I Wanna Talk About Me

"I Wanna Talk About Me" is a song written by Bobby Braddock and recorded by American country music artist Toby Keith. It was released in August 2001 as the second single from Keith's 2001 album Pull My Chain. The song was his seventh Number One single on the US Billboard Hot Country Singles & Tracks chart.

"I Wanna Talk About Me"
Single by Toby Keith
from the album Pull My Chain
ReleasedAugust 20, 2001
Recorded2000
GenreCountry, country rap
Length3:04
LabelDreamWorks
Songwriter(s)Bobby Braddock
Producer(s)James Stroud
Toby Keith
Toby Keith singles chronology
"I'm Just Talkin' About Tonight"
(2001)		 "I Wanna Talk About Me"
(2001)		 "My List"
(2002)

Background

Braddock ("He Stopped Loving Her Today") initially intended the song for Blake Shelton's debut album, which Braddock produced. When audience testing of the song yielded negative results, Shelton's record label decided not to include it on the album.[1] Recalling the spoken-word verses of Keith's 1998 single "Getcha Some", Braddock decided to pitch it to him.[2]

Keith told Billboard magazine that he knew he would get "banged a little" for cutting the song. "They're going to call it a rap, [although] there ain't nobody doing rap who would call it a rap."[3]

Content

Like Keith's 1998 single "Getcha Some", "I Wanna Talk About Me" is cited as an example of country-rap, due to the use of a strong beat and rhythmically spoken lyrics.[4][5] "I Wanna Talk About Me" tells of a male's frustration in his inability to converse with his partner, who wants to talk about herself. In the chorus, the singer states "I like talking about you, you, you, you, usually / But occasionally / I wanna talk about me".[5] A musical strength of the song is its use of a I-V-vi-IV arpeggio played in a punchy rhythm.

Blake Shelton was originally slated to record the song. However, his label turned it down, as they thought it would be too risky of a debut single.[4]

Critical reception

Ray Waddell, of Billboard magazine said that men could relate to the song, "which Keith manages to sell through sheer force of personality."[6] For The Washington Post, Paul Farhi called the song "a good-natured ditty" whose chorus "is either a justified demand for equal time or the response of an egotistical jerk."[5] In contrast, Stephen Thomas Erlewine of All Music Guide called the song a "mocking macho white-rap" and the "weakest track" on Pull My Chain.[7]

Reviewing the music video, Edward Morris of Country Music Television called the video a "comic gem and all the proof...that Keith can handle any acting chore."[8]

Music video

The music video was directed by Michael Salomon and shows Keith in many different activities, such as businessman working at a store, a police officer, a rapper, a motorcycle rider, a medical surgeon, and a football player. It premiered on CMT on August 28, 2001.

Chart performance

"I Wanna Talk About Me" debuted at number 51 on the U.S. Billboard Hot Country Singles & Tracks for the week of August 25, 2001.

Chart (2001) Peak
position
US Hot Country Songs (Billboard)[9] 1
US Billboard Hot 100[10] 28

Year-end charts
Chart (2001) Position
US Country Songs (Billboard)[11] 60
Chart (2002) Position
US Country Songs (Billboard)[12] 40

Certifications
Region CertificationCertified units/sales
United States (RIAA)[13] Gold 500,000^

^shipments figures based on certification alone

References
  1. Braddock, Bobby (2015). A Life on Nashville's Music Row. Nashville, Tennessee: Country Music Foundation Press/Vanderbilt University Press. p. 152. ISBN 978-0-8265-2082-1.
  2. Keith, Toby (2002) "Song By Song - Pull My Chain" TobyKeith.com at The Internet Archive. Retrieved September 19, 2009
  3. Billboard magazine: August 4, 2001
  4. Crossan, Jeff. "Bobby Braddock article". Songwriter Universe. Retrieved 2007-07-19.
  5. Farhi, Paul (January 17, 2002). ""Talk": Singing In the Key of Me". The Washington Post. Archived from the original on February 28, 2002.
  6. "Reviews & Previews", Billboard, 113 (35), p. 21, September 1, 2001
  7. Erlewine, Stephen Thomas. "Toby Keith: Pull My Chain". Allmusic. Retrieved February 1, 2019.
  8. Morris, Edward (January 30, 2004). "Toby Keith: He Should've Been An Actor". Country Music Television. Archived from the original on February 2, 2004. Retrieved February 1, 2019.
  9. "Toby Keith Chart History (Hot Country Songs)". Billboard.
  10. "Toby Keith Chart History (Hot 100)". Billboard.
  11. "Best of 2001: Country Songs". Billboard. Prometheus Global Media. 2001. Retrieved August 14, 2012.
  12. "Best of 2002: Country Songs". Billboard. Prometheus Global Media. 2002. Retrieved August 13, 2012.
  13. "American single certifications – Toby Keith – I Wanna Talk About Me". Recording Industry Association of America. Retrieved December 12, 2012. If necessary, click Advanced, then click Format, then select Single, then click SEARCH. 
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