I Drive Your Truck

"I Drive Your Truck" is a song written by Jessi Alexander, Connie Harrington, and Jimmy Yeary and recorded by American country music artist Lee Brice. It was released in December 2012 as the third single from his album Hard 2 Love.

"I Drive Your Truck"
Single by Lee Brice
from the album Hard 2 Love
Released	December 3, 2012 (2012-12-03)
Genre	Country
Length	3:54
Label	Curb
Songwriter(s)	Jessi Alexander Connie Harrington Jimmy Yeary
Producer(s)	Kyle Jacobs Matt McClure Lee Brice
Lee Brice singles chronology
"Hard to Love" (2012) "I Drive Your Truck" (2012) "Parking Lot Party" (2013)

Content

The song is about the narrator driving a truck owned by his brother, who died in action in the United States Army. Co-writer Connie Harrington was inspired to write it after hearing an interview on Here and Now with a father, Paul Monti, whose son, Medal of Honor recipient Jared, was killed in Afghanistan while trying to save a fellow soldier. In the interview, he states that he drives the truck to feel close to his son.^[1][2][3]

The truck that appears in the music video is a 1973 Ford F-100. The actual truck driven by Jared Monti, and then his father, Paul, was a Dodge Ram 1500 adorned with decals, including the 10th Mountain Division, the 82nd Airborne Division, an American flag and a "Go Army" decal.^[4] On September 1, 2022, Jared's truck was driven by two of his Army comrades during the funeral procession for Paul Monti.^[5]

Critical reception

Billy Dukes of Taste of Country gave it 4.5 stars out of 5, saying that "Brice’s strong lyrical performance[…]should broaden the story’s scope, making it a big hit commercially and artistically."^[2] Tammy Ragusa of Country Weekly gave the single an A grade. She said that Brice "sings it like his life depends on it" and praised the detail of the lyrics.^[6]

The song was awarded Song of the Year honors at the 47th annual Country Music Association Awards, as well as Song of the Year at the 49th annual Academy of Country Music Awards.

Music video

The video features Brice's brother, Lewis.^[7]

Commercial performance

The song gained sufficient airplay to debut on the Country Airplay for chart dated February 23, 2013, and eventually reaching No. 1 on this chart on April 20, 2013, making it his third consecutive No. 1.^[8] It also debuted on the Billboard Hot 100 at No. 91 in February 2013 and peaked at No. 47 on April 13, 2013. It reached No. 6 on the Hot Country Songs and No. 11 on the Country Digital Songs. The song has sold 870,000 copies in the US as of April 2014.^[9]

Charts and certifications

Weekly charts Chart (2012–2013) Peak position Canada (Canadian Hot 100)[10] 53 Canada Country (Billboard)[11] 3 US Billboard Hot 100[12] 47 US Country Airplay (Billboard)[13] 1 US Hot Country Songs (Billboard)[14] 6 Year-end charts Chart (2013) Position US Country Airplay (Billboard)[15] 34 US Hot Country Songs (Billboard)[16] 38

Certifications Region Certification Certified units/sales Canada (Music Canada)[17] Gold 40,000* United States (RIAA)[18] 2× Platinum 2,000,000‡ * Sales figures based on certification alone. ‡ Sales+streaming figures based on certification alone.

References

1. "Outside the Wire » MoH recipient's father inspires country hit". Archived from the original on 2013-05-11. Retrieved 2013-05-09.
2. Dukes, Billy (November 12, 2012). "Lee Brice, 'I Drive Your Truck' – Song Review". Taste of Country. Retrieved January 6, 2013.
3. "Story Behind the Lyrics: Lee Brice - "I Drive Your Truck" | New Country Music, Listen to Songs & Video | Roughstock.com". Archived from the original on 2013-02-11. Retrieved 2013-03-07.
4. "Remembering Gold Star father who inspired the hit song "I Drive Your Truck"". Newsweek. 2022-09-01. Retrieved 2022-09-02.
5. Saint-Ciel, Alisha. "Raynham's Paul Monti remembered as amazing teacher, loving father, muse of country music". Enterprise News. Retrieved 2022-09-02.
6. Ragusa, Tammy (January 7, 2013). "Single review: Lee Brice — 'I Drive Your Truck'". Country Weekly. 20 (1): 51. ISSN 1074-3235.
7. Dauphin, Chuck (November 13, 2012). "Lee Brice Casts Brother in 'I Drive Your Truck' Video". Billboard.com. Retrieved January 6, 2013.
8. Alanna Conaway (April 9, 2013). "Country Radio Chart Report: Tuesday April 9, 2013 - Lee Brice's "I Drive Youri Truck" Is Number One". Roughstock. Archived from the original on April 13, 2014. Retrieved April 10, 2014.
9. Matt Bjorke (April 16, 2014). "Country Chart News - The Top 30 Digital Singles - April 16, 2014: Post ACM Awards Sales Bumps: Gold Singles For Thomas Rhett, Dan + Shay and Keith Urban; Platinum for FGL & Luke Bryan!". Roughstock. Archived from the original on April 18, 2014.
10. "Lee Brice Chart History (Canadian Hot 100)". Billboard.
11. "Lee Brice Chart History (Canada Country)". Billboard.
12. "Lee Brice Chart History (Hot 100)". Billboard.
13. "Lee Brice Chart History (Country Airplay)". Billboard.
14. "Lee Brice Chart History (Hot Country Songs)". Billboard.
15. "Best of 2013: Country Airplay". Billboard. Prometheus Global Media. 2013. Retrieved December 13, 2013.
16. "Best of 2013: Hot Country Songs". Billboard. Prometheus Global Media. 2013. Retrieved December 13, 2013.
17. "Canadian single certifications – Lee Brice – I Drive Your Truck". Music Canada. Retrieved March 17, 2014.
18. "American single certifications – Lee Brice – I Drive Your Truck". Recording Industry Association of America. Retrieved February 8, 2023.