Issued as the second single from her debut album, On How Life Is (1999), the song was first released in Japan as a double A-side with "Do Something" on July 23, 1999.

Two months later, on September 27, "I Try" was released officially in the United Kingdom, where it topped the UK Hip Hop/R&B Singles chart and peaked at No.

Daily Record called the song "soulful", noting that Macy Gray "has one of the most distinctive singing voices around.

"[2] The music video for the song, directed by American filmmaker Mark Romanek (who had previously directed the video for Gray's "Do Something"),[3] depicts Gray waking up in a hotel room, buying flowers, and traveling through New York City, traveled through by bus and train to meet a man in a park.

Gray presented the award for Best Pop Video alongside LL Cool J.