Single White Female (song)

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"Single White Female"
US promo and European single cover
Single by Chely Wright
from the album Single White Female
B-side"Let Me In"[1]
ReleasedMarch 22, 1999
Recorded1998
GenreCountry
Length3:17
LabelMCA Nashville
Songwriter(s)
Producer(s)
Chely Wright singles chronology
"I Already Do"
(1998)
"Single White Female"
(1999)
"It Was"
(1999)

"Single White Female" is a song by American country music artist Chely Wright. The song was written by Canadian country singer-songwriter Carolyn Dawn Johnson and Shaye Smith and produced by Tony Brown, Buddy Cannon, and Norro Wilson; fellow country artist and label mate Trisha Yearwood sings harmony vocals on the song. "Single White Female" was released on March 22, 1999 as the lead single and title track to Wright's fourth studio album Single White Female (1999) by MCA Nashville.

The song was a hit on the Hot Country Songs chart where it spent one week at number one, notably ending the record-breaking eight-week reign of country group Lonestar's single "Amazed".[2] It was also a success in Canada, topping the RPM Canadian Country Tracks and becoming the third most successful country song of 1999 in the country.[3]

Music video[edit]

The music video takes place entirely on a city bus, with Chely performing by herself in the back of the bus, and in another scene with two backup singers and two guitarists while standing on the bus. In the beginning, it shows many of the bus's patrons, before moving to a "single white female looking for a special lover". A man gets on and eventually leaves the bus (having been seated in the row next to her and behind her, respectively) before he comes on a third time and sits next to her, where they glance at each other. The man eventually gets up, accidentally leaving his book on his seat. The woman grabs it and returns it to him, then they both walk off smiling at each other.

Track listing[edit]

US CD, cassette, and 7" single
No.TitleWriter(s)Producer(s)Length
1."Single White Female"3:16
2."Let Me In"Deanna BryantBrown3:58
European CD single
No.TitleWriter(s)Producer(s)Length
1."Single White Female"
  • Johnson
  • Smith
  • Brown
  • Cannon
  • Wilson
3:17
2."Shut Up and Drive"
Brown3:49
3."Picket Fences"Chely Wright
  • Brown
  • Cannon
  • Wilson
4:05

Chart positions[edit]

"Single White Female" debuted at number 66 on the U.S. Billboard Hot Country Singles & Tracks for the week of March 13, 1999, and peaked at number 36 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart.

Chart (1999) Peak
position
Canada Country Tracks (RPM)[4] 1
US Billboard Hot 100[5] 36
US Hot Country Songs (Billboard)[6] 1

Year-end charts[edit]

Chart (1999) Position
Canada Country Tracks (RPM)[3] 3
US Country Songs (Billboard)[7] 12

Release history[edit]

Release dates and format(s) for "Single White Female"
Region Date Format(s) Label(s) Ref.
United States March 22, 1999 Country radio MCA Nashville [8]

References[edit]

  1. ^ Whitburn, Joel (2008). Hot Country Songs 1944 to 2008. Record Research, Inc. pp. 476–477. ISBN 978-0-89820-177-2.
  2. ^ allmusic (((Chely Wright > Biography)))
  3. ^ a b "RPM Top 100 Country Tracks of 1999". RPM. December 13, 1999. Retrieved July 7, 2013.
  4. ^ "Top RPM Country Tracks: Issue 8454." RPM. Library and Archives Canada. September 20, 1999. Retrieved July 7, 2013.
  5. ^ "Chely Wright Chart History (Hot 100)". Billboard.
  6. ^ "Chely Wright Chart History (Hot Country Songs)". Billboard.
  7. ^ "Best of 1999: Country Songs". Billboard. Prometheus Global Media. 1999. Retrieved August 25, 2012.
  8. ^ "Going for Adds - Country" (PDF). Radio & Records. March 19, 1999. p. 58.