Song · Backstreet Boys
“I Want It That Way” by Backstreet Boys
From the album Millennium (1999)
“I Want It That Way” by Backstreet Boys appears on 2 radio countdowns from 2 stations between 2023 and 2025. It was first released in 1999 on the album Millennium. Its best result is #181 on the WFPK Top 500 Songs of the '90s. In the combined RockLists rankings it is #473 of the '90s.
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Video from YouTube (BackstreetBoysVEVO). Pressing play loads YouTube's player. Watch on YouTube
"I Want It That Way" kicked off the Millennium era on April 12, 1999, the lead single from the Backstreet Boys' third album, and it's the song they will never outrun. Max Martin wrote it with Andreas Carlsson and produced it with Kristian Lundin, Esbjörn Öhrwall's guitar and Tomas Lindberg's bass keep it light on its feet, and Nick Carter, Howie Dorough, Brian Littrell, AJ McLean and Kevin Richardson all sing on it. Under the gloss it's a ballad about a love under strain from distance, emotional or physical.
It went to number one in more than 25 countries and drew 3 Grammy nominations, Song and Record of the Year included. Wayne Isham's video won Viewer's Choice at the VMAs, got sent up by Blink-182 in "All the Small Things", and in 2021 became the group's first to pass one billion YouTube views.
Written with AI assistance from RockLists chart data, MusicBrainz and Wikipedia.
RockLists rankings
Indie & Adult Alternative
All Rock Formats
All-time and decade countdowns
| Year | # | Station | Countdown | of |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2023 | 448 | The Current | The Current's 893 Essential Songs of the '90s | 893 |
| 2025 | 181 | WFPK | WFPK Top 500 Songs of the '90s | 500 |
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