Country duo Florida Georgia Line recently set the all-time record for the most weeks at No. 1 on Billboard’s Hot Country Songs chart. The hit song “Cruise” earned a 22nd week atop the list. The song now passes three other titles that each led for 21 weeks over the chart’s 69-year history.
The historic No. 1 run for “Cruise” comes on the heels of a celebrated concert performance on the beaches of Panama City Beach, FL. during Spring Break, when the song first began gaining record traction.
Youth marketing agency Collegiate Marketing Group (CMG) were looking for an up-and-coming band to headline the re-vamped Beach Bash Music Fest at Sharky’s Beach Club during Spring Break’s peak week in March, and all roads at the time were leading to rising stars Florida Georgia Line.
Their 90 minute concert on the beach drew more than 7,000 students – making it the most successfully organized ticketed event on the beach – another milestone the band can now lay claim to.
Please Read Our Blog: Collegiate Marketing Group Produces Beach Bash Music Fest in Panama City Beach..
“Having a band like Florida Georgia Line perform during Spring Break and then seeing them catapult in the industry afterwards is one of those rare and proud moments,” commented Carm Giardina, a CMG representative. “We’re obviously not taking credit for their record-breaking success story, but we’d like to think that we helped start the momentum shift seeing as Spring Break is such a pop culture event.”
The Florida Georgia Line concert set a record for the largest ticketed event during Spring Break.
Past Spring Break favorites who have since gone on to win major awards and become immense popular figures include hip hop star 50 Cent, pop stars LMFAO, and country superstar Luke Bryan (who still performs each year in Panama City Beach and has gone on to write songs about the destination and even name an album after the cultural student event).
Watch the video of Florida Georgia Line performing Live at the Beach Bash Music Fest..
Will Florida Georgia Line ever return to the shores of Panama City Beach for another go-round?
“We’re not anticipating a return for 2014, but you never know,” says Giardina. We think it would be a cool thing to bring in another rising talent and watch their success grow post spring break again.”
“Cruise” has sold 5.4 million downloads to date, becoming the third-best-selling country digital track ever, according to SoundScan. The track spent five non-consecutive weeks at No. 1 on Hot Country Songs in December/January before dropping to as low as No. 13 in March before their Spring Break performance. Following the release of the Nelly re-mix and its push to pop and adult radio formats, it’s ranked at No. 1 for the last 17 weeks dating to April 20.