Pop-Up Video: You Were Meant for Me (1996)

You Were Meant for Me

Single: Jewel

Album: Pieces of You

Released: November 12, 1996

Songwriters: Jewel Kilcher, Steve Poltz

Jewel co-wrote "You Were Meant for Me" with Steve Poltz from The Rugburns. He appeared in the video with Jewel. This was the most-played song on US radio in 1996. At the time, it was the biggest-selling single in the history of Atlantic Records. Jewel was the label's first artist to grace the TIME magazine cover on July 21, 1997.

Jewel recorded "You Were Meant for Me" three times and made two music videos. She told Billboard of the original version: 

"When I got my album in my hands for the first time, I sat down crying because I hated how I sang the song. The choruses really bothered me. To hear that it was going to be the single was like, no, that's my worst nightmare." 

Her second attempt was the "Juan Patino Radio Mix," featured in a Sean Penn-directed video. It didn't gather much attention, and the footage was soon pulled from MTV and VH1.

Atlantic Records had Jewel re-record a more "radio-friendly" version. The result is the "Radio Version," released on a commercial CD single and later on a re-release of Pieces of You. 

Lawrence Carroll directed the music video for the Radio Edit. It won the award for Best Female Video at the 1997 MTV Video Music Awards.