Ella Langley’s ‘Choosin’ Texas’ pushes song of summer debate country
Rolling Stone says Ella Langley’s country hit leads summer charts while some tastemaker lists still leave it out.
By Bianca Rossi · Entertainment Editor
3 min read
Ella Langley’s “Choosin’ Texas” song of summer case just got louder, with Rolling Stone critic Marissa R. Moss arguing that the country single has the charts, reach and seasonal glow to own 2026.
In a July 27 column, Moss pointed to the track’s run on the Hot 100 and its lead on Billboard’s Summer Songs chart as evidence that Langley’s breakthrough has already moved beyond country circles. Billboard’s summer ranking has “Choosin’ Texas” ahead of songs by Drake and Taylor Swift, according to Rolling Stone.
The stakes are bigger than bragging rights. Rolling Stone reported that if “Choosin’ Texas” remains at No. 1 on the Hot 100 this week, it will move past Whitney Houston’s “I Will Always Love You” and Mariah Carey’s “We Belong Together” as the only non-holiday song by a woman to spend more than 15 weeks at the top.
Why is “Choosin’ Texas” being called the song of summer?
A Song of the Summer is an informal title for the track that dominates the warm-weather months across charts, radio, parties and culture. Rolling Stone’s case is that Langley’s single checks those boxes: it is still spreading on TikTok, it is being heard on country radio, and it has crossed into club spaces.
Rolling Stone noted that Drake, who is also part of this year’s summer-song conversation, played “Choosin’ Texas” during a DJ set. The column also cited other remixed versions circulating online.
Moss described the single’s appeal as rooted in its country identity and its easy summer feel, citing its dancehall-leaning melody, guitar hook and Langley’s Southern vocal style. The song was written by Langley, Miranda Lambert, Luke Dick and Joybeth Taylor, according to Rolling Stone.
Why some lists are skipping Langley’s hit
Despite its chart strength, “Choosin’ Texas” has not appeared on several online lists sizing up 2026’s summer songs. Rolling Stone cited lists from Forbes, Complex and The Fader that did not include the track, while noting that it has appeared in other conversations.
Moss raised the possibility that the song’s country sound has made some critics and list-makers slower to crown it. Rolling Stone contrasted that with 2024, when The Guardian was already calling Sabrina Carpenter’s “Espresso” the song of the summer in June.
The column also placed Langley’s single in the broader history of country crossover hits. Rolling Stone cited Lil Nas X’s “Old Town Road,” Morgan Wallen’s “Last Night,” and Wallen and Post Malone’s “I Had Some Help” as recent summer contenders with country elements, while arguing that each carried strong pop markers too.
“Choosin’ Texas,” by contrast, is presented by Rolling Stone as more plainly country, with steel guitar, mandolin and references to two Southern states. The column also noted that Langley is a female artist from Alabama.
That distinction matters for the record books. According to Rolling Stone, Billboard’s summer-song tracking dates to 1958, and no woman has had a country song named Song of the Summer in that history, including Taylor Swift and Shania Twain.
Langley released “Choosin’ Texas” last October, Rolling Stone reported. Months later, the track is still driving one of pop music’s annual arguments, with a country song sitting at the center of the summer pileup.
This story draws on original reporting from Rolling Stone.