
Written by Tom Douglas, Tony Lane, and David Lee, the song offers a deep message about opening your eyes and actually looking at and seeing the world. Below that, the song gets even deeper by conveying the message about appreciating the simplicities life has to offer and how we can sometimes get lost in the hustle of the world. The three songwriters do a brilliant job at describing images like a man caught in traffic that hears nothing but cell phone calls and talk radio screaming at him but then looks up to see a little girl in a minivan waving at him. It’s in that little girl that he sees “a little light” and “a little hope” and then finds himself saying “hello world, how you been, good to see you my old friend.” Like Matt Bjorke of Roughstock said in his review of the song, it’s a shame that most listeners will ultimately not see or understand the incredible message of the song.
“Hello World” offers a fairly toned down production throughout the song. The production is made up of a piano and guitar line that accompany the lead vocals delivered by Charles Kelley. As the song builds to its climax, the production evolves into a full-blown array of strings, guitars, and drums that is almost like the production of a U2 song. It’s that production that causes “Hello World” to be the brilliant single that it is.
Charles’ incredible vocal performance also suits the song perfectly as he ranges from a soft tone to a more fuller sound as the song reaches the bridge and final chorus. Groupmates Hillary Scott and Dave Haywood back up Kelley with stellar harmonies that never overshadow his stunning vocal performance.
This is an incredible single and probably Lady A’s finest to date. Not only could this song be a huge hit on the country charts, but it has the quality to cross-over to other genres, much like the group’s smash hit, “Need You Now.” Look for “Hello World” to be another career-defining song for these country superstars.