'American Idol' on the Charts: Kelly Clarkson Teams With Vince Gill, Earns Fifth Hit on Hot Country Songs
"RUSH" WEEK: Kelly Clarkson was the first Idol to appear on the Billboard charts. She was also the first Idol to appear on a country chart. While her victory ode, "A Moment Like This," was enjoying a run at No. 1 on The Billboard Hot 100, the song received enough airplay on country stations to make a brief appearance on Hot Country Songs, peaking at No. 58 the week of Oct. 26, 2002.
Five years passed before Clarkson earned another berth on Hot Country Songs, teamed with Reba McEntire on a remake of the former’s "Because of You." The duet version peaked at No. 2 the week of Sept. 8, 2007. Clarkson’s infrequent visits to the country chart continued 3 1/2 years later, thanks to another team-up. The song was "Don’t You Wanna Stay," credited to Jason Aldean with Clarkson. The powerhouse pairing was enough to carry the song all the way to No. 1 for a three-week stay that began the week of March 12, 2011.
A decade after she first appeared on American Idol, Clarkson had another solo hit on Hot Country Songs. A countrified arrangement of her pop hit "Mr. Know-It-All" peaked at No. 21 the week of June 30. It was her first solo country appearance since "A Moment Like This."
This week, Clarkson scores her fifth country hit as "Don’t Rush," a new duet with genre icon Vince Gill, debuts on Hot Country Songs at No. 25. While that gives Clarkson a Billboard country chart span of 10 years and three weeks, it extends Gill’s run on the same chart to 28 years, nine years and one week, dating back to the debut of "Victim of Life’s Circumstances" the week of Feb. 11, 1984. But Gill’s total chart career goes back even further – to when he was lead singer of country-rock outfit Pure Prairie League. He joined the group in 1979 and first charted in Billboard when "Let Me Love You Tonight" debuted on the Hot 100 the week of May 10, 1980, giving him a chart span of 32 years, six months and one week.
Collaborating with Clarkson has rewritten Gill’s country chart history. "Don’t Rush" is the highest debuting song of his 60 entries on Hot Country Songs. It's his biggest hit since September 2006 when he went to No. 4 with "Building Bridges," recorded with Brooks & Dunn and Sheryl Crow. And Clarkson is Gill’s eighth female partner on this list. In addition to Crow, Gill has charted with Reba McEntire, Dolly Parton, Alison Krauss, Patty Loveless, Barbra Streisand and Emmylou Harris.
"Don’t Rush" triumphs on two other charts this week – one that measures sales and one that only considers airplay. On Country Digital Songs, the Clarkson/Gill song is a top 10 hit out of the box, debuting at No. 10. On Country Airplay, "Rush" races onto the chart at No. 55. The single also bows on The Billboard Hot 100, at No. 97, and on Hot Digital Songs, at No. 35.
http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/ido...larkson-387687