1 all-genre also puts her in very elite company with country women. Only four other women have done so in the last ten years: Taylor Swift with her “Taylor’s Version” re-releases, Carrie Underwood, Shania Twain, and (cough) Beyoncé. This is very elite company.
Meanwhile, Ella Langley’s song “Choosin’ Texas” continues to dominate in country, spending its 14th week at #1 on the Billboard Hot Country Songs chart to go along with her #1 in all of music. It’s also the #1 streaming song, the #1 digital song (downloads), and is at #9 in all of music on the radio.
Does this mean that all the problems are solved for the women of country music trying to get their fair share of attention in the marketplace? Of course not. But it also is a very promising sign. Glass ceilings are shattering left and right in 2026, with Ella Langley readying a new album in April, Kaitlin Butts now signed to a major label, Lainey Wilson as the CMA Entertainer of the Year, Carter Faith continuing to create buzz, Sierra Ferrell just appearing on SNL, among other promising artists and opportunities.
And most importantly, Megan Moroney and Ella Langley aren’t just finding success in country as women. Their finding success with music that is more country than what dominated previous eras.
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March 3, 2026 @ 9:49 am
Trigger, have you ever had an SCM Top 25 Playlist song go to #1 on the Billboard Hot 100 before?
March 3, 2026 @ 8:20 pm
I don’t think so. “Choosin’ Texas” would be the first.
March 3, 2026 @ 10:00 am
Ya know Trig, you, myself, and a few others on here love the women and support em. The kids call it “White Knighting” these days….lol, at 65 I really don’t care. I enjoy listening and going to see em, it’s a great time. So much fun to watch!!! I’m happy for all these currently successful ladies, as it paves the way for the Brit Taylor’s, Kimmi Bitter’s and Charlie Marie’s not to mention all my local gals who are creating quite a stir around here, love em dearly!!!
March 3, 2026 @ 10:18 am
Good, I thought Ella Langley’s last album was a really well done country pop album. As I’ve said in previous comments I believe that Megan Moroney is a great gateway artist into the Sierra Ferrells, Kaitlin Butts and Nikki Lanes who is exist in the less main stream part of the genre.
I think women are putting out better albums and songs at the moment and I hope that continues.
March 3, 2026 @ 12:06 pm
I share your sentiment, but can we please throw Sunny Sweeney into that list of trad country gals who kick ass? Her album last year was the second best thing I heard all year.
March 3, 2026 @ 12:18 pm
Moroney is definitely resonating to more and more who have felt alienated by Swift’s two most recent studio albums. As Swift has gotten more insular a songwriter singing about topics most can’t relate to or outright dislike like Kelce’s penis or whatever “Actually Romantic” was trying to be in response to Charli XCX’s “Sympathy Is A Knife” and name-dropping luxury brands throughout her latest album…………Moroney is scratching that itch for much more relatable, diary-set-to-music songwriting.
Everything Langley has previewed thus far from her forthcoming album seems inspired by and steeped in 70s influences: which I think is very smart in broadening and sinewing her audience well outside of country itself. Fleetwood Mac’s “Rumours” continues to be a mainstay in the upper reaches of the Billboard 200 for a reason: many are pining for more simple, organic mainstream music that can effortlessly resonate across genre with its relatability………..and Langley is doing a great job appealing to this younger generation of country listeners while also winning over many older listeners who feel nostalgic listening to her latest music and how it evokes an earlier era of heartland rock and folk like Fleetwood Mac and The Eagles that were seminal to the soundtracks of their youth. You can make a similar point about Lainey Wilson: although I feel she’d benefit more being paired with a producer that complements her ambitions more instead of a Jay Joyce which I feel is holding her back a bit.
Quite excited to see where Nikki Lane, Jaime Wyatt, Kelsey Waldon, Summer Dean, Hailey Whitters, Wonder Women Of Country and all these other extraordinary women go from here too. Emily Scott Robinson’s latest is already an extremely early favorite for “AOTY” to my ears and an extremely tough act to follow, but you never know with all this bumper crop of talent. 😊
March 3, 2026 @ 8:15 pm
Adding to your comment, Taylor’s music has fallen off a cliff over the past few albums. I enjoyed 1989 and Reputation. Lover was good as well. But the past few albums felt so generic, monogenre and just generally overproduced.
