Tequila (Dan + Shay song)
"Tequila" is a song recorded by American country music duo Dan + Shay for their self-titled third studio album. Dan Smyers co-wrote the song with Nicolle Galyon and Jordan Reynolds and co-produced the track with Scott Hendricks. It was released through Warner Bros. Nashville on January 10, 2018 as the album's lead single.[1] "Tequila" was released to country radio on January 15, 2018.[2] Smyers's wife, Abby Law Smyers, performs backing vocals on the song during the post-chorus "when I, when I" hook.[3] The song won the Grammy Award for Best Country Duo/Group Performance at the 61st Grammy Awards as well as both Single and Song of the Year at the 54th Academy of Country Music Awards.
"Tequila" | ||||
---|---|---|---|---|
![]() | ||||
Single by Dan + Shay | ||||
from the album Dan + Shay | ||||
Released | January 10, 2018 | |||
Genre | Country pop | |||
Length | 3:16 | |||
Label | Warner Bros. Nashville | |||
Songwriter(s) |
| |||
Producer(s) |
| |||
Dan + Shay singles chronology | ||||
|
"Tequila" has reached number one on the Billboard Country Airplay and Hot Country Songs charts. The song also peaked at number 21 on the Hot 100, their highest charting single on that chart until 2019's "10,000 Hours". In Canada, the song reached number 59 on the Canadian Hot 100 and number one on the Canada Country chart. It has been certified double platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America and Music Canada.
Composition
The song is performed in the key of B major in common time with a tempo of 86 beats per minute. It follows a chord progression of E–B–F♯(add4)–G♯m, and the duo's vocals span from F♯4 to B5.[4]
Critical reception
Billy Dukes of Taste of Country wrote that the song is characterized by a "strong sense of melody and even stronger vocals", and complimented the songwriting as being "vivid and full of color".[5] Stephen L. Betts of Rolling Stone noted that the duo successfully subvert expectations with the song's title and wrote that "Tequila" is a "nostalgic tale of heartbreak and regret."[1]
Chart performance
"Tequila" debuted at number 35 on the Billboard Country Airplay chart dated January 20, 2018.[6] The song debuted at number 15 on the Hot Country Songs chart the following week.[7] On the Hot 100 chart dated January 27, 2018, "Tequila" entered at number 84, while debuting in the top 10 of the all-genre Digital Songs component chart at number nine.[8] "Tequila" has since peaked at number 21, becoming the duo's first top 40 single.[9][10] It was the duo's highest charting single on that chart until "10,000 Hours" reached number four in October 2019.[11] "Tequila" reached number one on the Country Airplay chart dated July 1, 2018, the same week its parent album debuted as the number one country album.[12] The song remained at the top position the following week, making "Tequila" their first multi-week number-one.[13][12] In February 2019, "Tequila" reached number one on Hot Country Songs, replacing its follow-up single, "Speechless". "Tequila" was certified double platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America in November 2018, and quadruple platinum on October 10, 2019 for 4 million units in sales and streams. The song has sold 707,000 copies in the United States as of February 2020.[14]
The song entered the Canadian Hot 100 chart at number 100, the duo's first single to impact the chart since "From the Ground Up" reached number 77 in 2016.[15] "Tequila" was certified double platinum by Music Canada in October 2018.[16] In July 2018, "Tequila" reached number one on the Canada Country airplay chart, becoming their highest-charting radio hit and first chart-topper in Canada.[17]
Music video
An accompanying music video was directed by Patrick Tracy and premiered March 1, 2018.[18] The video explores the love story between a skier, played by Mica Von Turkovich, and a hiker, played by Nyle DiMarco, who meet in a mountain range in Breckenridge, Colorado.[19] Like the actor himself, DiMarco's character is deaf, and throughout the video he can be seen teaching Turkovich's character various words and phrases in sign language.[20] The sign for tequila is featured prominently.[20] After a brief romance, the pair separate when DiMarco's character departs to finish his journey alone. However, the two are reunited four years later at the bar where they first grabbed drinks.[18]
Dan told Nash Country Daily that the duo were "so inspired by" Nyle's advocacy for the deaf community and hoped to use their video as another platform for this.[19]
Track listing
Digital download[21]
- "Tequila" – 3:16
Digital download (remix)[22]
- "Tequila" (R3hab remix) – 2:37
Charts
Weekly charts
|
Year-end charts
Decade-end charts
|
Certifications
Region | Certification | Certified units/sales |
---|---|---|
Australia (ARIA)[43] | 2× Platinum | 140,000![]() |
Canada (Music Canada)[16] | 4× Platinum | 320,000![]() |
United States (RIAA)[44] | 4× Platinum | 4,000,000![]() |
^shipments figures based on certification alone |
Release history
Country | Date | Format | Version | Label | Ref. |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Various | January 10, 2018 | Digital download | Original | Warner Bros. Nashville | [1] |
United States | January 15, 2018 | Country radio | [2] | ||
Various | July 4, 2018 | Digital download | R3hab remix | [45] | |
United States | September 18, 2018 | Contemporary hit radio | Original | [46] |
References
- Betts, Stephen L. (January 10, 2018). "Hear Dan + Shay's Forlorn New Song 'Tequila'". Rolling Stone. Retrieved January 26, 2018.
- "Single Releases : MusicRow". MusicRow. Archived from the original on January 9, 2018. Retrieved January 26, 2018.
- Roland, Tom (February 14, 2018). "Dan + Shay Take a Shot With Ambitious, Multilayered 'Tequila'". Billboard. Retrieved February 14, 2018.
