Carrie Underwood’s ‘Smoke Break’ Makes History at Country Radio

Carrie Underwood's new single, "Smoke Break," has been out for less than a week, and it's already on its way to becoming a smash hit.

The song, which is the first single from her upcoming album, Storyteller, dropped last Thursday (Aug. 20), and it set a new all-time record for the largest first-week radio adds in the history of Country Aircheck, with 145 Mediabase adds and 159 total Billboard and Country Aircheck reporting stations lined up for the song’s official airplay impact date.

Jay Joyce produced "Smoke Break," which Underwood co-wrote with Hillary Lindsey and Chris DeStefano. "The song itself is just kind of one of those story songs that I feel like everybody can relate to about how life is so hectic and it’s so nice if and when you get to step away for a second, and we all need that time to ourselves, to get to take a break," she says.

Storyteller is Underwood's first full studio collection of new songs since Blown Away in 2012. "I feel like a lot of the songs that I wrote and gravitated to ended up being more traditional and "twangy" than anything I have ever done before," she says. "I just went with it! I love the story telling aspect of country music ... it's one of the reasons I always wanted to be a part of it."

Storyteller is slated for release on Oct. 23.

Carrie Underwood's All-Time Best Single and Album Covers