@exploringmusichits on Instagram: ""I Want It That Way" is a song by American boy band Backstreet Boys. It was released on April 12, 1999, as the lead single from their third studio album, Millennium. It was written by Max Martin and Andreas Carlsson, while Martin and Kristian Lundin produced it. The pop ballad tells of a romantic relationship strained by emotional or physical distance. "I Want It That Way" is the Backstreet Boys' signature song, and commercially it reached the number-one spot i