Taylor’s usually been a step ahead of the curve at reading the tealeaves and keeping her music fresh, but last few albums felt like big misses.
March 4, 2026 @ 1:32 am
I’ve enjoyed much of Swift’s music myself over these past nearly two decades. I know some were cool on “Midnights”, but even though I can acknowledge the album lacked some of the strong melodies that permeated much of her earlier catalog: that album more than made up for that in my opinion with its self-reflection and sharp writing on most tracks.
“The Tortured Poets Department”, to me, is where the precipitous drop-off began. And the thing is I think there are about half a dozen excellent tracks between the standard edition and “The Anthology”. The problem is they are surrounded by nearly six times as many exhausting, tedious, melodramatic exercises that are such a chore getting through.
“The Life Of A Showgirl” is certainly more concise and cohesive a record…………yet the lyrics to me are no less insular, self-indulgent and rather joyless. And considering she reunited with the production team of “Reputation” for that one I was optimistic she would deliver a more interesting result sonically much like that record was……………..but instead the end result is surprisingly limp much like I get why people criticized “Midnights” for. It just wasn’t an enjoyable listening experience with how catty and passive-aggression she was throughout.
I definitely think we’re at peak Swift burnout presently, and so it isn’t any surprise whatsoever that Moroney is filling that void with her brand of songwriting now.
March 5, 2026 @ 4:48 pm
Also, Taylor has released a ton of music since Covid. Fatigue is very real, imo. I wouldn’t be surprised if she took a little break to get married and live a little life a bit before releasing new music.
March 5, 2026 @ 5:29 pm
I’ve heard it strongly rumored she’ll be taking a considerably lengthy break much for the reasons you stated.
And I hope she really commits to it. I remember REALLY loving her “RED” era and also really enjoying “1989” for what it was…………..but then didn’t immediately latch onto “reputation” (initially I was torn on it where I loved its production but was underwhelmed by its writing, but it really grew on me over time) and just didn’t like “Lover” much at all……………but then she bounced back with some of the best music of her entire career. I’m hopeful she can bounce back again from this current artistic lull of hers.
March 3, 2026 @ 10:28 pm
With respect to Ella, I definitely wish her luck.
My biggest hope is that she doesn’t let all the talk and all the hype go to her head, that she just sticks to the music. It’s all good and fine (and accurate) that she adheres to both contemporary and traditionalist styles, as well as a 1970’s vibe, and that the visual comparisons between her on the one hand and Jessi Colter and Linda Ronstadt (the latter in her 1968-1971 Topanga Canyon phase) on the other are spot-on, just so long as she continues to show that the music is the most important thing, and above all WHY it is. If she does that, and the country genre doesn’t spiral out of control, she’ll likely have a long career (IMHO).
March 4, 2026 @ 1:41 am
Yeah, we’ll see what happens for sure.
If I’m being brutally honest I’m actually quite surprised she got this huge to begin with. Not because I ever doubted or downplayed her talent……………but I guess I just didn’t really view her as a sort of more big personality that typically seems like a prerequisite to be a mainstream crossover force. I just assumed Lainey Wilson would be the one more likely to fill that role.
But especially now that she’s the face of both an American Express campaign as well as American Eagle’s latest…………she’s become genuinely ubiquitous in broader pop culture right now. Plus she’s been the subject of quite a bit of tabloid fodder in recent weeks from the speculation between her, Megan Moroney and Riley Green: which I’m sure has further added to the intrigue as to what happened between her and Green in particular.
March 5, 2026 @ 7:20 am
If I were to compare Ella’s sudden burst to the top to anything previously done, the parallel I would make would be what was seen when Trisha Yearwood burst onto the scene in 1991 with her self-titled album and its attendant single “She’s In Love With The Boy”. Trisha did (and in some ways still does continue to) face a lot of the tabloid attention because of her connection (and eventual marriage) to the Garthmeister, but she has largely stuck to the music and had what is now a 35 year-long career.
Can Ella’s last even a fraction of that length? One never can be sure; the music business, country or otherwise, is always in flux. But if she plays her cards right and paces herself, then nothing is off the table (IMHO).
March 5, 2026 @ 5:33 pm
I think it’ll most likely come down to if the quality of the songs themselves hold up fro here on out.
