Nettles co-wrote the song with Butch Walker. The song is about a woman who is tricked into having relations with a man who did not reveal that he is already in a relationship. She contacts the man's wife and tells her that "I don't wanna be that girl."[3]
"That Girl" has been described as a lyrical counterpoint to Dolly Parton's classic, "Jolene".[4][5] Nettles was reportedly inspired by the idea of putting a different spin on the story: "Everyone knows this legendary Dolly song ... But, what is the other side to the story? What if Jolene didn't want to 'take her man, just because she can', so to speak?"[6]
The song is a mid-tempo country record with jazz[7] and Flamenco[4] elements. It features a fairly stripped-down production, driven by a percussion line, hand claps, and an acoustic guitar.[4]
Critical reception
Giving the song a B+, Joseph Hudak of Country Weekly contrasted it with the relationship seen in Sugarland's "Stay", in which the female narrator instead pleads a man to stay with her instead of returning to his wife. He also wrote that "Refreshingly, there’s no slick production here. The payoff, though, is the chanteuse’s smokey vocals, which prove yet again why Jennifer is one of country (or pop’s) most nuanced singers."[4] Matt Bjorke of Roughstock rated it 5 out of 5 stars, saying that "It's simple. It's powerful. And mostly, it's unique in a land of songs about beer and rural field parties".[7]
Music video
The song's music video, directed by Philip Andelman,[8] was filmed in New York City, and features Nettles portraying both female roles in the song.[9] It was released October 4, 2013.
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