Mississippi Girl
Encyclopedia
"Mississippi Girl" is a 2005 song recorded by country music
singer Faith Hill
and the lead single from her album Fireflies
. A Number One single on the Billboard
Hot Country Songs
charts in late 2005, it was her first Number One on the country music charts since 2000's "The Way You Love Me
".
-bred singer by John Rich
(of Big & Rich
) and fellow MuzikMafia
member Adam Shoenfeld, the uptempo tune was anticipated within the industry and spearheaded Hill's post-Cry
"country comeback" by insisting that she had not forgotten her roots:
"Mississippi Girl" was considered identical in purpose and theme to R&B singer Jennifer Lopez
' 2002 hit "Jenny from the Block
", a fact noted by a number of commentators at the time.
chart dated for May 28, 2005. It went on to become Hill's first Number One on the country music charts since "The Way You Love Me
" in 2000. "Mississippi Girl" peaked at No. 1 September 3, and stayed at No. 1 for two weeks. It also reached at peak of No. 29 on the Billboard Hot 100
and also became Hill's first single to chart the Billboard Pop 100
, peaking at No. 51 there.
"Mississippi Girl" was nominated for the Grammy Award for Best Female Country Vocal Performance
but did not win; however it did win the SESAC
Country Song of the Year award for its two writers.
Slant Magazine
said the song had the "stench of desperation" about it, with "southern-fried production [meant to] ape shamelessly the things that the women who supplanted her at the top of Nashville's pecking order have been doing."
Mississippi Girl was also the 500 millionth song download via the iTunes store.
for the song, directed by Wayne Isham. In It, Hill and her band are seen performing the song in concert which is intercut with shots of Hill walking around rural
settings in a white dress as CGI
butterflies flutter about. The video received a CMT
Awards nomination.
At the beginning of the video, it shows Hill diving into the water from a wooden bridge in a long white dress.
Country music
Country music is a popular American musical style that began in the rural Southern United States in the 1920s. It takes its roots from Western cowboy and folk music...
singer Faith Hill
Faith Hill
Faith Hill is an American country singer. She is known both for her commercial success and her marriage to fellow country star Tim McGraw. Hill has sold more than 40 million records worldwide and accumulated eight number-one singles and three number-one albums on the U.S...
and the lead single from her album Fireflies
Fireflies (Faith Hill album)
-String section on "Paris":*Bruce Dukov, Charlie Bisharat, Darius Campo, Roberto Cani, Susaan Chatman, Mario DeLeon, Armen Garabedian, Berj Garabedian, Endre Grant, Songa Lee-Kitto, Michael Markman, Robert Matsuda, Sara Parkins, Robert Peterson, Michele Richards, Anatoly Rosinsky, Josefina Vergara,...
. A Number One single on the Billboard
Billboard (magazine)
Billboard is a weekly American magazine devoted to the music industry, and is one of the oldest trade magazines in the world. It maintains several internationally recognized music charts that track the most popular songs and albums in various categories on a weekly basis...
Hot Country Songs
Hot Country Songs
Hot Country Songs is a chart published weekly by Billboard magazine in the United States.This 60-position chart lists the most popular country music songs, calculated weekly mostly by airplay and occasionally commercial sales...
charts in late 2005, it was her first Number One on the country music charts since 2000's "The Way You Love Me
The Way You Love Me (Faith Hill song)
"The Way You Love Me" is a song by American country music artist Faith Hill. It was the second single off her 1999 Breathe album, released as a single in 2000. It was also her second number one country single from her CD Breathe and her 8th number one country single overall...
".
About the song
Written specifically for the Star, MississippiStar, Mississippi
Star, Mississippi, is a small unincorporated community in Rankin County, southeast of Jackson in the U.S. state of Mississippi. Its ZIP code is 39167, area code is 601 and local exchange is 845. The elevation is 423 feet. Star appears on the Star U.S. Geological Survey Map...
-bred singer by John Rich
John Rich (musician)
John Rich is an American country music singer-songwriter. From 1992 to 1998, he was a member of the country music band Lonestar, in which he played bass guitar and alternated with Richie McDonald as lead vocalist...
(of Big & Rich
Big & Rich
Big & Rich is an American country music duo composed of Big Kenny and John Rich. Both members alternate as lead vocalists and play rhythm guitar...
) and fellow MuzikMafia
MuzikMafia
The MuzikMafia was an informal collection of American country music artists, founded in October 2001 in Nashville, Tennessee by Big Kenny and John Rich , along with Jon Nicholson and Cory Gierman....
member Adam Shoenfeld, the uptempo tune was anticipated within the industry and spearheaded Hill's post-Cry
Cry (Faith Hill album)
-Personnel:*Faith Hill - vocals*Tim Akers - keyboard*Rick Baptist - trumpet*Greg Barnhill - background vocals*Bob Becker - viola*Charlie Bisharat - violin*Bekka Bramlett - tambourine, background vocals*Denyse Buffum - viola*Paul Bushnell - bass...
"country comeback" by insisting that she had not forgotten her roots:
- 'Cause a Mississippi girl don't change her ways
- Just 'cause everybody knows her name.
- Ain't big-headed from a little bit of fame ...
"Mississippi Girl" was considered identical in purpose and theme to R&B singer Jennifer Lopez
Jennifer Lopez
Jennifer Lynn Lopez is an American actress, singer, record producer, dancer, television personality, and fashion designer. Lopez began her career as a dancer on the television comedy program In Living Color. Subsequently venturing into acting, she gained recognition in the 1995 action-thriller...
