You Had to Be There (song)
| "You Had to Be There" | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | ||||
| Single by Megan Moroney and Kenny Chesney | ||||
| Released | May 9, 2025 | |||
| Genre | Country | |||
| Length | 3:40 | |||
| Label | ||||
| Songwriter(s) |
| |||
| Producer(s) | Kristian Bush | |||
| Megan Moroney singles chronology | ||||
| ||||
| Kenny Chesney singles chronology | ||||
| ||||
| Music video | ||||
| "You Had to Be There" on YouTube | ||||
"You Had to Be There" is a song by American country music singers Megan Moroney and Kenny Chesney. It was released on May 9, 2025, as the lead single from Moroney's upcoming third studio album.[1] Moroney co-wrote the song with Mackenzie Carpenter, Micah Carpenter, and Ben Williams, and it was produced by Kristian Bush.[2]
Background
[edit]"You Had to Be There" was written on December 19, 2024,[3] during a writer's retreat in Panama City, Florida, following Moroney's run as an opening act on Chesney's Sun Goes Down Tour in the summer of 2024.[4] It served as a full circle moment for the singer as she wrote the first verse as a reflection on seeing Chesney live in concert from the perspective of a fan from "nosebleed seats" in Atlanta, Georgia in 2018, and then the second verse sets up that seven years later she's now on stage performing with him.[4] Moroney personally gifted the song to Chesney, who ended up loving it, and collaborated on the track with Moroney for its release.[4]
Moroney announced the release of the song on April 30, 2025, via her social media accounts,[5] followed by posting a scrapbook of the song's original handwritten lyrics, including a response from Chesney stating: "What an amazing way to start 2025. Megan gave me the gift of music with a song she wrote about our tour together!! Nobody has ever written a song for me before. What a gift ... Love you Megan!"[3][6]
Chart performance
[edit]"You Had to Be There" went for immediate airplay at country radio and pulled in 117 station adds at the format upon impact,[7] and debuted at number 23 on the Billboard Country Airplay chart.[8]
Charts
[edit]| Chart (2025) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| Canada Country (Billboard)[9] | 37 |
| New Zealand Hot Singles (RMNZ)[10] | 38 |
| US Billboard Hot 100[11] | 86 |
| US Country Airplay (Billboard)[12] | 23 |
| US Hot Country Songs (Billboard)[13] | 25 |
References
[edit]- ^ "Country Aircheck Weekly May 5, 2025, Issue 959" (PDF). Country Aircheck. May 5, 2025. Retrieved May 12, 2025.
- ^ "You Had to Be There - Song by Megan Moroney & Kenny Chesney". Apple Music. May 9, 2025. Retrieved May 12, 2025.
- ^ a b Carena Liptak (May 9, 2025). "Megan Moroney, Kenny Chesney's 'You Had to Be There' Lyrics Capture Magic in a Bottle". Taste of Country. Retrieved May 12, 2025.
- ^ a b c "Megan Moroney Releases Her New Song "You Had to Be There" with Kenny Chesney". Sony Music Nashville. Retrieved May 12, 2025.
- ^ Megan Moroney (April 30, 2025). ""7 years later got a different point of view…" 💙🏟️🌴 YOU HAD TO BE THERE FT. KENNY CHESNEY OUT MAY 9TH". Instagram. Retrieved May 12, 2025.
- ^ Megan Moroney (May 7, 2025). "As y'all know, I write about things that are important to me & the sun goes down tour + becoming friends with @kennychesney last summer was undoubtedly a highlight of my career & my life. I wrote out the lyrics & gifted this song to him for Christmas & thankfully he loved it… so excited for y'all to hear it on Friday 🤠🌴🏟️". Instagram. Retrieved May 12, 2025.
- ^ "This Week's Adds". Country Aircheck. May 12, 2025. Retrieved May 12, 2025.
- ^ "Billboard Country Update" (PDF). Billboard. May 16, 2025. Retrieved May 16, 2025.
- ^ "Canada Country: Week of May 31, 2025". Billboard Canada. Retrieved May 31, 2025.
- ^ "Official Hot 40 Singles". Recorded Music NZ. May 16, 2025. Retrieved May 18, 2025.
- ^ "Megan Moroney Chart History (Hot 100)". Billboard. Retrieved May 20, 2025.
- ^ "Megan Moroney Chart History (Country Airplay)". Billboard. Retrieved May 17, 2025.
- ^ "Megan Moroney Chart History (Hot Country Songs)". Billboard. Retrieved May 20, 2025.