U Should've Known Better
Encyclopedia
"U Should've Known Better" is a song by American
R&B singer Monica. It was written by Monica, Jermaine Dupri
and Harold Lilly and produced by Dupri for her original third studio album, All Eyez on Me
(2002), featuring additional production by Bryan Michael Cox
. As the album was retooled, the song was one out of five original records that were transferred into a new version, entitled After the Storm
(2003).
The song was released as the fourth and final single from After the Storm in May 2004. Monica's first balladic release in over five years, "U Should've Known Better" peaked at number 19 on the U.S. Billboard
Hot 100 and number 6 on the Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Singles & Tracks chart, becoming the album's second-biggest single release.
would decide to release another single from After The Storm at all. However, Monica proclaimed in several interviews, she was looking forward to release her duet with DMX
, "Don't Gotta Go Home", as a final single, but first plans for a video were scrapped and the idea was dropped.
A half year later the All Eyez on Me leftover, "U Should've Known Better" was announced as the album's last official single. The sultry ballad was written by Monica, Harold Lilly and Jermaine Dupri
, who was able to finalize the track with help from co-producer Bryan Michael Cox
. The lyrics deal with misunderstandings in a relationship, which conduce to doubts about love's veracity. Nonetheless Monica promises her man she'll stay with him, singing lines like: "It don't matter if you're up, matter if you're down, either way I'm gonna be around ..."
The music video for "U Should've Known Better" was shot by director Benny Boom
, and produced by Joyce Washington for FM Rocks. It was filmed in various locations throughout Mexico, on April 2004, and features rapper Young Buck
appears in the video as her love interest.
The video follows the single's topic of a misunderstandings in a relationship, showing Monica as the girlfriend, with the boyfriend held in a Mexico hold-prison. With Monica getting help from a guy friend, her boyfriend's best friend sees them and thinks otherwise. Monica drives through the desert of Mexico to get him out of prison. The video ends with Monica and her boyfriend hugging at the end and going home together.
The "U Should've Known Better" video premiered worldwide on May 2004 at the end on BET's Access Granted. It charted well on several video-chart countdowns, including BET's
106 & Park
and MTV's
TRL
.
This was the introduction video of Monica with blond
hair. She continued it through the The Makings of Me
album point with video such as "Everytime tha Beat Drop
" and "A Dozen Roses (You Remind Me)".
chart, where it debuted at number 67 in the week of June 6, 2004, the second-highest debut of the week. The single remained twenty weeks on the chart, reaching its peak position of number 19 in its ninth week, making it the album's most successful release behind leading single "So Gone
" following the less successful chart performances of "Knock Knock
" and "Get It Off
."
Although never released on a CD single
or CD maxi single format, "U Should've Known Better" was also successful on Billboard´s component charts: The single reached number 6 on the Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Singles & Tracks (Monica's tenth non-consecutive top ten entry on that particular chart), as well as the top ten on the Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Airplay
and the top 20 on the Hot 100 Airplay
chart. It also appeared on the Rhythmic Top 40 at number 20.
"U Should've Known Better" was ranked #72 on Top Hot 100 Hits of 2004
.
Promotional single
7" single
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
R&B singer Monica. It was written by Monica, Jermaine Dupri
Jermaine Dupri
Jermaine Dupri Mauldin , known as Jermaine Dupri or JD, is an American record producer, songwriter and rapper.- Early life and career :...
and Harold Lilly and produced by Dupri for her original third studio album, All Eyez on Me
All Eyez on Me (Monica album)
All Eyez on Me is the third studio album by American singer Monica. Named after its leading single, the album was released by J Records on October 21, 2002 in Japan only, featuring production by Dallas Austin, Bryan Michael Cox, Jermaine Dupri, Rodney Jerkins, and Soulshock & Karlin among...
(2002), featuring additional production by Bryan Michael Cox
Bryan Michael Cox
Bryan-Michael Cox is a GRAMMY award winning American songwriter and record producer.-History:Bryan-Michael Cox was born in Miami and grew up in Houston, where he attended the High School for the Performing and Visual Arts. While in the eleventh grade he met and was mentored by Greg Curtis...
. As the album was retooled, the song was one out of five original records that were transferred into a new version, entitled After the Storm
After the Storm
After the Storm is the fourth studio album by American R&B singer Monica, released June 17, 2003, on J Records. Conceived from her abandoned project All Eyez on Me , it was recorded during 2001 to 2003 at Doppler Studios, Patchwerk Studios, and SouthSide Studios in Atlanta, Georgia, Soulpower...
(2003).
The song was released as the fourth and final single from After the Storm in May 2004. Monica's first balladic release in over five years, "U Should've Known Better" peaked at number 19 on the U.S. Billboard
Billboard (magazine)
Billboard is a weekly American magazine devoted to the music industry, and is one of the oldest trade magazines in the world. It maintains several internationally recognized music charts that track the most popular songs and albums in various categories on a weekly basis...
Hot 100 and number 6 on the Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Singles & Tracks chart, becoming the album's second-biggest single release.
