Ella Langley’s country hit Choosin’ Texas has become the longest-running number one single in US chart history after spending 23 weeks at the top.
The song overtook Mariah Carey’s All I Want for Christmas Is You, which had previously held the record.
Released in October 2025, Choosin’ Texas tells the story of a woman who suspects her boyfriend is preparing to leave her for another woman.
It first reached number one on the US Billboard Hot 100 in February and has now extended its run to 23 weeks.
The song has also topped the UK singles chart, replacing Sam Fender and Olivia Dean’s Rein Me In at number one in September.
Rein Me In had spent 23 weeks at the top, making it the UK’s longest-running chart-topper before Langley’s song took its place.
The success of both songs has renewed debate about whether streaming platforms are helping to create stagnation in music charts by encouraging listeners to repeatedly play established hits.
For Langley, the record-breaking song began at a songwriting retreat in 2024 with country star Miranda Lambert, Luke Dick and Joybeth Taylor.
The writing session was inspired by a story Lambert told about once being stopped by police while driving with a pet kangaroo in her car.
“She told me the story about how she got pulled over by the police with a kangaroo in the passenger seat and a dog in the back,” Langley told Billboard.
Langley responded that the police officer must have known Lambert was from Texas, given the unusual scene.
That exchange inspired the lyric, “She’s from Texas, I can tell.”
The writers then developed the story of a woman in Tennessee who realises her partner’s heart remains in Texas and with another woman.
Langley first performed the song publicly in February 2025 and said she immediately knew it would become the lead single from her second album, Dandelion. We loved that song, but I don’t think I could ever have imagined what’s happening with it right now.”
Every day I wake up and it’s doing something that I didn’t even know was a goal I could have had. It’s crazy, it’s nuts.”
The song’s success helped Langley, who is from Alabama, dominate the Academy of Country Music Awards in May.
She won all seven categories in which she was nominated, including female artist of the year, artist-songwriter of the year, and single and song of the year for Choosin’ Texas.
Records Tumble-Choosin’ Texas is now only the second song to spend more than 20 weeks at number one on the US chart.
Carey’s All I Want for Christmas Is You had previously held the record, helped by its regular return to the charts during the Christmas season.
Before that, Carey’s One Sweet Day, recorded with Boyz II Men, held the record for 23 years after spending 16 weeks at number one.
Daddy Yankee and Luis Fonsi’s Despacito remix, featuring Justin Bieber, matched the record in 2017 before Lil Nas X’s Old Town Road surpassed it the following year.
Old Town Road eventually spent 19 weeks at number one.
Carey’s Christmas hit later overtook it and established the record that Langley has now surpassed.
The rapid rise of long-running chart hits has also raised questions about the impact of streaming on the music industry.
Critics argue that streaming platforms encourage listeners to repeatedly play familiar songs and playlists, making it harder for newer music to gain ground.
A 2022 report by the UK’s Competition and Markets Authority found that more than 60% of streams were generated by music recorded by just 0.4% of artists.
Langley’s record adds to a growing list of songs achieving extended runs at the top as streaming continues to reshape how music is consumed and how chart success is measured.
Erizia Rubyjeana
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