I think it’s a smart move leaning into all of these 70s heartland influences on her forthcoming album era. But if she’s too much like Bruno Mars from here on out (i.e. imitating or playing a pastiche of all of these different artists and their styles and the songwriting quality can’t keep pace with it………..instead of coming up with her own sort of hybridized sound within her genre and also having her personal stamp on it while the songwriting bar remains high)………..I think mainstream interest in her can wane rather fast.
March 3, 2026 @ 12:20 pm
I think it takes a lot – A LOT – of kindness to call Megan Moroney’s music “country.” What’s interesting is that women can only make it with very polished versions of country music. – So polished into pop that there’s practically nothing left of country like in Megan Moroney’s music, while men have great success with much rougher, more idiosyncratic sounds. Things will (only) get really exciting when women who don’t deliver such polished stuff like the ladies Langley and Moroney will be successful.
March 3, 2026 @ 12:31 pm
As someone who is regularly characterized as a “traditionalist,” a “purist,” and “hardliner” or what have you, I respectfully disagree. Obviously, Moroney is on the very pop edge of the country spectrum. But unlike Kelsea Ballerini, or even 00 performers like Martina McBride, Faith Hill, Carrie Underwood, etc., Moroney’s music comes with a lot of steel guitar, which grounds it in country music, and makes it distinctively different from what you would hear on pop radio.
Also, her last album has two straight up traditional country songs that are more traditional country than what most mainstream country women have ever done in their career.
Again, I’m not arguing there aren’t a lot of pop elements here. Clearly there are. But for an album that is slathered with steel guitar to go #1 all-genre, I’m not going to look this gift horse in the mouth.
March 4, 2026 @ 9:24 am
Regarding your thoughts on the heavy use of steel guitar on the album, I have a question: Where do you draw the line between a country instrument that is an integral part of the music, i.e. also the composition, and a country instrument that is just a musical accessory? If pop music uses country instruments as an accessory, not to say a gimmick, is it still country in your eyes?
March 4, 2026 @ 10:17 am
At this point, most any music that is organically created—-meaning actual humans in an actual studio playing instruments as opposed to a song almost wholly composed on a laptop with a singer singing on top of it—is not pop music. It’s either country, or rock. This is because pop is almost entirely the domain of 1’s and 0’s.
You’re not going to find pop songs that feature steel guitar. On some of Megan Moroney’s songs, the steel guitar is just a part of the music bed. On others it’s essential to the melody. Some songs don’t even have steel. But at no point does its presence feel like a “gimmick.” It feels intentional. The steel guitar is Megan Moroney asserting, “This is country music. Yes, it’s on the pop side of country. But I want to be considered in the country world.” It creates a barrier to her success in pop. So there’s no cynical reason the steel guitar would be there otherwise.
March 3, 2026 @ 2:12 pm
Not sure how you can call Megan Moroney’s vocals “polished.” She has an obnoxious vocal style like Morgan Wallen and Florida Georgia Line. Hearing steel guitar on a track doesn’t make me view all the other elements on a track differently – it’s still mostly Pop Country nonsense with a few still abrasive yet semi-traditional Country-sounding tracks.
March 3, 2026 @ 3:20 pm
Yes, Megan Moroney’s vocals don’t sound “polished” because she can’t sing particularly well, but the overall product sounds very polished.
And unlike successful “country-ish” men, both Ella Langley’s and Megan Moroney’s music seem very much designed (polished) for mass market compatibility.
March 3, 2026 @ 3:22 pm
*unlike several successful “country-ish” men*
March 3, 2026 @ 3:28 pm
Maybe we have conflicting views on what “polished” means. To my ear most modern pop adjacent Country music is over-produced and “noisy” with all of the studio perfection used to create a wall of sound on tracks. Compare Moroney’s music to 90’s Leanne Womack or Martina Mcbride tracks of a classic country song cover, they are very polished as far as each instrument is played exceptionally and is clear and intentionally placed where there is better dynamics and interplay between the instruments. My guess is that modern music is mixed to sound best thru iPhone speakers.
March 3, 2026 @ 6:49 pm
There is truth in the comment on iPhone speakers. For many people these days, their best “stereo” is probably in their car.
