Riley Green Celebrates Back-to-Back Self-Written No. 1 Hits in Nashville

Riley Green celebrated a double milestone in Nashville this week, teaming up with BMI and his label, Nashville Harbor Records & Entertainment, to mark back-to-back No. 1 hits for his self-written singles, “Worst Way” and “Don’t Mind If I Do.”

Ahead of the celebration, Green sat down with Country Now and other outlets to reflect on his solo-written hits, admitting he never intentionally set out to write alone –  it simply happened that way.

“I never went into writing by myself because I wanted to be a solo writer. I wrote all my songs on my own early in my career. I did construction. I didn’t know anybody else that wrote songs and then I started co-writing and I saw how many doors that opened for me and how awesome it is to go get to write with some of these great writers,” he explained. “But I think when I have an idea that means something to me, it’s kind of easy for me to write by myself and a lot of times I get inspiration when I’m on my farm in Alabama and there’s just nobody else around. So again, it is not anything that I do mindfully. It just sort of happens when the idea is right.” 

While the celebration honored both “Worst Way” and “Don’t Mind If I Do,” featuring Ella Langley, Green was asked to specifically reflect on “Worst Way,” the song that made him the first country artist since Taylor Swift to earn back-to-back solo-written No. 1 singles on the Billboard Country Airplay chart. 

“That was probably the most unsure of a song that I’ve ever been,” he admitted. “I don’t really live in the sappy love song world very often, especially not that forward of a love song. And so when I wrote it…that’s the tough about writing by yourself, it’s not really that you can’t do it, it’s just how do you know if it’s right or not?” 

He went on to recall playing the song for his friends and collaborators, Erik Dylan and Nick Walsh, who urged him to record it. Now, it’s become one of the biggest songs of his career and a standout moment in his live show.

With those two chart-toppers now in the rearview and “Change My Mind” climbing the country radio charts, Green has his sights set on new music. However, he admitted the release timeline isn’t entirely in his hands. If it were up to him, fans would be hearing more new songs sooner rather than later.

“You know what? If I could do whatever I want to do, I’d probably be in the studio and have several songs recorded and be looking at putting some of those songs out really, really soon. And then an album sometime this year. That’s what I would do if I could make the schedule,” he teased. 

While fans will have to wait a bit longer to get their hands on a new album from Riley Green, they have many opportunities to see him live on his Cowboy As It Gets Tour throughout the year. 

Green’s double No. 1 celebration was hosted by BMI’s Clay Bradley, where he was presented with commemorative plaques from Nashville Harbor Records & Entertainment. BMLG’s Scott Borchetta alongside NHRE’s Jimmy Harnen and Ryan Dokke honored Green with No. 1 plaques for “Don’t Mind If I Do” and “Worst Way,” as well as a Gold plaque for his current single, “Change My Mind,” which stands as his fastest-rising track at country radio to date. The team also revealed that “Worst Way” has officially earned 3X-Platinum certification from the RIAA.

Sponsored by Studio Bank, the evening also featured a charitable moment, as Kari Barnhart presented a donation on Green’s behalf to his Buford Bonds Charitable Fund.