"It was a big moment," Bryan told Radio.com of the song, which would become his first chart entry, reaching No. 5 on Billboard's Hot Country Songs chart. "And it's still that way. Every time I'm talking on the phone and I see my name going across the [radio's] digital screen, it's like, 'Oh yeah!'"

Even now, after releasing his fourth album Crash My Party last month, he says that excitement hasn't gone away. Country radio has always been to him what defines the real stars of the genre. "It's the most important resource in building artists," Bryan said. "It's really a special thing to see yourself and hear yourself on the radio."

Bryan says the current shift in country radio, which has broadened to include more pop-leaning artists like Taylor Swift and Florida Georgia Line, who teamed up with rapper Nelly on their song "Cruise," is an example of the new country fan who no longer just listens to country music.