Dustin Lynch Celebrates One Billion Digital Streams of His Music

Dustin Lynch has had a big week. The Tennessee native not only became the newest member of the Grand Ole Opry with Reba McEntire officially inducting him on Sept. 18, but he was also presented with a surprise plaque, honoring him for having one billion digital streams of his music.

"It's amazing," Lynch shared with PopCulture.com and other media after learning of his latest career achievement. "This is how quick country music changes. I can remember when we started radio touring, started going up to New York, doing press. [I thought] 'Streaming music? What is that? Why are you wasting two hours of my day? I don't get that.'

"It's crazy how now just a few short years later we're celebrating a billion of those things that I didn't even know would really get the time of day," he adds. "It was just so foreign."

Lynch also thanked the many places that have streamed his music, helping catapult his career even more.

"It's amazing what those services have done for me as an artist, as far as getting my music to new places in the world that don't have access to country radio," Lynch reflected. "It's also amazing that we have hit songs because of the streaming services that were never singles on country radio. We started seeing that, where that's at when we started really seeing songs that took off on their own, and became hits at our live shows.

"It's really cool to be a part of that movement," continues the singer. "When you think about it, from history of music, to go from a non-streaming world to a streaming world and having been in streams, this is special. I feel like, wow, it's just wonderful."

Lynch was invited to join the Grand Ole Opry by Trace Adkins, although he admits it didn't seem real at first.

"It took me a few days to let it soak in and really digest what had happened," Lynch told PopCulture.com. "Just an amazing, amazing feeling, still is. It's still weird talking about it."

After his invitation, the "Good Girl" singer was flooded with congratulatory messages from fellow country music artists.

"I had 80 text messages from what had happened when I got backstage on my phone," Lynch said backstage. "But a lot of the members, believe it or not, I've become friends with over the years. I hate to start naming names 'cause I'm gonna forget some people, but Darius Rucker, Brad Paisley, Chris [Janson] were a few of the names I think that hit me right away that night. It's just very cool. I know I'm forgetting some, because it was just, still is a blur. These last few weeks are still blurry."

Lynch will soon hit the road with Cole Swindell on their Reason to Drink ... Another Tour. Find dates at his official website, Dustin Lynch.

Photo Credit: Getty images/Terry Wyatt