The Best 25 Debut Country Singles of All Time, Ranked
A truly great debut single establishes a country artist's musical personality. Though they can — and should — evolve throughout their career, the best debut singles hone in on the artist's personality and introduces fans to who they are as a recording artist.
Not every country star comes out of the gate with an unbeatable first single — acts like Chris Stapleton, Sam Hunt, Tim McGraw and even Carrie Underwood started out with submissions to country radio that are underwhelming compared to the massive hits and fan-favorites that followed.
But others knocked it out of the park on their first try, with unforgettable story songs, record-breaking country earworms and even a couple of singles that are the artists' one and only No. 1 hits to date.
Some, like Luke Bryan's "All My Friends Say," delivered a personality-packed punch right off the bat, introducing fans to a musical identity that would stay consistent throughout a long and successful career. Others, like Maddie & Tae's "Girl in a Country Song," were a little bit more of a one-off, but represent songs that provided a breath of fresh air in the existing country radio mainstream.
Scroll through the gallery below to count down the best 25 debut country singles of all time, and learn more about how these songs impacted listeners — and the artists who released them.