Rednecker

"Rednecker"
Single by Hardy
from the EP This Ole Boy
ReleasedMarch 4, 2019 (2019-03-04)
Genre
Length3:21
LabelBig Loud
Songwriters
Producers
Hardy singles chronology
"Rednecker"
(2019)		 "One Beer"
(2020)
Music video
"Rednecker" on YouTube

"Rednecker" (stylized in all caps) is the debut single by American country music singer Hardy. It was released on March 4, 2019 as the lead single from his 2018 debut EP This Ole Boy.

Background

In an interview with The Boot, Hardy explained the song's origin.

Jordan Schmidt and Andy [Albert] and I were sitting off in a corner, and we were laughing about something. One of the guys said, "I'm rednecker than you". We were just going on and on about something stupid and kept saying that. There's a thing with songwriters, where, if somebody says something either profound or very unique, and they say it loud enough to hear -- if you're in a room with a bunch of songwriters, you'll always catch another person looking around to see if anybody heard it. It's a really funny thing. So anyway, we kinda laughed, and then we all got real serious for a second, and we were like, "Oh s--t, we need to go write that, right now".

Critical reception

Kyle's Korner panned the song, rating it a 2/10 and being heavily critical of the song's generic production and Hardy's vocals as well as its cliched lyrics, criticizing the song's attempts at humor for "not [having] enough hyperbole in the writing to stick the landing." The review also criticized the song as "the dumbest declaration of countriness I’ve ever heard, sung by the most insufferable narrator who completely fails at making the track sarcastic, fun, or worth listening to."

Music video

The music video, directed by Justin Clough, was shot on a farm in Cottontown, Tennessee and features some of Hardy's songwriting collaborators: Brett Tyler, Joe Clemmons and Benjy Davis. The group was able to relax and have a fun day just being buddies and hanging out. Their day consisted of mudding, mattress surfing via his jacked-up 4x4, shooting catfish in a lake, paintballing, shotgunning Busch Lights and putting "a little more spit in (his) chaw", contest style.

Charts

Certifications

Region CertificationCertified units/sales
Canada (Music Canada) Platinum 80,000‡
United States (RIAA) Platinum 1,000,000‡

‡ Sales+streaming figures based on certification alone.

References

  1. 1 2 "Future releases for Country Radio". All Access. Archived from the original on February 24, 2019. Retrieved November 16, 2020.
  2. ↑ "Get to Know: Newcomer Hardy". onecountry.com. Retrieved May 9, 2020.
  3. ↑ "Rednecker - HARDY | AllMusic". AllMusic.com. Retrieved August 19, 2020.
  4. ↑ Liptak, Carena (April 30, 2019). "Story Behind the Song: Hardy, 'Rednecker'". theboot.com. Retrieved May 9, 2020.
  5. ↑ "Song Review: HARDY, "REDNECKER" – Kyle's Korner". Kyle's Korner. February 12, 2019. Retrieved August 19, 2026.
  6. ↑ "Hardy Brings the Party With 'Rednecker' Music Video". tasteofcountry.com. Retrieved May 9, 2020.
  7. ↑ "HARDY Chart History (Canada Country)". Billboard. Retrieved May 9, 2020.
  8. ↑ "HARDY Chart History (Bubbling Under Hot 100)". Billboard. Retrieved May 9, 2020.
  9. ↑ "HARDY Chart History (Country Airplay)". Billboard. Retrieved May 9, 2020.
  10. ↑ "HARDY Chart History (Hot Country Songs)". Billboard. Retrieved May 9, 2020.
  11. ↑ "Hot Country Songs – Year-End 2019". Billboard. Retrieved May 9, 2020.
  12. ↑ "Canadian single certifications – Hardy – Rednecker". Music Canada. Retrieved January 28, 2021.
  13. ↑ "American single certifications – Hardy – Rednecker". Recording Industry Association of America. Retrieved October 25, 2021.