- Smyers, Dan; Galyon, Nicolle; Reynolds, Jordan (2018-01-12). "Tequila". Musicnotes.com. Retrieved 2019-04-20.
- Dukes, Billy (January 10, 2018). "Is Dan + Shay's 'Tequila' a Hit? Listen and Sound Off!". Taste of Country. Retrieved January 26, 2018.
- "Country Airplay: The Week Of January 20, 2018". Billboard. Retrieved January 26, 2018.
- "Hot Country Songs: The Week Of January 27, 2018". Billboard. Retrieved January 26, 2018.
- Cantor, Brian (January 22, 2018). "Dan + Shay's "Tequila" Debuts On Billboard Hot 100". Headline Planet. Retrieved January 26, 2018.
- "Dan Shay Chart History (Hot 100)". Billboard. Retrieved July 3, 2018.
- Trust, Gary (June 5, 2018). "Hot 100 Chart Moves: Selena Gomez's 'Back to You' Hits Top 40, Maroon 5's 'Girls Like You' Debuts". Billboard. Retrieved June 9, 2018.
- Trust, Gary (October 14, 2019). "Travis Scott's 'Highest in the Room' Debuts at No. 1 on Hot 100, Dan + Shay + Justin's '10,000 Hours' Is No. 4". Billboard. Retrieved July 31, 2020.
- Asker, Jim (July 3, 2018). "Dan + Shay Debuts at No. 1 on Top Country Albums, Crowns Country Airplay With 'Tequila'". Billboard. Retrieved July 17, 2018.
- Asker, Jim (July 10, 2018). "Carrie Underwood Is Sitting 'Pretty' As She Links Her 27th Straight Country Airplay Top 10". Billboard. Retrieved July 17, 2018.
- Bjorke, Matt (February 11, 2020). "Top 30 Country Digital Downloads: February 10, 2020". Rough Stock. Retrieved February 14, 2020.
- "Dan Shay Chart History (Canadian Hot 100)". Billboard. Retrieved April 3, 2018.
- "Canadian single certifications – Dan + Shay – Tequila". Music Canada. Retrieved January 2, 2020.
- "Dan Shay Chart History (Canada Country)". Billboard. Retrieved July 31, 2018.
- Gage, Jeff (March 1, 2018). "Watch Dan + Shay's Cinematic 'Tequila' Video". Rolling Stone. Retrieved April 10, 2018.
- Casey, Jim (March 5, 2018). "Watch Dan + Shay's High-Spirited New Video for "Tequila"". Nash Country Daily. Retrieved April 10, 2018.
- Houghton, Cillea (March 6, 2018). "Dan + Shay Break Down Barriers in Stunning 'Tequila' Video". Taste of Country. Retrieved April 10, 2018.
- "Tequila - Dan + Shay | Songs, Reviews, Credits". AllMusic. Retrieved July 7, 2018.
- "Tequila (R3HAB Remix) (2018) | Dan + Shay | MP3 Downloads". 7digital (US). Retrieved July 7, 2018.
- "ARIA Report (Issue #1519)" (PDF). Australian Recording Industry Association. April 17, 2019. Retrieved January 2, 2020.
- "Dan Shay Chart History (Canada AC)". Billboard. Retrieved April 30, 2019.
- "Dan Shay Chart History (Canada CHR/Top 40)". Billboard. Retrieved April 30, 2019.
- "Dan Shay Chart History (Canada Hot AC)". Billboard. Retrieved January 31, 2019.
- "Dan Shay Chart History (Adult Contemporary)". Billboard. Retrieved May 7, 2019.
- "Dan Shay Chart History (Adult Pop Songs)". Billboard. Retrieved November 20, 2018.
- "Dan Shay Chart History (Country Airplay)". Billboard. Retrieved July 3, 2018.
- "Dan Shay Chart History (Hot Country Songs)". Billboard. Retrieved January 28, 2019.
- "Dan Shay Chart History (Pop Songs)". Billboard. Retrieved February 19, 2019.
- "Top 100 Songs". Rolling Stone. July 2, 2019. Retrieved July 3, 2019.
- "Hot 100 Songs – Year-End 2018". Billboard. Retrieved December 6, 2018.
- "Adult Pop Songs – Year-End 2018". Billboard. Retrieved September 4, 2019.
- "Country Airplay – Year-End 2018". Billboard. Retrieved December 7, 2018.
- "Hot Country Songs – Year-End 2018". Billboard. Retrieved December 6, 2018.
- "Hot 100 Songs – Year-End 2019". Billboard. Retrieved December 6, 2019.
- "Adult Contemporary Songs – Year-End 2019". Billboard. Retrieved December 6, 2019.
- "Adult Pop Songs – Year-End 2019". Billboard. Retrieved December 6, 2019.
- "Hot Country Songs – Year-End 2019". Billboard. Retrieved December 7, 2019.
- "Top 100 Songs of 2019". Rolling Stone. January 10, 2020. Retrieved February 15, 2020.
- "Decade-End Charts: Hot Country Songs". Billboard. Retrieved January 5, 2020.
- "ARIA Charts - Accreditations - 2020 Singles". ARIA. Retrieved March 19, 2020.
- "American single certifications – Dan + Shay – Tequila". Recording Industry Association of America. Retrieved October 10, 2019. If necessary, click Advanced, then click Format, then select Single, then click SEARCH.
- Freeman, Jon (July 5, 2018). "Dan + Shay Tap R3hab for 'Tequila' Remix". Rolling Stone. Retrieved July 7, 2018.
- "Top 40/M Future Releases - Mainstream Hit Songs Being Released and Their Release Dates". All Access. September 2, 2018. Archived from the original on August 29, 2018. Retrieved September 2, 2018.