Chris Young Says Having 10 No. 1 Singles Is ‘a Really Big, Defining Moment’
When Chris Young heard that his single "Losing Sleep" had hit No. 1 on the Billboard Country Airplay charts, the news meant more than a successful song: It gave the singer the 10th No. 1 hit of his career. To celebrate, Young recently staged a takeover party at Tin Roof on Broadway in Nashville, Tenn., re-dubbing the venue "Ten Roof" for the evening.
"It's tough to get 10 singles on the radio, much less 10 hits, much less 10 No. 1s," Young said at a press conference before the party. "It's a really big, defining moment for me. We're gonna throw down and enjoy it tonight."
To celebrate the occasion, Young didn't splurge on a new car or a dream vacation: Instead, he marked his 10 hits with a donation of $10,000 to St. Jude Children's Research Hospital. He announced his donation at this year's Country Radio Seminar, expressing that he wanted to make the charitable gift on behalf of country radio, and as a way of giving back to the community that had helped him achieve success.
"[The Country Radio Seminar] was the first time I got to sit in front of the radio programmers who had played the song and got it to No. 1," he recalls. "Ever since the first time I played a tiny acoustic show, before I even had a record deal, St. Jude was one of the places that I loved for what they stand for and what they do. So, I thought what better to do, as a thank you, to celebrate 10 No. 1 hits, than to donate $10,000 to St. Jude?"
"Losing Sleep" is Young's fourth consecutive No. 1 single, and although it may be easy to assume that the country star can do no wrong at this point, he knows better.
"Well, I've also had two No. 37s, and a No. 52, and No. 23 ...," he notes, trailing off with a laugh. "I had a No. 52 on a song I wrote with Ashley Gorley! That takes talent of a different kind, to have a No. 52 with an Ashley Gorley song.
"I'm insanely proud of everything I write and everything we get a chance to celebrate," Young continues. "If you had asked me [earlier in my career] if we'd ever get to 10? No way. But those other songs that existed were songs that had to happen in order to get to this point."
In front of a packed house of friends, family and fans, Young received a surprise: A plaque commemorating the double-platinum sales of one of his chart-topping hits, "I'm Comin' Over." He also performed a special set of all 10 No. 1 songs from start to finish as a way to celebrate the milestone of notching 10 chart-topping songs.
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