Russell Dickerson‘s “Yours” has officially topped the Billboard Country Airplay chart during the week of Jan. 27, and the milestone moment has been a long time coming for the rising country star.
To celebrate, Dickerson shared an image of the chart on Instagram along with an emotional caption chronicling his journey, which has seen the singer go from playing for small crowds to opening for acts like Thomas Rhett and Florida Georgia Line. His debut album, Yours, was released in October 2017, and the singer is set to open for Lady Antebellum and Darius Rucker on their joint tour this summer.
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“I started chasing this dream with all I had in 2010,” Dickerson wrote to fans. “I basically wrote songs every day and toured every weekend in a 2004 Nissan Armada. I didn’t want to do anything else. I didn’t want money I just wanted chase down a dream and make it come true.”
He added that “Yours” was written four years ago this week, calling the track “the song that kept me going.”
“NO MATTER HOW LONG IT TOOK I was going to fight for this song because I’ve never believed in a song more than YOURS!” he continued. “Now as of last night at midnight I OFFICIALLY HAVE MY FIRST OFFICIAL BILLBOARD NUMBER ONE SINGLE! I love every single one of you sorry for the novel but I BEEN WAITIN 8 YEARS TO POST THIS!!!!”
The singer also included a shoutout to his wife, Kailey, who inspired the romantic track.
“@kaileydickerson you inspired this song and you still inspire me every single day,” he wrote. “You honestly do make me better than I was before.”
On her Instagram story, Kailey shared that she and Russell took “Yours” to “every label in Nashville,” but they were turned down. So they shot a music video for the song themselves, “and here we are,” she said.
Dickerson’s No. 1 week follows that of Maren Morris, who topped the chart for the first time last week with her third single, “I Could Use a Love Song.”
Photo Credit: Kailey Dickerson
