<Tr> <Td_colspan="2"> <Ul> <Li> file </Li> <Li> help </Li> </Ul> </Td> </Tr> <Ul> <Li> file </Li> <Li> help </Li> </Ul> <P> "Fast Car" is a song by American singer - songwriter Tracy Chapman . It was released in April 1988 as the lead single from her self - titled debut album . Her appearance on the Nelson Mandela 70th Birthday Tribute was the catalyst for the song's becoming a top 10 hit in the United States, peaking at number 6 on the Billboard Hot 100, and a top 10 hit in the United Kingdom, peaking at number 4 on the UK Singles Chart . Besides this "Fast Car" received two Grammy nominations for Record of the Year and Song of the Year, as well as a Video Music Award nomination for Best Female Video in 1989 . </P> <P> According to Metro Weekly critic Chris Gerard, "Fast Car" tells a grittily realistic story of a working poor woman trying to escape the cycle of poverty, set to folk rock music . The song's arrangement was described by Orlando Sentinel writer Thom Duffy as "subtle folk - rock", while Billboard magazine's Gary Trust deemed the record a "folk / pop" song . Dave Marsh said it was perhaps an "optimistic folk - rock narrative", whose characters are in a homeless shelter . American culture critic Jim Cullen believed that with songs like "Fast Car", Chapman brought a uniquely black and feminist perspective to acoustic folk - rock's generally white, middle - class audience . </P>

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