Got to Choose

I learned recently that Ella Langley’s “Choosin’ Texas” has been the number one single on the Billboard Hot 100 for 24 weeks. It doesn’t surprise me because I hear this song every damn day.

To be fair, it is a conventionally written country song with a conventionally normal voice in Langley. There’s the barest hint of twang. There is slide guitar in it. It fits in the 1970s, 80s, or 90s. It has just enough pop sensibilities to cross over, which is why I hear it every day.

For the longest time, I had no idea what she even looked like.

There is absolutely nothing cutting-edge or, frankly, musically interesting about this song. It is a well-crafted Nashville song. It has a relatable story, which I guess helped it break out of the country demo.

Personally, I liked it the first 100 or so times I heard it, but now it is so overplayed that I have an irrational tick every time I hear that opening guitar riff.