March 3, 2026 @ 1:33 pm
Margo Liebig declined to comment…
Props to ya man, now go get a proper album from Noeline and Presley, grab Charlie and Riddy on the way back by 🤣
March 4, 2026 @ 7:36 am
Presley Haile definitely has “it.” Whatever that means. Her writing is wise well beyond her 23 years. Her songs are centered around the banjo. I was lucky enough to see her at the White Elephant in Fort Worth last weekend and she sounds as good if not better live. Her band is excellent with great harmonies, banjo right up front, and most of the set using a stand-up bass.
Not taking anything away from Ella, I have been a fan since she only had 50K monthly listeners on Spotify. But I think Presley brings a maturity to her writing and a more traditional sound with less pop sheen that I’m hoping is going to slot in nicely with actual country music being cool right now.
March 4, 2026 @ 8:13 am
What Presley Haile doesn’t have is an album. Presley basically started her career the same time as Megan Moroney and Ella Langley, if not a little before. Moroney just released her third LP, including two deluxe editions. Ella is about to release her second album next month. I love Presley Haile and have featured her numerous times here. But albums still matter, despite what some will tell you. That’s how you take your career to the next level.
March 4, 2026 @ 9:37 am
“Her songs are centered around the banjo.” – I think it’s a very important thought, whether songs are built around a banjo, for example. Or whether they are pop songs that are simply enhanced with country instruments. For me, the reason for this “prettification” with country instruments is primarily for commercial reasons: There is apparently an audience that is ready to accept pop music as “country” as soon as country instruments are used in the arrangements or pop artists sometimes include one or two country songs per album. Why this is so is completely incomprehensible to me.
PS: And I absolutely agree that Presley Haile definitely has “it”.
March 4, 2026 @ 10:21 am
I don’t think I’ve ever seen someone assert that adding country instrumentation if the “prettification” of music. To me, it would be the installation of roots into the music.
We talked in the Bro-Country era about the “token banjo,” which would be a banjo track added to a song that otherwise was purely pop with programmed drums, hip-hop cadences, pop melodies, etc. That’s not what’s going on with Megan Moroney’s music. In fact, I don’t think the album has any banjo at all. It very intentionally integrates steel guitar into her distinctive sound.
March 4, 2026 @ 9:53 am
I agree, she has it, prolly in spades.
But one’s gotta appreciate that timing > talent sometimes in this business, and it’s time.
All of my genZ employees know who Zach Top is… none of them know who Randall King is.
March 3, 2026 @ 3:40 pm
She should kick butt.She has great genes,I mean,jeans !!!!!!!!!
March 3, 2026 @ 6:22 pm
Langley has got some mojo going on right now. Choosing Texas is a terrific song. Its got a great guitar riff that’s serving as a hook and it grabs your ear. Tom Bukovac is the guy behind that riff and he layered it to give that twin guitar effect. The steel guitar is background but effective. The lyrics are simple yet tell the story and manage some cleverness as well. “I wasnt a match for that kinda spark ” is a great line. The eighties country vibe is intentional, Langley was aiming for that sound. Looking forward to the album which is out on vinyl soon. Hopefully she brings more of this sound to the airwaves.
March 3, 2026 @ 8:11 pm
Great job ladies!
More country than the carpetbaggers that usually reside on top the charts.
March 3, 2026 @ 8:41 pm
Well i dont know. Choosin texas isnt really a good song. Im not big on either of these ladies really. There are better country ladies out there not getting recognition.
March 4, 2026 @ 1:15 pm
There are ladies not getting airplay at all. I was listening to a station in our area that plays a mix of old and new. I checked the recently played list and eleven songs in a row were male artists/ bands. The one before that run was from Highway 101– three guys and a female lead singer.
March 3, 2026 @ 10:49 pm
Trigger, not here to argue or just disagree. “6 Months Later” is not a terrible song, the first release off Cloud 9. That said, “6 Months Later” is a Pop music song, It feels and sounds like a song off Speak Now or 1989. It’s literally a Pop song. Again the songs are good, not for me, but I can see why people like Megan, she has talent for sure. The second song was “Beautiful Things” and again feels and sounds Pop, even with the steel guitar in the song. To me sounds like the bar has become extremely low. If it’s not FGL, Brantley Gilbert or Luke Bryan Bro-Country then we are willing to just run with it, label it COUNTRY, all because it has a little element of banjo or steel guitar. We are also dying for traditional country music to get its due. FGL and Luke Bryan both had song featuring a Banjo, anyone remember (I’d like to forget) FGL – “Simple”. Trigger I have a lot of respect for you and this website. I just can’t get behind Megan Moroney as “country music” at this point. It’s Pop music. Just my opinion.
