"Do I" is a song co-written and recorded by American
country music artist
Luke Bryan
Thomas Luther "Luke" Bryan (born July 17, 1976) is an American country music, country singer, songwriter, and television personality. He began his music career writing songs for Travis Tritt and Billy Currington before signing with Capitol Reco ...
. It was released in May 2009 as the lead-off single from his album ''
Doin' My Thing
''Doin' My Thing'' is the second studio album by American country music artist Luke Bryan. It was released on October 6, 2009 by Capitol Nashville. The album includes the singles "Do I," which peaked at number 2 on the U.S. ''Billboard'' Hot Coun ...
''. Bryan co-wrote the song with
Dave Haywood and
Charles Kelley of the group
Lady Antebellum, whose co-lead singer
Hillary Scott is featured on
background vocals. "Do I" is about a couple questioning the status of their relationship.
The song received mixed reviews from critics wary of Bryan's delivery in the lyrics. "Do I" peaked at number 2 on both the
''Billboard'' Country Airplay
Country Airplay is a chart published weekly by ''Billboard'' magazine in the United States since January 20, 1990.
This chart lists the 60 most-listened-to records played on 150 mainstream country radio stations across the country as monitored ...
and
Hot Country Songs
Hot Country Songs is a chart published weekly by ''Billboard'' magazine in the United States.
This 50-position chart lists the most popular country music songs, calculated weekly by collecting airplay data from Nielsen BDS along with digital sal ...
charts respectively, both times behind Lady A's own song "
Need You Now". It also gave Bryan his first top 40 hit on the
Hot 100
The ''Billboard'' Hot 100 is the music industry standard record chart in the United States for songs, published weekly by '' Billboard'' magazine. Chart rankings are based on sales (physical and digital), radio play, and online streaming ...
chart, charting at number 34. The song was certified
2× Platinum by the
Recording Industry Association of America
The Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) is a trade organization that represents the music recording industry in the United States. Its members consist of record labels and distributors that the RIAA says "create, manufacture, and/o ...
, and has sold 1,633,000 copies in that country as of November 2015. The song also charted in Canada, peaking at number 66 on the
Canadian Hot 100
The Canadian Hot 100 is a music industry record chart in Canada for songs, published weekly by '' Billboard'' magazine. The Canadian Hot 100 was launched on the issue dated March 31, 2007, and is currently the standard record chart in Canada; a n ...
chart.
An accompanying music video for the song, directed by
Shaun Silva, is set in a high rise condominium where Bryan contemplates his relationship with his girlfriend.
Content
Bryan told
CMT that, "the song is about a couple that doesn't know if their worlds are right with each other, or they don't know how their relationship's going down hill".
The song is in the
key of
A major
A major (or the key of A) is a major scale based on A, with the pitches A, B, C, D, E, F, and G. Its key signature has three sharps. Its relative minor is F-sharp minor and its parallel minor is A minor. The key of A major is the only k ...
, with Bryan's vocals ranging from C♯4 to F♯5.
Critical reception
Stephen M. Deusner Stephen M. Deusner is an American music critic and part-time record store clerk who lives in Bloomington, Indiana. A native of Tennessee, he has contributed to Pitchfork Media (including ''the Pitchfork 500''), ''Salon'', '' CMT'', ''American Songwr ...
of ''Engine 145'' gave the song a thumbs-down. Although he described the lyrics favorably by saying that "the scenario is all the more affecting for its mundanity" and "'Do I' implies no hint of a happily ever after, and that ambiguity gives the lyrics extra impact", Deusner criticized Bryan's vocal performance, saying "it never quite conveys much desperation or despair. There’s no worry in his voice, nor does it sound like he’s trying to keep a stoic front."
Chris Neal of ''
Country Weekly'' described the song favorably in his review of the album, saying that it "shows a knack for convincingly delivering hymns to thwarted love."
Commercial performance
"Do I" debuted on the U.S. ''Billboard''
Hot Country Songs
Hot Country Songs is a chart published weekly by ''Billboard'' magazine in the United States.
This 50-position chart lists the most popular country music songs, calculated weekly by collecting airplay data from Nielsen BDS along with digital sal ...
chart at number 53 for the chart week of May 9, 2009. In November 2009, the song became his first top 40 on the
''Billboard'' Hot 100 chart. The song has sold 1,755,000 copies in the U.S. as of March 2019.
Music video
The music video was directed by
Shaun Silva and was filmed in a high rise condominium in downtown
Nashville
Nashville is the capital city of the U.S. state of Tennessee and the seat of Davidson County. With a population of 689,447 at the 2020 U.S. census, Nashville is the most populous city in the state, 21st most-populous city in the U.S., and the ...
. It features Luke Bryan dealing with the relationship with his girlfriend. It premiered on Amazon.com on June 29, 2009.
Charts and certifications
Weekly charts
Year-end charts
Certifications
References
{{authority control
2009 singles
Country ballads
2000s ballads
Luke Bryan songs
Music videos directed by Shaun Silva
Songs written by Luke Bryan
Songs written by Dave Haywood
Songs written by Charles Kelley
Capitol Records Nashville singles
2009 songs