My Boo (song)
| My boo | |
|---|---|
| Usher feat. Alicia Keys | |
| publication | February 21, 2004 |
| length | 3:43 (single version)
4:44 (album version) |
| Genre (s) | R&B , hip-hop |
| Author (s) | Usher Raymond, Alicia Keys, Jermaine Dupri, Adonis Shropshire, Manuel Seal |
| album | Confessions |
My Boo is a song of American singer Usher , he together with the US singer Alicia Keys has recorded. The song was the fourth single from Usher's third studio album Confessions and was released on September 21, 2004 by LaFace Records . The song peaked at number one in the US and became Usher's fourth single from his album, which was her second number one hit for Keys after the hit Fallin ' in 2001.
At the 2005 Grammy Awards, the song was nominated in two categories, among others, and won the Grammy for best "R & B / Soul Single".
Background and music style
Usher and Alicia Keys previously worked on the remix version of Keys' 2004 hit If I Ain't Got You . During the production of Usher's fourth album Confessions , the producers thought about a few singers who could accompany him on a song, including Solange Knowles on their wish list. A demo recording of the song, which Usher recorded with Solange, was published on the Internet. However, her singing is often confused with that of her older sister Beyoncé . However, Jermaine Dupri , who wrote the previous number one hits for Usher, thought of Alicia Keys as a singer and was sure she and Usher would work well together, and Keys and Usher were friends after working together on the remix version, so it finally became Keys selected as Usher's duet partner.
The song was written from the perspective of Keys and Usher and is about their relationship in the past. According to Dupri, Usher and Keys sing about how their love and feelings came about and how they feel about them now. For Keys, the song is about the first person you felt real feelings for. "When you meet new people, you still remember the first person who you really felt for, or who you really loved."
My Boo is a typical contemporary R&B song with hip-hop and slow jam influences. The lyrics are in the verse-chorus-verse-chorus form. Usher begins the introduction to the song, then Keys starts with her rap verse, Usher acts as a background singer during Alicia's rap and then finishes the first verse. Next, Keys sings the first chorus and puts the song into dialogue form. She also sings the second verse and Usher follows in the chorus, where Keys finally takes over the backing vocals. Then Keys repeats their chorus again. Towards the end of the song Usher and Keys sing together and at the end Alicia ends the song by repeating her rap verse with which she introduced the song at the beginning.
criticism
OMH Media's music critic Azeem Ahmad criticized My Boo for seeing the song as a competition between Usher and Alicia Keys to see who sings best on the "R&B hip-hop beat". Rolling Stone's Jon Caramanica described the duet as "pleasant".
Music video
The music video for My Boo was filmed by Usher and Chris Robinson in New York City . The music video reflects the content of the song.
The music video begins in a living room where Usher is watching the music video for his song Bad Girl . A short time later he turns off the television and lies down on the couch. After a brief moment of calm he begins to introduce the song. Then Usher and Alicia are seen in different rooms singing their sections of the song. Then Usher takes to the streets of New York and Keys drives a car, after a short time they meet and fall in love. They both then walk and go to Times Square together , where they cuddle and hug, show emotions and kiss. In the end, they confess their love for one another.
The music video premiered on American television on September 16, 2004.
Chart placements
| Charts (2004) | Highest position |
|---|---|
 Germany
|
4th |
 Austria
|
29 |
 Switzerland
|
3 |
 United Kingdom
|
5 |
 United States
|
1 |
Individual evidence
- ↑ Jonathan Cohen: Charles Tops Grammys With Eight Trophies . In: Billboard , Nielsen Business Media, Inc, February 14, 2005. Retrieved March 5, 2008.
- ↑ Gil Kaufman: Usher, Alicia Keys Win Big At Soul Train Awards . In: MTV News , March 1, 2005. Retrieved March 5, 2008.
- ↑ a b Shaheem Reid: Usher, Alicia Keys Record Duet . In: MTV News . Retrieved March 4, 2008.
- ↑ Shaheem Reid: More Duets For Usher As Solange, Brandy Grab The Mic . In: MTV News , June 24, 2004. Retrieved March 4, 2008.
- ↑ a b Shaheem Reid: Alicia Keys Shoots Video With Usher, Wants To Do Live Album . In: MTV News , September 14, 2004. Retrieved March 4, 2008.
- ^ Digital Sheet Music: My Boo . In: Musicnotes . Retrieved March 5, 2008.
- ↑ Azeem Ahmad: Usher & Alicia Keys - My Boo (Zomba) . OMH. Archived from the original on March 24, 2012. Retrieved March 5, 2008.
- ↑ Jon Caramanica: Usher: Confessions - Special Edition. Rolling Stone, November 11, 2004, archived from the original on December 13, 2007 ; accessed on September 22, 2014 (English).
- ^ TRL Debuts. Popfusion, archived from the original on January 2, 2008 ; accessed on September 23, 2014 (English).