March 3, 2026 @ 11:16 pm
When I reviewed “Cloud 9” (https://savingcountrymusic.com/album-review-megan-moroneys-cloud-9-song-reviews/), I chose to do specific song reviews for the album because of the wide variety of material the album contained, ranging from pure pop, to very traditional country.
What I said about “6 Months Later” was:
“This is the album’s big radio single, reaching #2 in country, and #29 on the Billboard Hot 100. It also sounds like it. Though the reshaping of a common colloquialism for the lyrical hook is clever, even if you’re a Megan Moroney apologist, it’s okay to proclaim this as an unequivocal pop song, full of mostly empty calories. Every mainstream album is going to have one of these, and “6 Months Later” is this one’s.”
So to judge the album on this song is to judge it on its most pop track, and arguably, it’s worst. It’s almost a fail proof maxim that the worst songs released from a mainstream country record will be the radio singles.
The album’s songs get much more country front there, including “I Only Miss You (feat. Ed Sheeran)”
“This is an excellent traditional country song, completely blindsiding you on this album, especially since it’s recorded with Ed Sheeran. It’s not just that it’s traditional country. It also very well-written, with Sheeran and Mackenzie Carpenter also listed in the credits. They resisted trying to popify the track in the production, and instead leaned into its rootsy, sincere aspect.”
Another is “Bells and Whistles”:
“Another excellent, unexpected, and welcomed traditional country track on a pop country album.”
There’s also some really good songs like “Liars, Tigers and Bears,” “Waiting On The Rain,” and “Who Hurt You.”
“Cloud 9” is still a pop country record no doubt. But I will strongly content it is way more country than any of the other albums from Taylor Swift, Beyonce, Carrie Underwood, and Shania Twain, who are the other country women who’ve reached #1 on the Billboard 200.
March 4, 2026 @ 2:06 am
What further proof is needed to conclude that “country music” doesn’t sound remotely like country music anymore?
March 4, 2026 @ 9:01 am
Seriously, Moroney being #1 isn’t a win for the genre.
War of attrition.
March 4, 2026 @ 5:37 am
Ella meh ,its just her looks.It’s the same oh ur dad and boyfriends and want to bang her country ,is she really that great of a singer ?
She has the custom prop guitar to stand behind…..i dont see the talent,just barbie country like always.
March 4, 2026 @ 8:39 am
Fine job,ladies. Are they my absolute favs? Nah. I need one or two more albums to determine how I really feel. haha I do love that they are filling a “mainstream county” void. I have been missing this niche. Honestly, I do love it’s not Bey, or even Z. Bryan, at the top spots,
March 4, 2026 @ 10:00 am
These are definitely good things. Both are net positives to country music, and there’s a chance Ella Langley could be the biggest female country star of her generation. She’s just so darn relatable.
Man, that picture of Megan Moroney is strangely unsettling for some reason, though. What an odd promotional photo.
March 4, 2026 @ 3:09 pm
Yeah, it shows too much fabric.
March 5, 2026 @ 7:17 am
Choosin’ Texas is terrific. Mainstream song of the year. Langley intentionally went for an early 80s sound. Per Tom Bukovac who did the lead guitar work on it, she brought in a handful of 80s country songs to the studio as examples of the sound she was aiming for. Bukovac wrote that lead riff on the spot and they opted to layer it with more guitar to give it that twin guitar harmony sound. That riff is the first thing you hear when the song begins, and its so effective because it’s an ear worm, a catch hook as it were.
The lyrics are great with lines like ” i wasnt a match for that kinda spark” and ” he always loved Amarillo by Morning , I should have taken that as a warning.”
Clearly Langley has struck gold, hopefully the album is more like this sound. Yes there’s a pop element but yet it still sounds very country. Personally I loved 80s country as I grew up on it, so no criticism from me. Not all country music need sound like Ernest Tubb and Porter Wagoner to be legit. I enjoy variety in sound.