"20 Cigarettes" is a song by American country music singer Morgan Wallen, originally released on May 16, 2025 from his fourth studio album I'm the Problem. Written by Blake Pendergrass, Chase McGill, Josh Miller, and Chris LaCorte, and produced by Joey Moi, the track was serviced to country radio as the album's sixth single on October 20, 2025.[1]
Composition and lyrics
The song uses an electric guitar and opens with a sparser instrumental. A bass line and percussion are introduced during the second verse, before the bass is featured in an instrumental break in the bridge.[2] The story begins with the protagonist possessing 20 cigarettes and hanging out at a bar in Demonbreun, an area of Nashville, Tennessee, on a summer evening. He catches the attention of a woman, who leaves her friends to meet him.[2][3] They start talking, smoking, drinking and flirting with each other. They leave Demonbreun in the night, driving out of the city in his truck and singing "Take Me Home, Country Roads" by John Denver.[2] They have sex in the truck bed and share their last cigarette, before the woman later disappears.[2][3]
Critical reception
Billboard ranked "20 Cigarettes" as the 16th best song from I'm the Problem and commented the song's story was "smartly told".[3] Reviewing I'm the Problem for Paste, Hattie Lindert responded negatively to the song, regarding it as among the "rompier, lighter fare" that "seem slightly stale amid a slew of sour-grapes songs" and adding, "For what it's worth, even '20 Cigarettes' is both a clear and inferior rehash of the bossa-nova-inflected sound that buoyed Wallen's unexpected 2021 hit '7 Summers'".[4]
Charts
Weekly charts
Year-end charts
Certifications
Release history
References
- ^ a b U.S. Radio Updater on X: ".@MorganWallen’s “20 Cigarettes” will officially impact US Country Radio on October 20th as the 6th country-format single from ‘I’m The Problem’ (via @BigLoud). It marks the 6th country radio single and 7th overall from the album. https://t.co/JRZcqVaz4K" / X
- ^ a b c d Innes, Daisy (May 16, 2025). "'20 Cigarettes' by Morgan Wallen - Lyrics and Meaning". Holler. Retrieved May 28, 2025.
- ^ a b c Newman, Melinda; Nicholson, Jessica (May 16, 2025). "Morgan Wallen's 'I'm the Problem': All 37 Tracks Ranked". Billboard. Retrieved May 28, 2025.
- ^ "Morgan Wallen Loses Sight of His Own Idiosyncrasies on I'm The Problem". Paste. Retrieved May 28, 2025.
- ^ "Morgan Wallen Chart History (Canadian Hot 100)". Billboard. Retrieved May 28, 2025.
- ^ "Canada Country: Week of March 14, 2026". Billboard Canada. Retrieved March 12, 2026.
- ^ "Morgan Wallen Chart History (Global 200)". Billboard. Retrieved May 28, 2025.
- ^ "This week on the UK Country Radio Airplay Chart:". Absolute Radio Country. March 15, 2026.
- ^ "Morgan Wallen Chart History (Hot 100)". Billboard. Retrieved January 6, 2026.
- ^ "Morgan Wallen Chart History (Country Airplay)". Billboard. Retrieved February 20, 2026.
- ^ "Morgan Wallen Chart History (Hot Country Songs)". Billboard. Retrieved February 19, 2026.
- ^ "Canadian Hot 100 – Year-End 2025". Billboard. Retrieved December 10, 2025.
- ^ "Hot 100 Songs – Year-End 2025". Billboard. Retrieved December 10, 2025.
- ^ "Hot Country Songs – Year-End 2025". Billboard. Retrieved December 10, 2025.
- ^ "Canadian single certifications – Morgan Wallen – 20 Cigarettes". Music Canada. Retrieved August 25, 2025.
- ^ "American single certifications – Morgan Wallen – 20 Cigarettes". Recording Industry Association of America. Retrieved December 16, 2025.