"Stealing Cinderella" is a debut song recorded by American country music artist Chuck Wicks. It was released in September 2007 as the first single from the album Starting Now. The song was co-written by Wicks along with songwriters George Teren and Rivers Rutherford. The single produced the biggest debut for any new country artist in all of 2007, with fifty-two Billboard-monitored stations in the United States adding the song in its first official week of airplay.[1][2] Overall, the song peaked at #5 on the U.S. Billboard Hot Country Songs charts.

"Stealing Cinderella"
Single by Chuck Wicks
from the album Starting Now
ReleasedSeptember 10, 2007 (2007-09-10)
GenreCountry
Length4:04
LabelRCA Nashville
Songwriter(s)Chuck Wicks
George Teren
Rivers Rutherford
Producer(s)Dann Huff
Monty Powell
Chuck Wicks singles chronology
"Stealing Cinderella"
(2007)
"All I Ever Wanted"
(2008)

On August 25, 2007, Wicks performed the song at his Grand Ole Opry debut.[3] In October 2007, Wicks was invited by University of Tennessee football coach Phillip Fulmer to perform "Stealing Cinderella" at the wedding of Fulmer's daughter Courtney.[1]

Content

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"Stealing Cinderella" is a ballad which, through allusions to the fairy tale of Cinderella, the narrator tells of a conversation with his girlfriend's father, asking for the father's permission to marry his daughter.[1][4]

Critical reception

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Engine 145 reviewer Brady Vercher gave the song a "thumbs up" review. Although he thought that it was unusual to use Cinderella for a comparison (as Cinderella's father died in the fairy tale), and that the song's verses "gloss[ed] over" the allusions to the fairy tale, he nonetheless said that he could identify with the sentiment of the song's central character.[4]

Chart performance

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"Stealing Cinderella" debuted at number 53 on the U.S. Billboard Hot Country Songs chart for the week of September 8, 2007.[5] Fifty-two of the country music stations on Billboard's panel added the song in its first official week of airplay, boosting it to number 42 that week.[2]

Chart (2007–2008) Peak
position
US Hot Country Songs (Billboard)[6] 5
US Billboard Hot 100[7] 56
US Billboard Pop 100 99
Canada (Canadian Hot 100)[8] 81

Year-end charts

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Chart (2008) Position
US Country Songs (Billboard)[9] 32

Certifications

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Region Certification Certified units/sales
United States (RIAA)[10] Gold 500,000

Sales+streaming figures based on certification alone.

References

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  1. ^ a b c "Chuck Wicks performs "Stealing Cinderella" at wedding of UT coach's daughter". Country Standard Time. 2007-10-01. Retrieved 2007-11-11.
  2. ^ a b "Chuck Wicks debut single". Country Standard Time. 2007-09-17. Retrieved 2007-11-11.
  3. ^ "Chuck Wicks Kicks Off Whirlwind Weekend with Grand Ole Opry Debut". RCA Records. 2010-08-21. Archived from the original on 2007-11-18. Retrieved 2007-09-15.
  4. ^ a b "Chuck Wicks - "Stealing Cinderella"". Engine 145. 2007-09-18. Archived from the original on 2014-12-18. Retrieved 2007-11-11.
  5. ^ "Billboard Hot Country Songs chart listing for "Stealing Cinderella"". Billboard.com. Retrieved 2007-11-11. [dead link]
  6. ^ "Chuck Wicks Chart History (Hot Country Songs)". Billboard.
  7. ^ "Chuck Wicks Chart History (Hot 100)". Billboard.
  8. ^ "Chuck Wicks Chart History (Canadian Hot 100)". Billboard.
  9. ^ "Best of 2008: Country Songs". Billboard. Prometheus Global Media. 2008. Retrieved December 13, 2008.
  10. ^ "American single certifications – Chuck Wicks – Stealing Cinderella". Recording Industry Association of America. Retrieved August 4, 2023.