' 2002 hit "Jenny from the Block
Jenny from the Block
"Jenny from the Block" is a song by American singer Jennifer Lopez, featuring American rappers Styles P and Jadakiss. Written by Lopez, Troy Oliver, Mr. Deyo, Samuel Barnes, and Jean-Claude Olivier and produced by Cory Rooney, Oliver, and Poke & Tone, it was released to radio in late September 2002...
", a fact noted by a number of commentators at the time.
Chart performance
The single debuted at #27 on the Billboard U.S. Hot Country SongsHot Country Songs
Hot Country Songs is a chart published weekly by Billboard magazine in the United States.This 60-position chart lists the most popular country music songs, calculated weekly mostly by airplay and occasionally commercial sales...
chart dated for May 28, 2005. It went on to become Hill's first Number One on the country music charts since "The Way You Love Me
The Way You Love Me (Faith Hill song)
"The Way You Love Me" is a song by American country music artist Faith Hill. It was the second single off her 1999 Breathe album, released as a single in 2000. It was also her second number one country single from her CD Breathe and her 8th number one country single overall...
" in 2000. "Mississippi Girl" peaked at No. 1 September 3, and stayed at No. 1 for two weeks. It also reached at peak of No. 29 on the Billboard Hot 100
Billboard Hot 100
The Billboard Hot 100 is the United States music industry standard singles popularity chart issued weekly by Billboard magazine. Chart rankings are based on radio play and sales; the tracking-week for sales begins on Monday and ends on Sunday, while the radio play tracking-week runs from Wednesday...
and also became Hill's first single to chart the Billboard Pop 100
Pop 100
The Pop 100 was a songs chart that debuted in February 2005 and was released weekly by Billboard magazine in the United States until its discontinuation in 2009...
, peaking at No. 51 there.
"Mississippi Girl" was nominated for the Grammy Award for Best Female Country Vocal Performance
Grammy Award for Best Female Country Vocal Performance
The Grammy Award for Best Female Country Vocal Performance was first awarded in 1965, to Dottie West. The award has had several minor name changes:*From 1965 to 1967 the award was known as Best Country & Western Vocal Performance - Female...
but did not win; however it did win the SESAC
SESAC
SESAC, originally the Society of European Stage Authors & Composers, is the smallest of the three performance rights organizations in the United States. SESAC was founded in 1930, making it the second-oldest performing rights organization in the U.S. SESAC is also the fastest-growing PRO in the...
Country Song of the Year award for its two writers.
Slant Magazine
Slant Magazine
Slant Magazine is an online publication that features reviews of movies, music, TV, DVDs, theater, and video games, as well as interviews with actors, directors, and musicians. The site covers various film festivals like the New York Film Festival.- History :...
said the song had the "stench of desperation" about it, with "southern-fried production [meant to] ape shamelessly the things that the women who supplanted her at the top of Nashville's pecking order have been doing."
Mississippi Girl was also the 500 millionth song download via the iTunes store.
Music video
There is also a music videoMusic video
A music video or song video is a short film integrating a song and imagery, produced for promotional or artistic purposes. Modern music videos are primarily made and used as a marketing device intended to promote the sale of music recordings...
for the song, directed by Wayne Isham. In It, Hill and her band are seen performing the song in concert which is intercut with shots of Hill walking around rural
Rural
Rural areas or the country or countryside are areas that are not urbanized, though when large areas are described, country towns and smaller cities will be included. They have a low population density, and typically much of the land is devoted to agriculture...
settings in a white dress as CGI
Computer-generated imagery
Computer-generated imagery is the application of the field of computer graphics or, more specifically, 3D computer graphics to special effects in art, video games, films, television programs, commercials, simulators and simulation generally, and printed media...
butterflies flutter about. The video received a CMT
Country Music Television
Country Music Television, or CMT, is an American country music-oriented cable television network. Programming includes music videos, taped concerts, movies, biographies of country music stars, game shows, and reality programs...
Awards nomination.
At the beginning of the video, it shows Hill diving into the water from a wooden bridge in a long white dress.
Personnel
Compiled from liner notes.- Bruce Bouton — steel guitar
- Bekka BramlettBekka BramlettRebekka Ruth Lazone "Bekka" Bramlett is a singer from the United States. She is the daughter of popular music duo Delaney and Bonnie....
— background vocals - Tom BukovacTom BukovacTom Bukovac is an American session musician.Bukovac began playing guitar at age ten, and started playing his first shows at age thirteen. He grew up in Willowick, Ohio and moved to Nashville, Tennessee in 1992, where he found work playing for Tanya Tucker, Lionel Cartwright and others...
— electric guitar - Paul Bushnell — bass guitar
- Perry Coleman — background vocals
- Eric Darken — percussion
- Dan Dugmore — steel guitar
- Dann HuffDann HuffDann Huff is an American musician, session musician, singer-songwriter and producer. For his work as a producer in the Country music genre he has won several awards including the Musician of the Year award in 2001 and 2004 at the Country Music Association Awards and the Producer of the Year award...
— electric guitar - Tim Lauer — accordion
- Chris McHugh — drums
- Jimmy Nichols — keyboards
- Darrell ScottDarrell ScottJames Darrell Scott known as Darrell Scott , the son of musician Wayne Scott with whom he has collaborated, is an American singer-songwriter and multi-instrumentalist. He moved as a child to East Gary, Indiana. He was playing professionally by his teens in Southern California, later living in...
— mandolin
Chart performance
| Chart (2005) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| U.S. Billboard Hot Country Songs | 1 |
| U.S. Billboard Hot 100 | 29 |
| U.S. Billboard Pop 100 | 51 |