"Austin" is a song written by David Kent and Kirsti Manna and recorded by American

country music Country (also called country and western) is a genre of popular music that originated in the Southern and Southwestern United States in the early 1920s. It primarily derives from blues, church music such as Southern gospel and spirituals, ...

artist

Blake Shelton Blake Tollison Shelton (born June 18, 1976) is an American country music singer and television personality. In 2001, he made his debut with the single "Austin". The lead-off single from his self-titled debut album, "Austin" spent five weeks at ...

. It was released in April 2001 as Shelton's debut single and the first from his self-titled debut album. The song was originally released on the

Giant Records In folklore, giants (from Ancient Greek: '' gigas'', cognate giga-) are beings of human-like appearance, but are at times prodigious in size and strength or bear an otherwise notable appearance. The word ''giant'' is first attested in 1297 fr ...

label; however, that label closed its doors as the single was climbing the charts, with Shelton and his single being transferred to the

Warner Bros. Records Warner Records Inc. (formerly Warner Bros. Records Inc.) is an American record label. A subsidiary of the Warner Music Group, it is headquartered in Los Angeles, California. It was founded on March 19, 1958, as the recorded music division of the ...

label. "Austin" was also Shelton’s first number one hit on the U.S. '' Billboard'' Hot Country Songs chart, spending five weeks at that position. It also managed to cross over to pop radio, as it peaked at number 18 on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100. At the time, it was his highest-peaking single on that chart until "

Honey Bee A honey bee (also spelled honeybee) is a eusocial flying insect within the genus ''Apis'' of the bee clade, all native to Afro-Eurasia. After bees spread naturally throughout Africa and Eurasia, humans became responsible for the current cosm ...

" debuted at number 13 in 2011. "Austin" tied a record set by

Billy Ray Cyrus Billy Ray Cyrus (born August 25, 1961) is an American country singer and actor. He has released 16 studio albums and 53 singles since 1992, and is known for his hit single "Achy Breaky Heart", which topped the U.S. Hot Country Songs chart and ...

in 1992. Cyrus' "

Achy Breaky Heart Achy may refer to: * Suffering from pain Pain is a distressing feeling often caused by intense or damaging stimuli. The International Association for the Study of Pain defines pain as "an unpleasant sensory and emotional experience associate ...

" stayed atop the chart for five weeks, setting the mark for an artist's debut single in the Broadcast Data Systems era of the chart. BDS began monitoring radio play for the chart in January 1991. The song was originally pitched to

Clay Walker Ernest Clayton Walker Jr. (born August 19, 1969) is an American country music artist. He made his debut in 1993 with the single "What's It to You", which reached Number One on the ''Billboard'' Hot Country Singles & Tracks (now Hot Country Song ...

who turned it down.

Content

The song tells of a woman who moves to Austin after breaking up with her boyfriend. Less than a year later, she decides to contact him. She calls numerous times and is greeted by his answering machine that explains where he could be. The message always ends with the following phrase: "And P.S. if this is Austin, I still love you," which is referring to the female as Austin.

Commercial performance

"Austin" debuted at number 58 on the U.S. ''Billboard'' Hot Country Songs chart for the week of April 28, 2001. It reached the number one spot on August 11, 2001, and remained there for five weeks until September 15, 2001, when it was knocked off by "

I'm Just Talkin' About Tonight "I'm Just Talkin' About Tonight" is a song co-written and recorded by American country music artist Toby Keith. It was released on May 31, 2001 as the first single from his 2001 album ''Pull My Chain''. The song reached number one on the US ''Bill ...

" by

Toby Keith Toby Keith Covel (born July 8, 1961), known professionally as Toby Keith, is an American country music singer, songwriter, actor, and record producer. He released his first four studio albums—1993's '' Toby Keith'', 1994's '' Boomtown'', 19 ...

. The song was certified Gold on February 25, 2015, and Platinum on June 9, 2015, by the RIAA. The song has sold 929,000 copies in the U.S. as of January 2016.

Music video

This was Shelton's first music video, and was directed by

Deaton-Flanigen Productions Deaton-Flanigen Productions is an American film company based in Nashville, Tennessee. The company was named after the surnames of founders Robert Deaton III and George Flanigen IV. The two have directed multiple music videos, primarily in the field ...

. The music video debuted on CMT on July 17, 2001. It depicts Shelton standing in front of a red 1968 first generation Ford Mustang and projector screen with a woman on it. The woman attempts to call the narrator and it eventually shows her driving to where the narrator is and walking up to Shelton.

Charts and certifications

"Austin" debuted on the charts in mid-2001 and by September, it had spent five weeks in the number one position of '' Billboard'' Hot Country Songs. This was the longest amount of time spent at the number one position by a debut single since

' "

" also spent five weeks there in 1992.

Weekly charts

Year-end charts

Certifications

References

{{authority control 2001 debut singles 2001 songs 2000s ballads Blake Shelton songs Country ballads Music videos directed by Deaton-Flanigen Productions Songs about telephone calls Songs about Texas Giant Records (Warner) singles