Kenny Chesney Just Passed George Strait and Tim McGraw for One of Country Music’s Biggest Records

If you follow country music closely, you know that George Strait, Kenny Chesney, and Tim McGraw have been neck and neck when it comes to having the most Top 10s on Billboard‘s Country Airplay chart.

On Friday, that all changed, thanks to the success of Kenny Chesney’s hit, “Carry On”. Back in May, Chesney released “Carry On”, which serves as the lead single for his upcoming September album, Silver Sands Marina. 

Before Friday, the song was already helping Chesney reach incredible new heights. It currently stands as his 100th hit on Billboard’s Country Airplay chart. But now, “Carry On” is helping Chesney break records as well. 

Both McGraw and Strait also boast having 100 hits on Billboard’s Country Airplay chart. However, as of now, they are both behind Chesney in terms of Top 10s. Today, Chesney has scored his 62nd Top 10 hit on Country Airplay with “Carry On”. This puts him ahead of Strait and McGraw, who have 61.

Honestly, this news shouldn’t really come as a surprise. Before and after being named Billboard’s Top Country Artist of the 21st Century, Chesney has continued to prove himself one of the biggest stars country music has seen in recent decades. 

At this point, he’s collecting these accomplishments like infinity stones, and we’re here for it.

Country Singer Shares Valuable Advice Chesney Gave Him as a Sixth Grader

It doesn’t take a genius to see that Chesney definitely knows what he’s doing with in the music industry. It seems like a lot of people from country music’s younger generation could learn a lot from him.

In fact, if anyone is taking Chesney’s advice, it’s “Water At A Wedding” singer Greylan James. In an interview with the Everett Post, the country singer told a sweet story about how Chesney imparted a little bit of wisdom on him when he was just a sixth grader.

James was playing a “little bluegrass show” in East Tennessee the night he met Chesney. He’d just gotten a bad grade on a school report card, and his dad wasn’t having it.

“And my dad asked Kenny, he’s like, ‘Hey, if you could give any advice to my son, like what would it be? And by the way, he just got his first C today, and he thinks he’s gonna be a country music singer and school doesn’t matter,’” he shared.

James continued, “And Kenny was like, ‘Well, school does matter, but learn how to write songs.’ And so, I didn’t go to college, didn’t stay in school, but I learned how to write the songs part.”

Luckily for James, who’s recently scored a Top 25 hit with “Water At A Wedding” it seems like he was able to put Chesney’s advice to good use. 

Photo by: Frank Micelotta/The Walt Disney Company via Getty Images

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