Darius Rucker recently received a huge honor.
Rucker’s song “Wagon Wheel” from his 2013 album, True Believers, was certified Diamond by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA), according to Music Row Magazine. In honor of the milestone, UMG Nashville presented Rucker with a plaque during a ceremony, which also celebrated his tenth No. 1 “Beers And Sunshine,” the outlet reported.
Rucker’s song “Wagon Wheel” is now the fourth country song in history to be certified diamond, joining Florida Georgia Line’s “Cruise,” Chris Stapleton’s “Tennessee Whiskey,” and Lil Nas X and Billy Ray Cyrus’ “Old Town Road.” A diamond certification signifies that the song or project has sold over 10,000,000 units.
The song was written by Ketch Secor and was originally recorded by Old Crow Medicine Show in 2004, Music Row Magazine indicated. Secor wrote the song after he discovered an unfinished demo of Bob Dylan singing the song’s chorus.
“I came here just to make a record. I came here because I wanted to make the music. I can’t thank you guys enough for the life that you’ve given me,” Rucker thanked his team while accepting his award. “My life is so much better because I came to Nashville. Thank you.”
Besides honoring Rucker’s achievement with “Wagon Wheel,” the ceremony emceed by Amazon’s Country Heat Weekly podcast host Kelly Sutton, recognized “Beers And Sunshine” (from Rucker’s 2022 #1’s – Volume 1 album) as having reached the No. 1 spot on the country music charts back in 2021.
Joined by the song’s co-writers, Josh Osborne, Ross Copperman, and JT Harding, Rucker discussed what it was like to write the track over Zoom.
“There’s no nonsense on Zoom. In the [writer] room, you sit around and talk about your kids. You tell them what’s going on and it takes 20 minutes to get started. Not on Zoom!” Rucker explained. “When we finished it, I thought it was something special. Ross went out of his way to record this whole record on Zoom. Nobody was ever in the same room together ever.”
While accepting the award, Rucker also thanked Universal, ASCAP, and Sony for recognizing the song.
In addition to celebrating his two awards, Rucker also recently teamed up with America’s Got Talent season 17 finalists Chapel Hart on his latest release, “Ol’ Church Hymn.”
The joyful gospel-inspired ballad is set to be featured on Rucker’s forthcoming album and blends his rich vocals with Chapel Hart’s stunning three-part harmonies.
“You soothe my soul like an ol’ church hymn / Found in a book in the back of a pew / Born again love I’m a new person / Hand in the air hallelujah / Amen, Amen, Amen / Amen, Amen, Amen / You soothe my soul like an ol’ church hymn,” goes the chorus of the song.
Prior to releasing the duet with Chapel Hart, Rucker joined the talented trio on stage during the AGT finale where they performed Bonnie Raitt’s 1991 hit, “Something To Talk About” together.
Rucker hasn’t just been busy with music, either. According to ABC, the “Wagon Wheel” singer will guest star on the network’s television series Big Sky opposite fellow country singer Reba McEntire and her boyfriend, actor Rex Linn. Rucker will play a man named Possum, a “hired gun who works at night like his nocturnal namesake.”
The role is not Rucker’s first foray into acting. He previously appeared in movies such as Shallow Hal and Scooby Doo! And KISS: Rock And Roll Mystery and also had his own show, Rucker’s Reno on The Design Network.
In discussing the impact of “Wagon Wheel” at his award ceremony, Rucker said the song has “become part of the lexicon.”
“When I play it, people lose their minds, just as they did the other night at the Opry,” Rucker shared, according to Forbes. “When we got to that song, everybody stood up and started dancing. How many times does that happen at the Opry?,” he added.