What a Girl Wants

About What a Girl Wants

"What a Girl Wants" is a song by American singer Christina Aguilera, taken from her eponymous debut album in 1999. The song was originally written and recorded by French singer Ophélie Winter in 1998 for her album Privacy, released a year before Aguilera's. Though a songwriter along with Peiken and Roche, Winter was never credited as such for this single. A re-recorded version was released on November 28, 1999 by RCA Records as the album's second single, following the commercial success of the album's lead single "Genie in a Bottle". The song was written by Shelly Peiken and Guy Roche. The song was completed and pitched to RCA executive Ron Fair as "What a Girl Needs" and was renamed "What a Girl Wants"; Fair later gave the track to Aguilera. A Spanish version of the song, titled "Una Mujer," was included on Aguilera's second studio album Mi Reflejo (2000). The song was described as a pop and R&B track and had similarities to "Genie in a Bottle". It received positive reviews from music critics, who described it as a "light" song and compared Aguilera's vocals on the track to those of Mariah Carey. Commercially, the song became her second consecutive US Billboard Hot 100 number-one single, and topped the charts in Canada, New Zealand, and Spain. The single eventually earned gold certifications in countries including Australia, Belgium, Sweden and the US. more »