Like You'll Never See Me Again

"Like You'll Never See Me Again"
Single by Alicia Keys
from the album As I Am
Released November 26, 2007 (2007-11-26)
Format
Recorded 2006
Studio
Genre Soul, R&B
Length 5:15
Label J
Songwriter(s)
Producer(s)
  • Keys
  • Brothers
Alicia Keys singles chronology
"No One"
(2007)		 "Like You'll Never See Me Again"
(2007)		 "Teenage Love Affair"
(2008)

"No One"
(2007)		 "Like You'll Never See Me Again"
(2007)		 "Teenage Love Affair"
(2008)

"Like You'll Never See Me Again" is a song by American singer-songwriter Alicia Keys from her third studio album As I Am (2007). Written and produced by Keys and Kerry Brothers, Jr., it was released in November 2007 as the album's second single. The song was first heard on October 25, 2007 on Atlanta's V103 WVEE radio station.

Upon its release, the song peaked at number twelve on the Billboard Hot 100 and became Keys' second consecutive R&B chart-topper, remaining atop the Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart for seven weeks. It was ranked number forty-seven on Billboard's Top Hot 100 Hits of 2008.[1] The song went on to replace her single "No One" at number one on the US R&B/Hip-Hop charts. In 2008, the song won two NAACP Image Awards for Outstanding Music Video and Outstanding Song, and an ASCAP Rhythm & Soul Music Award for Top R&B/Hip-Hop Song.[2]

Composition

"Like You'll Never See Me Again" was written and produced by Keys and Kerry Brothers, Jr.. Keys explained to MTV News that the song is "about living every moment as if it's your last. Because if it's our last time to say, 'I love you,' then let it be that we didn't forget that."[3]

Critical reception

The song received critical acclaim. Nate Chinem from New York Times wrote that the song is "a distant cousin to Prince’s 'Purple Rain'."[4] J. Freedom du Lac from Washington Post agreed, writing that "the sexy, Prince-ly track is by far the album's best track.[5] Rodney Dugue from Spin wrote that the song is a "dreamy lullaby, where she ponders whether she'll be appreciated after a lover stops calling her name."[6] Edna Gundersen from USA Today praised the track, referring to it as an "instant and enchanting classic, where Keys simply dazzles, demonstrating her lock on the future regardless of the industry's fate."[7] Stephanie Merrit from The Observer called it a "sweet, caramel-smooth track."[8]

Nick Levine wrote for Digital Spy a very positive review, writing that it is "a smoochy, seductive soul ballad, built around a delicate, Oriental-sounding piano riff, it gives Keys plenty of chance to show off her breathy, Mariah-esque upper register. Best of all, like all Keys' most impressive moments, its melody has a timeless quality that allows it to transcend its modish R&B production."[9]

Chart performance

"Like You'll Never See Me Again" debuted at number thirty-seven on the Billboard Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs as the Hot Shot debut of the week, jumping to number twenty-two in its second week, number fifteen in its third week, and to then number nine in its fourth. After climbing to number three in its fifth week, the song reached number two in its sixth week, and then rose to number one in its ninth week, beating off Keys' own song "No One"—this made Keys the second artist since the R&B chart began using Nielsen SoundScan data in 1992 to succeed herself at number one, as "Like You'll Never See Me Again" jumped from number two to number one and traded places with "No One", which had ruled the chart for ten weeks. Rapper Nelly accomplished this feat in 2002 with "Hot in Herre" and "Dilemma".[10] The song spent seven weeks atop the chart, after which it remained at number two for six weeks thereafter. As of the charting week of September 13, 2008, "Like You'll Never See Me Again" has remained on the chart for forty-five consecutive weeks, all of them inside the top fifty. Billboard ranked it as the most successful song on the Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart of 2008.[11] On the Billboard Hot 100, it debuted at number ninety-three, jumped to number forty-five in its second week, and subsequently peaked at number twelve.

