"I Wonder" | ||||||||||||
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Single by Kellie Pickler | ||||||||||||
from the album Small Town Girl | ||||||||||||
Released | February 5, 2007 | |||||||||||
Format | CD single Digital download |
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Recorded | July–August 2006 | |||||||||||
Genre | Country | |||||||||||
Length | 3:58 | |||||||||||
Label | BNA | |||||||||||
Writer(s) | Kellie Pickler Chris Lindsey Aimee Mayo Karyn Rochelle |
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Producer(s) | Blake Chancey | |||||||||||
Kellie Pickler singles chronology | ||||||||||||
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"I Wonder" is a song written by Chris Lindsey, Aimee Mayo, Karyn Rochelle, and co-written and recorded by American country artist Kellie Pickler. It was released as the second single from her debut album Small Town Girl (2006), on February 5, 2007.
"I Wonder" peaked at number 15 on the Billboard Hot Country Songs chart and number 75 on the Billboard Hot 100. The accompanying music video for the song was shot in the Ryman Auditorium in Nashville, where Picker performs the song. The video won three awards at the 2008 CMT Music Awards. Pickler, who co-wrote the song about her childhood, was notably emotional when performing the song live, especially on the 2007 CMA Awards, where her performance received a standing ovation.
"I Wonder" is a piano ballad with steel guitar fills, that describes the personal experiences of Pickler's childhood, in which her mother was absent.
In early 2007, after hearing one of Pickler's songs, her mother, Cynthia Morton, wrote her a letter. The letter arrived after "I Wonder" was written, and was not the inspiration for the song.
A short paragraph from Pickler describing the song's sentimental value to her was included on the back cover of the single.
Billboard reviewed the song favorably. "In the lyric, Pickler reflects on missed moments (braiding hair, getting ready for prom) and wonders if her mother ever thinks about her. The most powerful music is that which draws from real life, and this is heartbreakingly honest and vulnerable. Yet among the hurt and confusion, Pickler emerges as a survivor. Country music at its finest from one of the format's most impressive new talents."
In 2008, "I Wonder" won three CMT Music Awards for Breakthrough Video of the Year, Tearjerker Video of the Year, and Performance of the Year (at the 2007 CMA Awards). Pickler also won a songwriter award for the song from the American Society of Composers, Authors, and Publishers.