Critical Reception
Critic Robert Christgau called "What a Girl Wants" "clever" adding "but in a far less ingratiating way", comparing the track to a "two hour promotional video" of Aguilera. Christgau concluded his review by noting "it raises the question of how this ruthlessly atypical young careerist can presume to advise girls not cursed with her ambition, and the fear that some of them will make her a role model regardless". Anthony Violanti from Buffalo News discussed the success behind the record was the formula than incorporated teen idols with R&B and Pop music releases, Violanti discussed the track calling it a "light track", and despite saying the track had been "buried in production" he concluded it "has a way of selling a song". Author Pier Dominquez of A Star is Made called the song "a lightweight but pleasant Pop/ R&B confection" and stated Aguilera performed "vocal acrobatics" and labelled it a "less effective" Mariah Carey style vocal performance. Nana-Adwoa Ofori of the AOL Radio blog compiled a list of Aguilera's ten best tracks in which she listed "What a Girl Wants! at number nine writing "The huge success of this Christina Aguilera song solidified her as a strong musical force". The song was nominated for Best Female Pop Vocal Performance at the 43rd Grammy Awards held on February 21, 2001.
Read more about this topic: What A Girl Wants (song)
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