"Like You'll Never See Me Again" was released on February 25, 2008 in the United Kingdom, peaking at number fifty-three, while "No One" was a non-mover at number twenty-six. It became her lowest-charting single there so far. In Australia, it debuted and peaked at number seventy-seven on the ARIA Singles Chart, number forty-four on the Physical Singles Chart, and number nineteen on the Urban Singles Chart the week of April 14, 2008.

Music video

The video, directed by Diane Martel, features cameos by Common (with whom Keys had previously worked with in the 2007 motion picture Smokin' Aces) as Keys' love interest who is critically injured in a motorcycle accident and Keys' mother Terri Augello as a hospital medic. It tells the story backwards, and the viewer learns that the couple had been arguing. The video premiered on November 13, 2007 on MTV's Total Request Live and BET's 106 & Park. It debuted at number two on VH1's VSpot Top 20 Countdown on February 23, 2008. Alicia described the video for this song as: "heart-wrenching. If your heart doesn't feel me, then you are dead!".[3]

Track listings

Personnel

Production

Musicians

  • Alicia Keys – vocals, piano, lead Moog, virtual synthesizers
  • Steve Mostyn – bass guitar
  • John "Jubu" Smith – lead guitar, rhythm guitar

Charts and certifications

See also

References

  1. 1 2 "Hot 100 Songs – 2008 Year-End Chart". Billboard. Nielsen Business Media, Inc. Retrieved 2009-03-15.
  2. ↑ "22nd Annual ASCAP Rhythm & Soul Music Awards". ASCAP. Retrieved 2009-07-29.
  3. 1 2 "Like You'll Never See Me Again by Alicia Keys Songfacts". Songfacts. Retrieved 13 March 2012.
  4. ↑ Chinen, Nate. Review: As I Am. The New York Times. Retrieved on 2012-03-13.
  5. ↑ Lac, J. Freedom du. Review: As I Am. The Washington Post. Retrieved on 2012-03-13.
  6. ↑ Dugue, Rodney. "Review: As I Am". Spin: 120. December 2007.
  7. ↑ Gundersen, Edna. Review: As I Am. USA Today. Retrieved on 2012-03-13.
  8. ↑ Merritt, Stephanie. Review: As I Am. The Observer. Retrieved on 2012-03-13.
  9. ↑ Levine, Nick (25 February 2008). "Alicia Keys: 'Like You'll Never See Me Again' - Music Singles Review - Digital Spy". Digital Spy. Retrieved 13 March 2012.
  10. ↑ Cohen, Jonathan (December 27, 2007). "Flo Rida Bumps Keys From Atop Hot 100". Billboard. Nielsen Business Media, Inc. Retrieved 2007-12-28.
  11. 1 2 "Hot R&B / Hip-Hop Songs – Billboard Year In Music 2008". Billboard. Nielsen Business Media, Inc. Archived from the original on December 12, 2008. Retrieved 2008-12-10.
  12. 1 2 "ARIA Top 100 Singles and ARIA Urban Singles Chart – Week Commencing 14th April 2008" (PDF). ARIA. Pandora Archive. Retrieved 2008-09-15.
  13. 1 2 3 4 5 "Alicia Keys – Like You'll Never See Me Again – Music Charts". αCharts.us. Retrieved 2007-12-28.
  14. ↑ "Romanian Top 100 – 23/2008". Vento Consultanta SRL (in Romanian). Archived from the original on 2006-02-18. Retrieved 2008-06-12.
  15. ↑ "RADIO TOP100 Oficiálna". IFPI (in Slovak). Retrieved 2008-06-30.
  16. ↑ "Top 40 RnB Singles". BBC Radio 1. Retrieved 2008-03-16.
  17. 1 2 3 "As I Am > Charts & Awards > Billboard Singles". Allmusic. Retrieved 2009-12-29.
  18. ↑ "Alicia Keys Album & Song Chart History – Jazz Songs". Billboard. Nielsen Business Media, Inc. Retrieved 2009-12-29.
  19. ↑ "Decade End Charts – R&B/Hip-Hop Songs". Billboard. Nielsen Business Media, Inc. Retrieved July 10, 2011.
  20. ↑ https://www.riaa.com/goldandplatinumdata.php?content_selector=gold-platinum-searchable-database
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