The Voice Within

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"The Voice Within"
Single by Christina Aguilera
from the album Stripped
Released	November 2003
Format	Airplay Only
Genre	Pop
Length	5:04
Label	RCA Records
Writer(s)	Christina Aguilera Glen Ballard
Producer(s)	Glen Ballard
Chart positions
#4 IRE #8 AUS #9 UK #10 CAN #16 NZ #27 LAT #33 US
Christina Aguilera singles chronology
"Can't Hold Us Down" (2003)	"The Voice Within" (2003)	"Car Wash" (2004)
Canadian single cover
Remix single cover
German pocket single cover

"The Voice Within" is the fifth and final single from Christina Aguilera's sophomore album, Stripped. Released in 2003, the single peaked at #33 on the Billboard Hot 100, becoming Aguilera's 11th Top 40 hit. The single also peaked at #9 in the UK and #8 in Australia. The single is most known for its simplistic, but critically acclaimed music video that was filmed only in black and white and only with one camera shot. The video was nominated for three MTV Video Music Awards, Best Female Video, Viewer's Choice, and Best Cinematography.

Contents 1 Song information 2 Composition and Meaning 3 Remixes 4 Chart success 5 Charts

[edit] Song information

"The Voice Within" was written by both Aguilera and Glen Ballard, and was produced by the latter. The album version of song extends the song about 5 seconds and blends it with the next track, "I'm OK".

Aguilera did not want 'The Voice Within' to be released as the 5th single. She was lobbying for 'Impossible' a track off of 'Stripped' which was produced by Alicia Keys, as she felt it would help her break into the urban market. RCA records wanted to release a big ballad during the holiday season like they did the year prior with 'Beautiful' and felt that 'The Voice Within' was the perfect candidate. Eventually, Aguilera's label made the final decision and the idea of 'Impossible' being the final single was scrapped.

The song was performed over three years later by American Idol 5 runner-up Katharine McPhee during 'Songs from the 21st Century' week (Top 10). During this performance, judge Simon Cowell compared McPhee's abilities to that of Aguilera's, saying the former's performance was almost as good as the original singer's. During the result show the night after, where McPhee landed in the bottom two, he admitted that watching it again it was a mediocre performance.

[edit] Composition and Meaning

Much like her hit single Beautiful, The Voice Within holds an inspirational message, especially to young women, as told in the opening line: 'Young girl, don't cry'. The song encourages the listener to 'trust the voice within when there's nobody else' to help you through your problems.

[edit] Remixes

Official Remixes

• "The Voice Within (Almighty Remix) (8:01) - a.k.a. The Voice Within (Almighty Definitive Mix) & The Voice Within (Almighty 12" Club Mix)
• "The Voice Within" (Almighty PA) (8:01)
• "The Voice Within" (Almighty Dub) (7:57)
• "The Voice Within" (Almighty Radio Edit 1) (3:31)
• "The Voice Within" (Almighty Radio Edit 2) (4:01)
• "The Voice Within" (Almighty Mix Show)

Unofficial Remixes by famous remixers

• "The Voice Within" (Bertoldo & Bermudez Club Mix) - remixed by Lenny Bertoldo & Joe Bermudez

[edit] Chart success

"The Voice Within" proved to be moderately successful, peaking within the top forty of both the Billboard Hot 100 and Hot 100 Airplay.

Internationally, the song peaked within the top ten in most countres it charted.

[edit] Charts

Chart (2003)	Position
U.S.Billboard Hot 100	33
U.S. Top 40 Tracks	17
U.S. Top 40 Mainstream	11
U.S. Adult Top 40	33
U.S. Adult Contemporary	16
World Chart Show	2
UK Top 40 Singles	9
Argentina Top 40 Singles	1 (1 week)
Australian ARIA Top 50 Singles	8
Canadian Billboard Hot 100 Singles	10
Dutch Top 40	6
Hungarian Radio Airplay Top 40	8
Hungarian Single Sales Chart	10
Sweden Top 60 Singles	10
Ireland Top 50 Singles	4
Mexican Top 100	29
Austria Top 75 Singles	7
Italy Top 50 Singles	19
Germany Top 100 Singles	13
Switzerland Top 100 Singles	3
New Zealand Top 50 Singles	16
Brasil Top 100 Singles	25