Release and conception
Until its radio release in spring 2004 the single had to go through a lot of controversies. After "Knock Knock"s commercial failure in autumn 2003 it was uncertain if J RecordsJ Records
J Records was an American record label, owned and operated by Sony Music Entertainment, and was distributed through the RCA Music Group.-Company history:...
would decide to release another single from After The Storm at all. However, Monica proclaimed in several interviews, she was looking forward to release her duet with DMX
DMX (rapper)
Earl Simmons , better known by his stage name DMX, is a multiplatinum American rapper and actor who rose to fame in the late 1990s. His stage name pays tribute to the Oberheim DMX drum machine, an instrument he used when he made his own rap beats in the 80's...
, "Don't Gotta Go Home", as a final single, but first plans for a video were scrapped and the idea was dropped.
A half year later the All Eyez on Me leftover, "U Should've Known Better" was announced as the album's last official single. The sultry ballad was written by Monica, Harold Lilly and Jermaine Dupri
Jermaine Dupri
Jermaine Dupri Mauldin , known as Jermaine Dupri or JD, is an American record producer, songwriter and rapper.- Early life and career :...
, who was able to finalize the track with help from co-producer Bryan Michael Cox
Bryan Michael Cox
Bryan-Michael Cox is a GRAMMY award winning American songwriter and record producer.-History:Bryan-Michael Cox was born in Miami and grew up in Houston, where he attended the High School for the Performing and Visual Arts. While in the eleventh grade he met and was mentored by Greg Curtis...
. The lyrics deal with misunderstandings in a relationship, which conduce to doubts about love's veracity. Nonetheless Monica promises her man she'll stay with him, singing lines like: "It don't matter if you're up, matter if you're down, either way I'm gonna be around ..."
Music video
Benny Boom
Benny Boom is a music video director and current director of Gorilla Flix, Inc. He trained at Temple University's School of Radio, Television, & Film, and also served as a protégé of veteran director Little X and Hype Williams....
, and produced by Joyce Washington for FM Rocks. It was filmed in various locations throughout Mexico, on April 2004, and features rapper Young Buck
Young Buck
David Darnell Brown , also known as Young Buck, is an American Southern rapper. Buck is a former member of the New York City Hip-Hop group G-Unit, also a former artist of G-Unit Records as of Nov 26, 2011...
appears in the video as her love interest.
The video follows the single's topic of a misunderstandings in a relationship, showing Monica as the girlfriend, with the boyfriend held in a Mexico hold-prison. With Monica getting help from a guy friend, her boyfriend's best friend sees them and thinks otherwise. Monica drives through the desert of Mexico to get him out of prison. The video ends with Monica and her boyfriend hugging at the end and going home together.
The "U Should've Known Better" video premiered worldwide on May 2004 at the end on BET's Access Granted. It charted well on several video-chart countdowns, including BET's
Bet
Bet or BET may refer to:* A wager in gambling* Basic Economics Test * Bet , the second letter in many Semitic alphabets, including Aramaic, Hebrew, Phoenician and Syriac* Brunauer-Emmett-Teller isotherm. See BET_theory...
106 & Park
106 & Park
106 & Park is a Top Ten Hip-Hop and R&B music video show, set up in a countdown format, that airs weekdays at 6:00 PM on BET . Since its inception, it was the network's #1 rated show...
and MTV's
MTV
MTV, formerly an initialism of Music Television, is an American network based in New York City that launched on August 1, 1981. The original purpose of the channel was to play music videos guided by on-air hosts known as VJs....
TRL
Total Request Live
Total Request Live is a television series on MTV that featured popular music videos. TRL was MTV's prime outlet for music videos as the network continues to concentrate on reality-based programming. In addition to music videos, TRL featured daily guests...
.
This was the introduction video of Monica with blond
Blond
Blond or blonde or fair-hair is a hair color characterized by low levels of the dark pigment eumelanin. The resultant visible hue depends on various factors, but always has some sort of yellowish color...
hair. She continued it through the The Makings of Me
The Makings of Me
The Makings of Me is the fifth studio album by American singer Monica, released by J Records on October 3, 2006 in the United States and October 10, 2006 in Canada...
album point with video such as "Everytime tha Beat Drop
Everytime tha Beat Drop
"Everytime tha Beat Drop" is a song by American R&B singer Monica, composed by Johnta Austin, Jermaine Dupri, Robert Hill, Charles Hammond, Deangelo Hunt, James Phillips, and Dem Franchize Boyz for Monica's fifth studio album, The Makings of Me...
" and "A Dozen Roses (You Remind Me)".
