In-vehicle listeners choose Mars over Texas and Swift
What do a pop dance anthem, a country heartbreak ballad and a song featured in a major animated movie franchise have in common? They are among the top songs of the summer, according to Xperi’s Summer 2026 U.S. In-Vehicle Listening Report.
Top songs of the summer were ranked by the number of in-car listening sessions counted in the states where each song was the number one pick across June, July and August.
Number one overall was “I Just Might” by that perennial and ubiquitous pop icon Bruno Mars. The retro pop-funk dance song ruled summer in-vehicle listening, according to the report, with 7.3 million listens in the states where it was number one, from June – August.
In second place was the country heartbreak ballad “Choosin’ Texas” by singer-songwriter Ella Langley, with 5.5 million in-vehicle listening sessions in the states where it led.
A late summer surge saw Taylor Swift’s song “I Knew It, I Knew You” (her original song for “Toy Story 5” which was released this summer) become a top song of the summer, with 3.5 million in-vehicle listening sessions in the states where it was the top pick.
Top songs by state*
While Bruno Mars led on listens, the state-by-state views tell their own story, showing where each song and artist drew the most listeners across the country.
- Texas didn’t choose “Choosin’ Texas” in July. Ella Langley’s ballad had been the state’s top song in June, and in July it led in 13 states, more than any other song, just not in Texas itself, which went to Kehlani’s « Folded. » By August, Texas was back on « Choosin’ Texas » again, with more listens than in June. The song also broke a Billboard Chart record along the way.
- Bruno Mars held his home state of Hawaii as its top artist all summer, but none of his songs led there until August. “I Just Might” topped 17 states in June, but never his home state. In August, a different Mars song, “Risk It All,” finally gave him Hawaii on the song side too.
- Taylor Swift surged late in the summer. Her “Toy Story 5” track “I Knew It, I Knew You” jumped from eight states in July to 19 in August, a late hit that put her into the songs of the summer collection.
Ranked by which song won the most states across the full summer (June 1 to August 31, 2026), the top songs were:
- “I Knew It, I Knew You” by Taylor Swift – 13 states
- “Choosin’ Texas” by Ella Langley – 12 states
- “I Just Might” by Bruno Mars – 10 states
- “Folded” by Kehlani – five states
- Tie: “So Easy (To Fall In Love)” by Olivia Dean, “Breathe On It” by Tauren Wells – two states
*In Xperi’s Summer 2026 In-Vehicle Listening Report, each state’s song of the summer is the one that led the state in the most months from June 1 to August 31, 2026, with ties decided by listens.
Top artists by state
Switching from song to artists, Xperi’s report also ranked each state’s top artist of the summer, using the same rule.
It is no surprise that Mars, the most listened to artist of the summer, measured by the report, takes the crown as the artist of the summer.
The race shifted over the summer. Bruno Mars led in June and July, topping 25 states, then 21. But August belonged to Ella Langley, who overtook him to lead in 19 states, with Texas leading her run with 2.7 million listens. Chris Brown lands in third, leading nine states plus the District of Columbia in July and August.
Ranked by which artist won the most states across the full summer (June 1 to August 31, 2026), the top five were:
- Bruno Mars – 20 states
- Ella Langley – 11 states
- Chris Brown – 10 states plus the District of Columbia
- Morgan Wallen – five states
- Phil Wickham – two states and one territory (U.S. Virgin Islands)
About the data
This analysis is based on hundreds of millions of anonymized radio listening sessions from millions of vehicles in the U.S. equipped with DTS AutoStage, Xperi’s global in-car entertainment platform.
DTS AutoStage combines traditional broadcast radio with digital metadata, allowing listening activity to be measured at scale across the United States while protecting individual privacy.
How songs are identified
Every song heard on the radio is matched against TiVo Music Metadata, an industry-standard music catalog. This ensures that tracks, artists, remixes and alternate versions are accurately identified and grouped.
How locations are determined
Listening activity is aggregated into geographic areas rather than tracking individual vehicles. Sessions are then mapped to cities, states and metro areas to show where music was actually heard, not simply where a station broadcasts from.
How rankings are calculated
Top artists and top songs are ranked by listens: the artist or song with the most in-car radio listening in a state during the month is that state’s leader, based on anonymized listening data from vehicles in the U.S. equipped with DTS AutoStage. Rankings are based on total listening activity, weighted by local audience engagement. Rankings are available at the city, metro area and state levels. The analysis also considers how widely songs were played across stations, helping distinguish broad regional popularity from isolated airplay.
