"What's It To You" is a debut song written by

Robert Ellis Orrall Robert Ellis Orrall (born May 4, 1955) is an American singer, songwriter, and record producer. Signed to RCA Records in 1980, Orrall debuted that year with the album "Fixation". His first Top 40 single was "I Couldn't Say No", a duet with Carlene ...

and

Curtis Wright Curtis Blaine Wright (born June 6, 1955) is an American country music artist. He first recorded in the 1980s as a member of the Super Grit Cowboy Band before becoming a solo artist in the late 1980s and early 1990s. Wright charted three singles ...

, 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, ...

singer

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 Son ...

that reached the top of the ''

Billboard A billboard (also called a hoarding in the UK and many other parts of the world) is a large outdoor advertising structure (a billing board), typically found in high-traffic areas such as alongside busy roads. Billboards present large advertise ...

Hot Country Singles & Tracks Hot Country Songs is a chart published weekly by ''Billboard'' magazine in the United States. This 50-position chart lists the most popular country music songs, calculated weekly by collecting airplay data from Nielsen BDS along with digital sal ...

chart. It was released In July 1993 as his debut single, and was served as the lead-off single from his self-titled debut album.

Background

wrote the song with

. Wright also recorded it on his own self-titled debut album for

Liberty Records Liberty Records was a record label founded in the United States by chairman Simon Waronker in 1955 with Al Bennett as president and Theodore Keep as chief engineer. It was reactivated in 2001 in the United Kingdom and had two previous revival ...

in 1992. Wright's version was produced by

James Stroud James Stroud is an American musician and record producer who works in pop, rock, R&B, soul, disco, and country music. He played with the Malaco Rhythm Section for Malaco Records. In the 1990s, he was the president of Giant Records (a subsidiar ...

, who also produced Walker's version, and

Lynn Peterzell Lynn Meyer Peterzell (January 10, 1955 – September 8, 1994) was a country music audio engineer from Nashville, Tennessee. Lynn Peterzell was raised in Pascagoula, Mississippi by Frances and Milton Peterzell. He was the third of five children ...

. In 1993, Walker opened for

George Strait George Harvey Strait Sr. (born May 18, 1952) is an American country music singer, songwriter, actor, and music producer. Strait is considered one of the most influential and popular recording artists of all time. In the 1980s, he was credited for ...

and

Alan Jackson Alan Eugene Jackson (born October 17, 1958) is an American singer-songwriter. He is known for blending traditional honky-tonk and mainstream country pop sounds (for a style widely regarded as "neotraditional country"), as well as penning many o ...

and he stated in an interview with Billboard "I'm real grateful for the opportunity to open for those guys", with only one hit record, it's hard to keep the audience's attention for 45 minutes, but it's working. I'm surprised, but lately when I go out there, they're going bonkers."Cronin, Peter ''Billboard'' Feats of clay: Walker sprints up the charts. (recording artist Clay Walker) (9 October 1993). After the single hit the number one position, Walker stated "It used to be that having your song go No. 1 meant a certain degree of success. Now, there are so many acts who do it, you just gotta go right back out and do it again." In another interview, Walker said, "Having a No. 1 hit doesn't mean you're making any more money that you did a few years ago."

Content

The song is about a man who is confessing his love to a woman and explaining what love means to him. He wants to know what love is to her.

Critical reception

Geoffrey Hines of ''

The Washington Post ''The Washington Post'' (also known as the ''Post'' and, informally, ''WaPo'') is an American daily newspaper published in Washington, D.C. It is the most widely circulated newspaper within the Washington metropolitan area and has a large nati ...

'' wrote that "What's It to You" is "A silly little song that could be dismissed if it weren't for the way Walker glides into the catchy chorus melody." Larry Daniels of ''

KNIX KNIX-FM (102.5 MHz) is a commercial radio station in Phoenix, Arizona, owned and operated by iHeartMedia, Inc. The station airs a country music radio format. The studios and offices are located on East Van Buren Street in Phoenix near Sky Harbo ...

'' in Phoenix said ''What's It To You'' "Is one of our three best records right now." Dave Moulter of the '' Observer-Reporter'' wrote, "What's It to You is representative of the Beaumont, Texas native style: good hard country with rock tinges that immediately make you want to dance." In 1999, while reviewing "Live Laugh Love", Lance Ringel of ''

The Ledger ''The Ledger'' is a daily newspaper serving Lakeland, Florida, and the Polk County area. The paper was founded on August 22, 1924, as the ''Lakeland Evening Ledger''. In 1927, it bought its main competitor, the morning ''Lakeland Star-Telegram' ...

'' wrote, "...What's It To You – a song which could just as easily have scaled the pop charts, and which remains of the best country-rock tunes of the decade."Ringel, Lance. ''The Ledger'
Live Laugh Love
(September 7, 1999) Kevin John Coyne of ''Country Universe'' listed "What's It to You " as the 161st best country single of the 1990s and wrote, "He infuses his performance with such raw, electric energy that the song becomes an invigorating anthem for those who couldn't be more convinced of their love for someone. And that final clap-along chorus? Pure joy."Coyne, Kevin John ''Country Universe'' 400 Greatest Singles of the Nineties: #175-#15
August 5, 2010
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Music video

's first music video was directed by Marc Ball. It features Walker and his band performing the song on stage and uses the aspect of a behind the scenes look at filming and production of the video.

Charts

Weekly charts

Year-end charts

References

{{Clay Walker singles 1993 debut singles 1993 songs Clay Walker songs Songs written by Robert Ellis Orrall Songs written by Curtis Wright Song recordings produced by James Stroud Giant Records (Warner) singles