Chart performance
Released as the album's fourth and final single in March 2004, "U Should've Known Better" opened as the Hot Shot Debut of the week at number 72 on the Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Singles & Tracks chart in the week of April 3, 2004. However, it took another three months until the song entered the U.S. Billboard Hot 100Billboard Hot 100
The Billboard Hot 100 is the United States music industry standard singles popularity chart issued weekly by Billboard magazine. Chart rankings are based on radio play and sales; the tracking-week for sales begins on Monday and ends on Sunday, while the radio play tracking-week runs from Wednesday...
chart, where it debuted at number 67 in the week of June 6, 2004, the second-highest debut of the week. The single remained twenty weeks on the chart, reaching its peak position of number 19 in its ninth week, making it the album's most successful release behind leading single "So Gone
So Gone
"So Gone" is a song by American R&B singer Monica. It was written by rapper-producer Missy Elliott, Kenneth Cunningham, and Jamahl Rye and co-produced by Elliott and duo Spike & Jamahl for Monica's fourth studio album After the Storm , incorporating a sample of the 1976 recording "You Are Number...
" following the less successful chart performances of "Knock Knock
Knock Knock (song)
"Knock Knock" is a song by American recording artist Monica. It was written and produced by Missy Elliott for Monica's fourth studio album After the Storm and contains excerpts from 1976's "It's a Terrible Thing to Waste Your Love" as written by Lee Hatim and performed by The Masqueraders...
" and "Get It Off
Get It Off
"Get It Off" is an R&B/hip hop song written by Craig Brockman, Missy Elliott, Herbert Jordan, and Steve Standard for Monica's fourth studio album, After the Storm . It was co-produced by Elliott and DJ Scratch and features uncredited guest vocals by rapper Dirtbag...
."
Although never released on a CD single
CD single
A CD single is a music single in the form of a standard size Compact Disc, not to be confused with the 3-inch CD single, which uses a smaller form factor. The format was introduced in the mid-1980s, but did not gain its place in the market until the early 1990s...
or CD maxi single format, "U Should've Known Better" was also successful on Billboard´s component charts: The single reached number 6 on the Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Singles & Tracks (Monica's tenth non-consecutive top ten entry on that particular chart), as well as the top ten on the Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Airplay
Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Airplay
The Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Airplay chart is the airplay component chart of the Billboard Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Singles & Tracks chart. It is not the R&B subset of The Hot 100 Airplay, but rather a separate panel of R&B stations in urban markets used for the R&B/Hip-Hop chart...
and the top 20 on the Hot 100 Airplay
Hot 100 Airplay
The Hot 100 Airplay chart is a chart released weekly by Billboard magazine in the United States. It measures radio airplay, and is one of the three component charts, along with the Hot Singles Sales and the Hot Digital Songs charts, that determine the chart positions of singles on the Billboard...
chart. It also appeared on the Rhythmic Top 40 at number 20.
"U Should've Known Better" was ranked #72 on Top Hot 100 Hits of 2004
Top Hot 100 Hits of 2004
This is a list of Billboard magazine's Top Hot 100 songs of 2004.-See also:*2004 in music*List of Hot 100 number-one singles of 2004...
.
Formats and tracklistings
These are the formats and track listings of major single-releases of "U Should've Known Better."Promotional single
- "U Should've Known Better" (radio edit) - 4:17
- "U Should've Known Better" (radio edit without guitar) - 4:17
- "U Should've Known Better" (instrumental) - 4:45
- "U Should've Known Better" (call out hook) - 0:10
7" single
- "U Should've Known Better" (extended version) - 4:34
- "U Should've Known Better" (DIO club mix) - 7:11
- "U Should've Known Better" (DIO radio mix) - 3:58
- "U Should've Known Better" (Bass/Fonseca mixshow) - 5:39
- "U Should've Known Better" (Gomi & Escape remix) - 3:41
Credits and personnel
- Lead vocals: Monica Arnold
- Background vocals: Monica Arnold
- MixingAudio mixing (recorded music)In audio recording, audio mixing is the process by which multiple recorded sounds are combined into one or more channels, most commonly two-channel stereo. In the process, the source signals' level, frequency content, dynamics, and panoramic position are manipulated and effects such as reverb may...
- Phil Tan, Jermaine Dupri- Assisted by John Horesco IV
- GuitarGuitarThe guitar is a plucked string instrument, usually played with fingers or a pick. The guitar consists of a body with a rigid neck to which the strings, generally six in number, are attached. Guitars are traditionally constructed of various woods and strung with animal gut or, more recently, with...
: William Odum - Recorded by Brian Frye at SouthSide Studios, Atlanta, GeorgiaAtlanta, GeorgiaAtlanta is the capital and most populous city in the U.S. state of Georgia. According to the 2010 census, Atlanta's population is 420,003. Atlanta is the cultural and economic center of the Atlanta metropolitan area, which is home to 5,268,860 people and is the ninth largest metropolitan area in...
- Assisted by Tadd Mingo, Javier Valeverde
- MasteredMaster recordingA multitrack recording master tape, disk or computer files on which productions are developed for later mixing, is known as the multi-track master, while the tape, disk or computer files holding a mix is called a mixed master.It is standard practice to make a copy of a master recording, known as...
by Tom Coyne
Weekly charts
| Chart (2004) | Peak position |
|---|
Year-end charts
| Chart (2004) | Position |
|---|---|
| US Billboard Hot 100 | 72 |
| US Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs (Billboard) | 29 |
External links
- Monica.com — official Monica site
- Monica music videos — watch "U Should've Known Better" at LAUNCHcast