Hot 100 First-Timers: Tucker Wetmore Scores First Chart Hit With ‘Wine Over Whiskey’

Tucker Wetmore had never appeared on a Billboard chart before this week, but now, he’s already a Billboard Hot 100-charting hitmaker thanks to his breakthrough single, “Wine Over Whiskey.”

Released Feb. 23 on Back Blocks Music, the song debuts at No. 77 on the Hot 100 (dated March 9) with 5.2 million official streams and 6,000 downloads sold in the U.S. in its opening week (through Feb. 29), according to Luminate. It also opens at No. 22 on Hot Country Songs, which uses the same multimetric methodology as the Hot 100.

The song’s first-week performance was sparked in large part by hype generated on TikTok. Wetmore first posted a clip of the song on his profile on Dec. 12 and then continued to tease its official release. The initial clip has generated over 3 million views and soundtracked over 25,000 clips on the platform to date. Users have taken its chorus lyric, which begins with the line “I took a good thing and I turned it into goodbye,” to accompany TikToks about their relationship woes and experiences of heartbreak. (Activity on TikTok is not included in Billboard‘s charts except for the TikTok Billboard Top 50.)

“Wine Over Whiskey” is Wetmore’s only official release on DSPs so far, although he has released numerous covers on his TikTok account, plus clips of original songs. On March 2, he shared a portion of an unreleased song: “What Would You Do.”

Before beginning his career as a recording artist, Wetmore, from Kalama, Wash., played college football at the University of Montana. His aspirations in the sport were cut short, however, due to injuries.

In January 2023, Wetmore signed a publishing deal with Back Blocks Music. He has a string of tour dates lined up this spring supporting Kameron Marlowe’s Strangers Tour 2024.