Thomas Rhett [ABC]
Republic recently announced that Thomas Rhett’s country smash “Die A Happy Man” would impact pop radio on April 26.
It subsequently issued a new mix featuring Tori Kelly, presumably with the intent of creating more intrigue, enthusiasm, and accessibility in advance of the pop radio launch.
Plans for such a push have apparently been nixed. Republic’s radio promotions team longer lists “Die A Happy Man” on its pop radio briefing.
Rhett’s tune has also been removed from the hot adult contemporary briefing; the song, which had received a formal push at the format, had hit an apparent wall at #22. It was down to #28 — following a massive loss in weekly airplay — on the most recent Mediabase Hot AC airplay chart.
Combined with a lack of early programmer excitement and the fact that a Nelly cover had already been pushed (and had already stalled) at mainstream radio, the slowdown at Hot AC likely fueled Republic’s decision to nix plans for a pop impact.
Frequently compared to Ed Sheeran’s mainstream radio smash “Thinking Out Loud,” Rhett’s tune seemed like a reasonably safe bet for crossover success.
That success is unlikely to be achieved. But insofar as the song achieved incredible things within the country genre — including 17 weeks atop Billboard Hot Country Songs and 6 weeks atop Country Airplay — it is likely Rhett is still a very happy man.