Before BDS (Broadcast Data Systems), debuted on the Billboard Hot 100 Singles, the BDS system began to track airplay tracks and album cuts on the Billboard Hot Country Singles chart. This was seen as somewhat of an experiment to use airplay monitors to identify each song played by radio stations. It was the first time that Broadcast Data Systems would be used on a Billboard chart. Billboard began to focus on obtaining real results for their charts. Airplay technologies were advancing by the late ’80s, and the country chart was the first to apply these new possibilities.
When the Hot Country Singles came into its existence, the chart was compiled through reports of airplay and sales of country songs. However, the chart positions also relied on the most played songs in jukeboxes when the Country Songs debuted in 1944. The first # 1 song was “Pistol Packin’ Mama” by Bing Crosby, The Andrew Sisters and Al Dexter. The juke box portion was discontinued in June 1957. The chart data essentially had the same setup as other popular Billboard songs and singles charts. The chart information was compiled from national samples of retail store reports, one-stop sales reports and country radio playlists.
The system was in place for many years. However, the sales of country singles were in a major decline by the 1980s. Some years had one week # 1 songs for nearly the entire calendar year! There were many times when # 1, # 2 or high charting songs completely fell out of the top 40. Chart volatility became very apparent, and the results did not seem to match up. Interestingly on January 31st of 1987, the Hot Country Singles chart became an airplay only chart. The chart had been relying on calling country stations for their playlists. The information relayed did not pack hard data, and it was not representative of real airplay.
In 1987, Billboard became a subsidiary of BPI Communications, who was a major media conglomerate. During this time, BPI acquired Broadcast Data Systems (BDS), which was an up-and-coming high-tech firm. BDS developed new and innovative radio technologies. One of their biggest innovations was tracking radio airtime, particularly in music. Billboard took an interest in BDS and eventually worked directly with them to more accurately report country airplay. The BDS system tracks the airplay of songs 24 hours a day, seven days a week in markets where monitors were installed by Broadcast Data Systems. The Country singles chart would now be compiled by the number of times each record is played on monitored stations. Each time a record played is then multiplied by the number of listeners at that time. The songs would be ranked by the total figures, which are the gross impressions. The monitor identifies each song by an encoded “audio fingerprint.” An audio fingerprint is used to identify sound recordings over the radio.
Billboard published an extensive article about the revitalized country chart and announced the premiere of the new tracking system for the country singles in November, 1989. The revamped chart would go live in early 1990. It was truly an experiment, while additionally applying a new technology to a popular music chart at Billboard. The Hot Country Singles became the first Billboard chart to use such state-of-the-art innovations.
On January 20th, 1990, Billboard unveiled the revised Hot Country Singles chart. Clint Black had the honor of the first # 1 song on this week with his song, “Nobody’s Home.” The chart used test data from BDS, so Clint Black’s song actually jumped from # 7 on the previous week to # 1 for the new BDS chart. “Nobody’s Home” spent three weeks at # 1 in 1990. This was the first Billboard chart to use digitally monitored airplay that would eventually take over all of the Billboard charts. The method of using airplay and sales reports were no longer used on the chart. One peculiar change to the chart was the change from a 100 position chart down to a 75 position chart. The data was used from monitored airplay at 77 major and medium-market country stations. Additional monitors would soon be added and the airplay markets would grow rapidly thereafter.
The newly revised Hot Country Singles in 1990 which incorporated BDS technology. The chart was now 75 positions.
A few weeks later, on February 24th of 1990, the Hot Country Singles chart officially became the Hot Country Singles & Tracks. The chart now noted retail single availability for songs. All song titles that reach the top 75 will be eligible to chart. Songs moving down the chart will be removed automatically after 26 weeks, then they will be considered recurrent. Recurrent were songs that recently fell off the chart, but still receive airplay. The recurrent rules would be changed many years later.
There was a slight change made on December 5, 1992. The airplay tracking would use the number of plays for each song. It would not go by the gross impressions. Industry professionals and Billboard felt that large market populations were given too much preference. So songs now would be detected by the number of detections, especially since it was an airplay only chart. Throughout the ’90s, there would be less clutter at the top. Chart movement became more active. In 1999, Lonestar’s “Amazed” spent 8 weeks at the top, which was the longest # 1 song since 1966.
By the early 2000s, Billboard revised the Hot Country Songs to 60 positions and eventually to 50 positions. In 2005, this chart became the “Hot Country Songs.” The chart formula was revised again in January, 2005. With this change, audience impressions was factored into the chart’s airplay formula. It works similar to gross impressions. The total audience impressions are determined by cross-referencing exact times of airplay with Arbitron listener data for those times. Arbitron was later acquired by Nielsen. Nielsen was also tracking airplay with BDS, and better known as Nielsen BDS. Furthermore, this change was due to record label-sponsored spin programs that manipulated the chart, particularly in 2004. It’s otherwise known as “payola.” That’s cheating record companies, shame on you!
The Hot Country Songs now incorporates airplay, digital sales and streaming data for each song. Billboard implemented this on October 20, 2012. During this time, the airplay configuration was revised to use airplay from stations of all formats. The major chart revision allowed songs to have even longer stays at the # 1 position. These were lengths that the chart had not seen before. When I wrote this, “Meant To Be” by Bebe Rexha featuring Florida Georgia Line was the # 1 song on the Hot Country Songs chart for 46 weeks! Wow, that’s one long time for a song to stay at # 1 on a songs/singles chart. Well, it finally lasted 50 consecutive weeks at # 1 in 2018! That is just amazing.
Here is a top ten roster of the longest running # 1 songs for the Hot Country Singles chart.
- Meant To Be, Bebe Rexha and Florida Georgia Line – 50 Weeks, 2017-2018
- Body Like a Back Road, Sam Hunt – 34 Weeks, 2017
- I Hope, Gabby Barrett – 26 Weeks, 2020-2021
- Cruise, Florida Georgia Line – 24 Weeks, 2012-2013
- I’ll Hold In My Heart (Till I Can Hold You in My Arms), Eddy Arnold – 21 Weeks, 1947-1948
- I’m Moving On, Hank Snow – 21 Weeks, 1950
- In the Jailhouse Now, Webb Pierce – 21 Weeks, 1955
- 10,000 Hours, Dan & Shay with Justin Bieber – 21 Weeks, 2019-2020
- I Don’t Hurt Anymore, Hank Snow – 20 Weeks, 1954
- Crazy Arms, Ray Price – 20 Weeks, 1956
This was a major innovation in 1990 to incorporate monitored airplay using BDS for the first time. The most popular country songs would be represented more accurately. Eventually, this innovative tracking mechanism would encompass all of the Billboard charts. However, the country singles chart (Hot Country Songs) was the first one to experiment with the new tracking technology.
Billboard Chart Rewind 
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