"Ironic" is a song by Canadian singer Alanis Morissette. It was released in February 1996 as the third single from her third studio album, Jagged Little Pill (1995). It was written by Morissette and Glen Ballard, and was produced by him. "Ironic" is a song written in the key of B major, and includes a moderate tempo of eighty-five beats per minute.
The lyrics present several situations that are described as "ironic"; this has led to debate as to whether any of these actually match the accepted meaning of irony.
The song's usage of the word ironic attracted media attention; according to Jon Pareles of The New York Times, it gives a distinct "unironic" sense in its implications. According to the Oxford English Dictionary, irony is "a state of affairs or an event that seems deliberately contrary to what was or might be expected; an outcome cruelly, humorously, or strangely at odds with assumptions or expectations". Thus, lyrics such as "It's a free ride when you've already paid" and "A traffic jam when you're already late" are not ironic.