After spending the entire year in the singles chart and much of the summer in the Top 10, Choosin’ Texas (Columbia) has reached the summit for Ella Langley.
The US star has become the first country artist in more than 20 years to land a No.1 in the UK singles chart (not including multi-genre/crossover artists such as Taylor Swift, Chappell Roan, Beyoncé and Lil Nas X).
As well as being the first country artist to hit No.1 with her solo breakthrough, Langley is also the first female country artist to reach the summit with a country single since 1975 (Tammy Wynette’s Stand By Your Man).
Choosin’ Texas’ UK No.1 status arrived at the same time as the single held the top spot in the US, where Langley landed her 20th week atop the US Hot 100. It is only the second song ever to reign for 20 weeks or more.
Choosin’ Texas’ gradual ascent to the summit means that it is already certified platinum in the UK with 690,936 units (Official Charts Company). Langley’s hit moved 3-1 with consumption up 5.5% week-on-week to 26,909 units, taking the top spot in its 35th consecutive week on the chart.
Only Rein Me In by Sam Fender & Olivia Dean – the song Choosin’ Texas deposed – took longer to reach No.1 (36 weeks), a position it has (so far) occupied for 23 non-consecutive weeks.
Choosin’ Texas has also entered the Top 20 biggest UK songs of the year so far. UK streams stand at 80 million (with an average of more than 500,000 daily streams) and 1.5 billion globally.
Meanwhile, the legendary Dolly Parton landed three hits in the Top 10 (9 To 5 at No.5, Jolene at No.6 and Islands In The Stream at No.9) in the wake of her death last month.
As soon as we heard Choosin' Texas, we knew it was such a special song
Dipesh Parmar
Dipesh Parmar, president of Columbia Records UK, said: "As soon as we heard Choosin' Texas, we knew it was such a special song, Ella’s success around the world is so well deserved. The team at Columbia UK and Sony have really galvanised week-on-week to ensure that we're widening the audience to grow both the song and create further awareness for Ella as an artist in the UK as there is so much more to come for her.
"Huge congratulations to the whole team including Ron Perry, Jen Mallory and all at Columbia US on the continued record-breaking global chart domination. An incredible moment for country music in the UK! What a fitting tribute to Dolly Parton who continues to inspire us all.”
Sony Music country star Luke Combs has also seen huge success in 2026 across streams and live shows, including three nights at Wembley Stadium, making him the first country act to headline the venue.
Combs has slowly been building success in the UK market since 2021 and has now achieved nine platinum singles.
With country music surging in popularity in the UK and globally in the past decade, a wide range of artists have embraced the genre for individual tracks.
Sony Music artist Beyoncé reached the summit with Texas Hold ’Em, which was No.1 for five weeks in 2024. To date, she is the only artist to do the chart double with a country single and album.
Back in 2019, Lil Nas X proved that country could break through to mainstream audiences with UK No.1 Old Town Road, released via Sony Music’s Columbia label.
Ella Langley will now be competing with fellow US artist Stelly Lefty, whose country pop song Boston is also a contender for the top spot, along with British artist Sienna Spiro’s Great Expectation.
Langley has another two songs in the UK charts – Be Her back in the Top 30 and Weren’t For The Wind at No.78. She has three songs in the UK airplay chart.
Dandelion, her second album, has peaked at No.7 in the UK and has consumption to date of 71,107 units.
Subscribers can read the new Music Week Interview with Columbia UK MD Amy Wheatley here.
FOLLOW 
