James Blunt Reveals The Real Meaning Behind His Hit ‘You’re Beautiful’

James Blunt is reflecting on the success of his 2005 hit "You're Beautiful" and sharing the surprising backstory behind the popular song 20 years later.

On Friday (May 30), the English musician shared a video to X (formerly Twitter) to share his gratitude for fans supporting the song and making it a hit, made even more impressive because of what the track was really about.

"20 years ago today, I released a song that bought me this house. Whoever thought a song about being high as a kite on drugs, stalking someone else's girlfriend would resonate quite so much? Thank you. You guys are beautiful."

According to People, "You're Beautiful" was featured on Blunt's 2004 album Back to Bedlam and was released as the album's third single on May 30, 2005. His latest comments about the meaning of the song follow a 2020 essay for The Guardian in which he said he wrote the track after seeing an ex-girlfriend with her new boyfriend on a train.

"Our eyes met, but we just walked past each other, and I went home and wrote the words to 'You're Beautiful' in two minutes," he said, adding, "It's always been portrayed as romantic, but it's actually a bit creepy. It's about a guy (me) who's high and stalking someone else's girlfriend on the subway. But everyone has those moments where you wonder: 'What if I'd said something?'"

Blunt also celebrated the 20th anniversary of Back to Bedlam last year by joking that he would "ruin my life" and legally change his name if it managed to reach No. 1 on the charts.