"Flatliner"
Single by Cole Swindell featuring Dierks Bentley
from the album You Should Be Here
ReleasedJanuary 23, 2017 (2017-01-23)
Recorded2016–17
GenreBro-country[1]
Length2:57
LabelWarner Bros. Nashville
Songwriter(s)
Producer(s)Michael Carter
Cole Swindell singles chronology
"Middle of a Memory"
(2016)		 "Flatliner"
(2017)		 "Stay Downtown"
(2017)
Dierks Bentley singles chronology
"Black"
(2016)		 "Flatliner"
(2017)		 "What the Hell Did I Say"
(2017)

"Flatliner" is a song co-written by American country music artist Cole Swindell featuring vocals from Dierks Bentley.[2][lower-alpha 1] The song was released to radio on January 23, 2017 as the third single to Swindell's second studio album You Should Be Here. The song was written by Swindell, Jaron Boyer and Matt Bronleewe in 2012.[3]

Composition

In a sizzle reel, Swindell described the song as "about a hot girl in the club, dancing on the dance floor, making your heart stop, killing all the guys out there who are watching."[1]

Critical reception

Joseph Hudak of Rolling Stone gave a negative review of "Flatliner", criticizing it as "a hit that employs the laziest clichés of contemporary country music". He called the song "a step back for Swindell as a serious artist", compared to the maturity in the lyrics of previous releases "You Should Be Here" and "Middle of a Memory".[1] In 2017, Billboard contributor Chuck Dauphin put "Flatliner" at number ten on his top 10 list of Swindell's best songs.[4]

Commercial performance

Flatliner first entered the Hot Country Songs at number 36 on April 30, 2016 based on 14,000 copies sold when it was released as a preview track before the album You Should Be Here dropped.[5][6] It only entered Billboard's Country Airplay at number 48 on chart date of January 28, 2017 when it was released as a single,[7] and re-entered the Hot Country Songs the following week at No. 48.[8] It reached number ten on Hot Country Songs and number two on Country Airplay in August 2017.[9] As of September 2017, the song has sold 280,000 copies in the United States.[10] On December 12, 2018, the single was certified platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) for combined sales and streaming data of over a million units in the United States.[11]

Music video

The music video was directed by Michael Monaco and premiered in March 2017. It features Cole Swindell performing with Dierks Bentley at a show in Sioux Falls, South Dakota during Dierks' 2017 What the Hell World Tour.[12]

Charts

Certifications

Region CertificationCertified units/sales
United States (RIAA)[20] Platinum 1,000,000‡

‡ Sales+streaming figures based on certification alone.

Notes

  1. ↑ Bentley is not officially credited on the charts published by Billboard.[1]

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 Hudak, Joseph (July 24, 2017). "Why Cole Swindell's 'Flatliner' Should Have Died on the Table". Rolling Stone. Retrieved September 30, 2018.
  2. ↑ "Flatliner (feat. Dierks Bentley) by Cole Swindell on Apple Music". Apple Inc. 6 May 2016. Retrieved August 1, 2017.
  3. ↑ Casey, Jim (April 6, 2017). "Cole Swindell Has Been Waiting for Dierks Bentley to Record "Flatliner" for 4 Years: "It Was a Running Joke Every Time We'd See Each Other"". Nash Country Daily.
  4. ↑ Dauphin, Chuck (August 8, 2017). "Cole Swindell's 10 Best Songs: Critic's Picks". Billboard. Retrieved May 18, 2020.
  5. ↑ "Country Songs". Billboard. February 4, 2017.
  6. ↑ Bjorke, Matt (April 19, 2016). "Top 30 Digital Singles Report: April 20, 2016". Roughstock.
  7. ↑ "Country Airplay". Billboard. January 28, 2017.
  8. ↑ "Country Songs". Billboard. February 4, 2017.
  9. ↑ Asker, Jim (August 8, 2017). "Country Songs of Summer Ranked: Sam Hunt's 'Body' Leads the Pack". Billboard.
  10. ↑ Bjorke, Matt (September 5, 2017). "Top 30 Digital Country Singles Chart: September 5, 2017". Roughstock.
  11. ↑ "Gold & Platinum". Recording Industry Association of America.
  12. ↑ Casey, Jim (March 27, 2017). "Watch Cole Swindell's New "Flatliner" Video Featuring Dierks Bentley". Nash Country Daily.
  13. ↑ "Cole Swindell Chart History (Canada Country)". Billboard. Retrieved February 24, 2018.
  14. ↑ "Cole Swindell Chart History (Hot 100)". Billboard. Retrieved August 8, 2017.
  15. ↑ "Cole Swindell Chart History (Hot Country Songs)". Billboard. Retrieved August 8, 2017.
  16. ↑ "Cole Swindell Chart History (Country Airplay)". Billboard. Retrieved August 8, 2017.
  17. ↑ "Billboard Canada Year-End Country Airplay of 2017". Billboard. 22 December 2017. Retrieved December 31, 2017.
  18. ↑ "Country Airplay Songs – Year-End 2017". Billboard. 13 December 2013. Retrieved December 18, 2017.
  19. ↑ "Hot Country Songs – Year-End 2017". Billboard. 2 January 2013. Retrieved December 18, 2017.
  20. ↑ "American single certifications – Cole Swindell – Flatliner". Recording Industry Association of America.
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