The Big BKR Smackdown Top 10 for 2025

Since 2011, we've spent an entire day at the tail-end of December (not on New Year's Eve, but darn close) counting down the top songs of the previous year. And we've done it with nothing other than the votes of our WBKR audience.

The Big BKR Smackdown

What we do is place the top 64 songs of the year in a poll on this website, and then ask you to vote for your ten favorites. Those preliminary votes determine the seeding for the Big BKR Smackdown. It's like the NCAA Tournament. Whichever song receives the most votes in each pairing will advance to the next round until we get down to the "championship."

The Top 10 Songs of 2025 By Your Votes

We love it. We love the calls. We love the Facebook comments. It's just a blast. This year, we had more close races than we've ever had before, doubling the excitement. Here you go...your top 10 songs of 2025,

10. Backseat Driver - Kane Brown

9. Just in Case - Morgan Wallen

8. Backup Plan - Bailey Zimmerman and Luke Combs

7. Bottle Rockets - Scotty McCreery feat. Hootie & the Blowfish

6. I'm Gonna Love You - Cody Johnson & Carrie Underwood

5. I Never Lie - Zach Top

4. Somewhere Over Laredo - Lainey Wilson

3. Worst Way - Riley Green

2. I'm the Problem - Morgan Wallen

1. Don't Mind If I Do - Riley Green feat. Ella Langley

And, just so you'll know, I've already started the list for the 2026 Big BKR Smackdown, and if next year is anything like 2025, it'll be here before we know it.

Happy New Year.

9 Bold Country Music Predictions For 2026

No, we don't have a crystal ball...but we DO have nine out-there ideas for where country music could be headed in 2026.

This predictions list includes the stars we think will release new music, and we named a star we think will rise out of reality television. Plus, we predicted the exact month we think Jelly Roll will have a major cover story spot and took a stab at guessing the 2026 CMA Entertainer of the Year.

Our batting average for country music predictions has been about 4/9 in the past couple of years, so don't expect all of these to come true. But hey, even if they don't — there's always 2027.

Gallery Credit: Carena Liptak

See the Most Played Country Song from the Year You Were Born

Who had the most played country song during the year you were born? This list is a fascinating time capsule of prevalent trends from every decade in American history. Scroll through to find your birth year and then click to listen. Some of these songs have been lost through the years, many of them for good reason!

Men named Hank dominated early before stars like Freddie Hart, Ronnie Milsap, Willie Nelson Clint Black took over to close the 1980s. More recently it's been Tim Mcgraw, Rodney Atkins, Kane Brown and Morgan Wallen. Did the most-played country song from the year you were born become a favorite of yours later? All info comes from Billboard's country airplay charts.

Gallery Credit: Billy Dukes