"What Are Words" is a song written by

Rodney Jerkins Rodney Roy Jerkins (born July 29, 1977), also known by his stage name Darkchild, is an American record producer, rapper, and songwriter. He has collaborated with a broad range of popular artists. Jerkins has won multiple Grammy Awards. Among hi ...

Andre Lindal Andre Lindal (born February 19, 1977) is a Norwegian songwriter, record producer and musician from Oslo, now based in Los Angeles. He has produced for many popular artists and groups, including Maroon 5, Britney Spears, Justin Bieber, Kelly Clar ...

and Lauren Christy, and performed by American singer

Chris Medina Christopher Edward Medina (born November 30, 1983) is an American-Norwegian singer born in Chicago, Illinois. In late 2010 he auditioned for ''American Idol'' making it to the top 40 before being eliminated. He is most famous for his hit " What ...

. It was released on February 25, 2011, the day after his elimination on the reality TV show ''

American Idol ''American Idol'' is an American singing competition television series created by Simon Fuller, produced by Fremantle North America and 19 Entertainment, and distributed by Fremantle North America. It aired on Fox from June 11, 2002, to Ap ...

''. The song is a tribute to his fiancée who suffered a brain injury as the result of a car wreck and is about promises, commitment and keeping your word.

Music video

Live performances

Medina performed the ballad on ''

The Tonight Show with Jay Leno ''The Tonight Show with Jay Leno'' is an American late-night talk show hosted by Jay Leno that first aired from May 25, 1992, to May 29, 2009. It resumed production on March 1, 2010 and ended on February 6, 2014. The fourth incarnation of the ...

'' on February 28, 2011, and on ''

Good Morning America ''Good Morning America'' (often abbreviated as ''GMA'') is an American morning television program that is broadcast on ABC. It debuted on November 3, 1975, and first expanded to weekends with the debut of a Sunday edition on January 3, 1993. Th ...

'' on March 4, 2011, as well as twice in

Norway Norway, officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic country in Northern Europe, the mainland territory of which comprises the western and northernmost portion of the Scandinavian Peninsula. The remote Arctic island of Jan Mayen and t ...

in June 2011. Once in front of approximately a hundred-thousand people at the free annual concert VG-Lista at Rådhusplassen,

Oslo Oslo ( , , or ; sma, Oslove) is the capital and most populous city of Norway. It constitutes both a county and a municipality. The municipality of Oslo had a population of in 2022, while the city's greater urban area had a population of ...

, being broadcast on nationwide television. One day later he performed again at ULOBAs (a Norwegian organisation to help disabled people) television-broadcast show "Stolthetsprisen", where the organisation awarded a prize to a disabled person for helping other people in the same situation to improve their way of living. Medina, as well as other artists performed at the show. Medina also performed the song during the President's Star Charity show in Singapore on 31 July 2011 to raise funds for the disabled.

Humanitarianism

In the wake of the 2011 Norway terrorist attacks, Medina was contacted by the family of Monica Iselin Didriksen, a victim of the massacre whose favorite song was "What Are Words," and was subsequently invited to Norway to sing at her funeral in

Fana church Fana Church ( no, Fana Kirke) is a parish church of the Church of Norway in Bergen Municipality in Vestland county, Norway. It is located in Fanahammeren, a village in the borough of Fana in the city of Bergen. It is one of the two churches for th ...

. Medina cleared his schedule and traveled to Norway to perform the song with little media coverage and fanfare.

Chart performance

The song debuted at number 22 on the ''Billboard''

Heatseekers Songs Top Heatseekers are "Breaking and Entering" music charts issued weekly by ''Billboard'' magazine. The Heatseekers Albums and the Heatseekers Songs charts were introduced by ''Billboard'' in 1991 with the purpose of highlighting the sales by new an ...

chart, and number 83 on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100. It has since sold 49,000 copies in the United States. The single reached number one on the Norwegian

VG-lista VG-lista is a Norwegian record chart. It is presented weekly in the newspaper '' VG''. It is considered the primary Norwegian record chart, charting albums and singles from countries and continents around the world. The data are collected by Nie ...

chart on April 29, 2011 and remained at the top for 11 straight weeks. It is certified 4× platinum in Norway.
The single also went to number one in Singapore on May 13, 2011, for a three-week run.
The single went number one in Sweden on July 1, 2011, and remained for 8 straight weeks. It was awarded a 2× platinum certification in Sweden on September 20, 2011.

Weekly charts

Year-end charts

Release history

References

{{Reflist 2011 singles Number-one singles in Norway Number-one singles in Sweden Songs written by Rodney Jerkins Songs written by Andre Lindal Song recordings produced by Rodney Jerkins Songs written by Lauren Christy Interscope Records singles 19 Recordings singles