Florida Georgia Line’s “Cruise” is the biggest country hit of all time

Cruise Florida Georgia Line with Nelly

Writer(s): Brian Kelley, Tyler Hubbard, Joey Moi, Chase Rice, Jesse Rice (see lyrics here) Released: August 6, 2012 First Charted: August 11, 2012 Peak: 4 US, 7 RR, 13 AC, 6 A40, 124a CW, 75 UK, 38 CN (Click for codes to charts.) Sales (in millions): 14.0 US, -- UK, 14.3 world (includes US + UK) Airplay/Streaming (in millions): 0.13 radio, 323.35 video, 541.14 streaming

Awards: Click on award for more details.

About the Song: The duo of Brian Kelley and Tyler Hubbard, known as Florida Georgia Line, burst on to the country scene in about as big a way as a recording artist can. “Cruise,” their lead single from their EP, It’z Just What We Do, was first released in August 2012, but was also included in their first full-length album, Here’s to the Good Times, released that December. Thanks to a change in Billboard chart methodology, at the year-mark, the song can boast a year later to being the biggest country song of all-time. In December, the song hit #1 on the Billboard country charts, a position it had held for a whopping 17 weeks a year after its release. More significantly, however, are the 22 weeks it has logged on the country airplay chart, separating it from a three-way tie for songs which had spent 21 weeks at the pinnacle: Eddy Arnold’s “I’ll Hold You in My Heart Till I Can Hold You in My Arms” (1947), Hank Snow’s “I’m Moving On” (1950), and Webb Pierce’s “In the Jailhouse Now” (1955). With 5 million in sales, it also snagged the title of best-selling song by a country duo in digital history WK and ranks as the third best-selling country song in digital history behind Lady Antebellum’s “Need You Now” and Taylor Swift’s “Love Story.” BB Since then, it has been certified at 11 million by the RIAA. A remix featuring rapper Nelly has also kept the song in the pop limelight, where the song took longer than any other song in the 55-year history of the Billboard Hot 100 to reach the top 5 (although the record was soon broken by the 43 weeks Imagine Dragon’s “Radioactive” took to do the same). Roughstock’s Matt Bjorke called it “a feel-good song from a band that likes to have a good time.” WK Billy Dukes of Taste of Country said of the duo that “their formal training shows in the tight execution of this lyric-heavy summer song.” WK Finally, Liv Carter of Urban Country News said it was a “disposable, yet enjoyable, country summer song which will not only enjoy a healthy chart run, but find itself on radio playlists for many more summers.” WK Resources: DMDB encyclopedia entry for Florida Georgia Line DMDB encyclopedia entry for Nelly B1 Billboard “Florida Georgia Line’s ‘Cruise’ Ties for Longest No. 1 Run On Hot Country Songs” (24 July 2013). B2 Billboard “One Direction Blasts Onto Hot 100 at No. 2, Robin Thicke Still No. 1” (31 July 2013). WK Wikipedia YM Yahoo! Music First posted 8/6/2013; last updated 3/31/2024.