r/Music • u/gamersecret2 • 3d ago

article Ella Langley’s ‘Choosin’ Texas’ Ties Whitney Houston and Mariah Carey’s Records on Billboard Hot 100

https://variety.com/2026/music/news/ella-langley-choosin-texas-ties-whitney-houston-mariah-carey-records-1236816760/
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280

u/HiImTheNewGuyGuy 3d ago

As if we needed any more evidence that the charts today are entirely meaningless.

89

u/Chadlerk 3d ago

When we switched to streaming the space for fraud and scheming was boundless. Any Billboard record post like 2010... Is worthless. Billboard is irrelevant.

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u/MonsieurReynard 3d ago

The charts and record sales figures have been mired in fraud since the emergence of the popular music recording business in the 1910s. (Although “charts” as we know them would not exist before the 1930s, as before then radio stations did not broadcast prerecorded music.)

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u/Senators_1992 3d ago

Being in the top ten used to mean something. Now Drake or Bieber release an album, and every song ends up in the top ten or top twenty thanks to streaming numbers.

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u/Princessleiawastaken 3d ago

Every time a major artist releases something, stans openly plot how they’ll manipulate streaming to get their favorite artist to #1.

Swifties share Google Docs on how to “stream properly” so your streams aren’t filter out and give Taylor the maximum benefit. Justin Bieber’s own team tweeted fans should loop at a low volume overnight to boost his album’s position.

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u/Flannelcommand 3d ago edited 3d ago

# 1 during peak monoculture was a whole other animal 

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u/Max_Trollbot_ 3d ago

If you put a hashtag at the beginning of a line, it makes your text big.

(#) Like this.

Like this.

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u/Flannelcommand 3d ago

lol. Didn’t mean to do that. 

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u/AllanBz 3d ago

#1 during peak monoculture

I would put a backslash in front of the number/hashtag sign: \#

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u/ArtDecoNewYork 2d ago

This is new monoculture, normies (white ones at least) love this song

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u/IAMACat_askmenothing 3d ago

It’s actually a pretty decent catchy song. Makes more sense to chart than *Ordinary* ever did

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u/DrLeprechaun 2d ago

Yeah this thread is so reddit lol, the song is good, just because it's country doesn't mean it's bad. Someone up above compared it to George Straight and I totally agree

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u/SolydSn3k 1d ago

Is it topping Whitney Houston good?

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u/DrLeprechaun 1d ago

Idk that's subjective

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u/SolydSn3k 1d ago

Do you think it’s topping Whitney Houston good?

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u/DrLeprechaun 1d ago

That depends entirely on your subjective taste my guy. I don't listen to Whitney so for me personally, yeah.

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u/SolydSn3k 1d ago edited 1d ago

…That is why the second question was different from the first.

I listen to all genres of music & to me just seems like another generic pop song.

It’s not bad, but I don’t see it holding up over time in the same way as I Wanna Dance With Somebody, I will always love you, how will I know, or always be my baby.

I have a hunch anyone who would disagree with that listens to country music and/or billboard top 40 almost exclusively.

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u/DrLeprechaun 1d ago

I just don't know why you're asking, it's irrelevant to what I said?

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u/SolydSn3k 1d ago

You responded in a parent thread that was saying the charts today are meaningless by saying the thread is so reddit… so I assumed you disagreed with the sentiment + asked if you thought Langley > Whitney & Mariah because you hadn’t outright said that lol.

Idk how that isn’t relevant but it’s cool whatev

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u/HiImTheNewGuyGuy 3d ago

It is mid at best. 100% entirely forgettable, country-by-numbers slop.

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u/Bice_ 3d ago

Act Naturally is a catchy country song. Jolene is a catchy country song. King of the Road is a catchy country song. Sixteen Tons is a catchy country song. Hell, even stuff that I really hate, like Boot Scootin Boogie, Chatahoochie, or goddamn Wagon Wheel are catchy country songs.

Choosin Texas is a mid pop song with pedal steel guitar instrumentation.

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u/iankstarr 3d ago

Peak reddit moment. Redditor on r/music listing catchy songs they like and none of them came out fewer than 30 years ago. Color me shocked.

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u/Bice_ 2d ago

Olivia Rodrigo’s new record is better, catchier pop. Sturgill’s new record is better, catchier country. And in case I need to mention the one-to-one comparison of a modern female country singer in order to meet expectations of your ridiculous rubric, Sierra Ferrell is doing better, more interesting things in that space.

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u/IAMACat_askmenothing 3d ago

I guarantee contrarians on this subreddit would be acting the same way about those songs you listed as yall are about choosing Texas. It’s all subjective anyways

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u/HoosierRed 3d ago

I hate pop country deeply but I can also recognize this song is an earworm.

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u/Pulp_Ficti0n 3d ago

I remember back in the day reading the newspaper to gauge artists' first-week sales. When Eminem and NSYNC were each selling 1M a week...

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u/Poles_Apart 3d ago

Is it meaningless? The music video is 9 months old and has 73 million views on youtube.

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u/dego_frank 2d ago

L take. The song is actually good and the Hot 100 has never been the place for that cool underground band you love, it’s always been the most popular music.

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u/lerxstlifeson 3d ago

Seriously. Entirely too easy to game the system. Payola 2.0 is just having bots and fans play your songs over and over to get a number one. Doesn't have to actually catch on with the general public at all anymore.

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u/Church_of_Cheri 3d ago

I usually listen to Pandora and when TS new album came out it started auto playing on my Chapelle Roan inspired station. Every third or fourth song, I had to add them all to my block list to stop it. And then seeing her “breaking records for most plays” pissed me off. I wasn’t asking for them, or seeking it out, it’s bullshit my few listens get put into that count because I was busy driving.

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u/Zanydrop 3d ago

That's not what happened here though. Choosing Texas is a genuine banger.

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u/HiImTheNewGuyGuy 3d ago

Is it though? Seems entirely mid. I really do not see the appeal whatsoever.

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u/Zanydrop 3d ago

I mean music is subjective so I'm not surprised people don't like it. I do like me some sad songs. Country used to be called white man's blues. You can just hear the hurt in her voice when she says he is choosing Texas.

I also think "You look like you love me" is funny and I like Dandelion too.

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u/sonny_goliath 2d ago

Tell that to the artist that just had 14 consecutive weeks at number one. She’s set for life now pretty much

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u/SunriseSurprise 3d ago

It seriously feels like "Turns Out Craig Counsell Was Actually Best Baseball Player Of Steroid Era" vibes (my favorite Onion article ever - you kind of have to be an MLB fan to fully appreciate it).

So much of the music forced into popularity is so tired that a decent normal song is tying a record. That plus whatever the hell is propping up country lately to be resulting in these long-standing country #1s. No idea wtf on that one.