Thomas Rhett Earns 16th No. 1 Single With 'Be a Light'

Thomas Rhett released his song "Be a Light" earlier this year as a way to give back to those in the music industry affected by the coronavirus pandemic and the song has now topped the charts, reaching No. 1 on the Mediabase Country Chart this week for Rhett's 16th trip to the top of the chart. "Be A Light" was written by Rhett, Matt Dragstrem, Josh Miller and Josh Thompson and features Reba McEntire, Keith Urban, Hillary Scott and Chris Tomlin.

"I'm completely blown away and humbled by the support of 'Be A Light' from the fans, country radio and the entire industry," Rhett said in a statement. "When we decided to release this song in March, it was the best way I knew how to share what was on my heart, and I'm feeling so hopeful and encouraged to see so many of you inspired to take action because of it in your own communities. Thank y'all for coming together like this!"

When the song was released in March, Rhett announced that he was donating all of its proceeds to MusiCares COVID-19 Relief efforts, and last week, the singer and Big Machine Label Group President/CEO Scott Borchetta surprised Recording Academy Chair and Interim President/CEO Harvey Mason Jr. and MusiCares Executive Director Laura Segura with a $100,000 donation to the relief fund, which was established to help members of the music community affected by the pandemic.

Speaking to Bobby Bones on The Bobby Bones Show last week, Rhett said "Be A Light" "took on a life of its own." "I wrote this song on the road last year under a completely different set of circumstances, just wanted to kind of get a message out there about kindness," he said, adding that when quarantine began, he asked his label if he could release the song on his 30th birthday. "This song seemed to be one of those ones that I felt like people could use in their life," he said. "A little bit of encouragement during such a strange time."

Rhett added that "never in a million years" did he think the track would be a single. "I just wanted to put it out," he explained. "It kind of started to catch on and it's just been amazing to watch the reaction from people across the country and the world, just kind of how this song hit them. It's been pretty awesome."