Hank Williams Jr. Receives Special Certifications Thanks to the Late Waylon Jennings
Hank Williams Jr. followed in his father’s footsteps and formed a successful country music career of his own. Last week, he was honored with two new gold certifications from the Recording Industry Association of America, and he couldn’t have done it without the late country music legend Waylon Jennings.
Prior to his death in 2002, Jennings recorded several songs with Williams Jr. Two of the songs, “Dixie on My Mind” and “The Conversation,” recently became gold singles about 40 years after their release. To receive a gold certification, an artist’s song must sell 500,000 units. These days, streaming services have changed the game, so the rules have changed slightly to allow both on-demand audio and video to count as well.
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Williams Jr. wrote “Dixie on My Mind” and released it in 1981 as the second single from his album Rowdy. It did very well on the charts and hit No. 1 on the Billboard Hot Country Singles chart. Meanwhile, Jennings cowrote “The Conversation” with Williams Jr. and Waylon’s drummer Richie Albright. Williams Jr. featured the song on his 1979 album Whiskey Bent and Hell Bound while Jennings added it to his 1983 album Waylon and Company.
“The Conversation” is extra special because it was one of the first music videos for country songs as well as one of the few that Jennings ever made during his impressive career. Both songs were officially certified gold on Oct. 10, 2024, securing the songs’ spot in history.
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Jennings once said about Williams Jr., “Hank Jr. is one of the best blues singers in the world, and on a good night, he can make his daddy look like a sharecropper. He’s his own man, and I think I helped him come to terms with that.”
Both songs have proved the test of time. In honor of their gold certification, listen to both of these classic country tunes below and let us know which one is your favorite:
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March 2022
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