A Great Big World, Say Something | 1 Hit WONDERful

In the 17^th edition of 1 Hit WONDERful (2024), we highlight “Say Something” performed by the Grammy-winning duo A Great Big World. 

It only takes ONE hit to solidify a musical legacy 💯! On 1 Hit WONDERful, we highlight songs that were the SOLE hit by a given musician.  To be fair, it is possible that the artists appearing on this list earned a minor hit or two, BUT for the most part, it’s that ONE hit that earned them recognition. So, in the 17^th edition of 1 Hit WONDERful (2024), we dive into “Say Something”,  the one-hit wonder by A Great Big World.

“Say something, I’m giving up on you / I’ll be the one if you want me to.” Among the most beautiful songs of the 2010s hails from pop singer/songwriter duo, A Great Big World.  Ian Axel and Chad King struck gold with “Say Something” which appeared on their 2014, gold-certified album, Is There Anybody Out There?.  Two versions of “Say Something” appear on the album.  The first, the fifth track, is the original, a solo track by Axel.  The second version, the 13^th track, is a duet between Axel and Christina Aguilera.  Ultimately, “Say Something” earned AGBW their sole top-40 hit, peaking at no. 4 on the Billboard Hot 100. It reached its peak before the arrival of the album.  Furthermore, “Say Something” would earn the duo and Aguilera the Grammy for Best Pop Duo / Group Performance.  This was AGBW’s sole nomination and win.  Good stuff!

Although Axel is the lead vocalist on “Say Something,” King joined his ‘partner in crime’ as a songwriter alongside Mike Campbell. Furthermore, A Great Big World produced the gorgeous ballad alongside Dan Romer.  The lyrics are utterly sublime – moving and thoughtfully penned.  Listening to Axel sing, you buy what he’s selling because it is so emotional.  “And I… am feeling so small / It was over my head / I know nothing at all,” he sings in the first verse.  The emotions remain high in the second verse, where he sings, “And I will stumble and fall / I’m still learning to love / Just starting the crawl.” Of course, the chemistry, when joined by Aguilera, singing in harmony, is nothing short of incredible.  That chemistry continues in the remaining choruses as well as the third and final verse.  Beyond elite singing – solo and in duet form – the production and sound are stunning.  Stripped with piano and strings, “Say Something” is special – there’s no other way to describe it.  While A Great Big World would chart one more song, the fabulous “Hold Each Other”, it spent just two weeks on the chart peaking at no. 99 in 2015. The multiplatinum “Say Something” is the sugar honey iced tea – utterly stupendous!

A Great Big World // Is There Anybody Out There? // Epic // 2014

A Great Big World, Say Something: 1 Hit WONDERful No. 17 (2024) [📷: Brent Faulkner / The Musical Hype; Epic; Elias Souza from Pexels; OpenClipart-Vectors from Pixabay]