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‘Worst’ to First: Riley Green Scores His Third Country Airplay Leader

“I set out to blend traditional country instrumentation with a modern edge,” Green tells Billboard.

Riley Green banks his third chart-topper on Billboard ’s Country Airplay chart as “Worst Way” (Nashville Harbor) rises 3-1 on the list dated June 21. Notably, the Jacksonville, Ala., native notches the first Country Airplay leader by an artist who solely wrote and recorded it since Chayce Beckham’s “23” led in April 2024. “I wanted to create something in the spirit of [John Mayer’s 2006 song] “Slow Dancing in a Burning Room” or Eric Church’s “Like a Wrecking Ball” [from 2015], and I think with the help of my producer, Dann Huff, we were able to do just that.

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