Family Affair (Mary J. Blige song)

Background

Dr. Dre created an initial version of the musical portion of "Family Affair" in studio on September 13, 2000, using a bass player and a keyboard player. His studio engineers entitled this version of the song "Fragile" for record-keeping purposes. The instrumental was originally created with Rakim in mind, for use on his then upcoming Aftermath album Oh, My God; however, Rakim ultimately turned it down and the album was never released. Near the end of 2000, Dr. Dre sent Mary J. Blige the instrumental track, after she heard it and decided she wanted to write to it.

Blige recorded vocals over the music based on lyrics penned by Bruce Miller, Camara Kambon and Mike Elizondo. Several weeks later, on January 10, 2001, a near-final but non-lyrical portion of "Fragile" was transferred from digital to analog format and renamed "Family Affair". In late May or early June 2001, at Dr. Dre's suggestion, Blige added a bridge to the song, for which she alone crafted the lyrics. A remix featuring rappers Jadakiss and Fabolous appears on the US CD single.

Composition

Sheet music for "Family Affair" sets the key of G minor with a moderate tempo of 94 beats per minute. The song follows a chord progression Cm–Gm7–Cm–Gm7, and the vocals span from G3 to B4.

Critical reception

"Family Affair" received critical acclaim. Alexis Petridis from The Guardian declared the song one "of the all-time great pop-R&B party bangers. Everything about "Family Affair" is perfection: Dr Dre’s simple but devastatingly effective production; Blige’s economical, understated vocal; the fact that every melody line sounds like a hook." Billboard critic Chuck Taylor called "Family Affair" a "finger-poppin' jam" as well as a "smash waiting to happen." He found that "[Blige] sashays over Dr. Dre's muscular funk groove with notable confident ease. She's not even breaking a sweat by screaming big, overblown notes; rather she opts for an authoritative, guttural growl that is countered by layers of sleek, deep-voiced harmonies." Sal Cinquemani, writing for Slant Magazine, remarked that "the song is the latest in a recent slew of club-ready superstar anthems, celebrating the joy and unity of dance. "Let’s get crunk ‘cause Mary’s back," she sings. Mary’s back, indeed, in full form for the first time since 1997’s Share My World."

Da'Shan Smith from uDiscoverMusic found that "Family Affair "was a "reminder that [Blige] could still get down" and that "she started a new era that summer by inviting fans to her dancerie and reminding them they "don’t need no hateration, holleration," over Dr. Dre’s G-Funk production." Stereogum editor Tom Breihan noted that Dr. Dre's "beat is an absolute product of its time, and it also sounds like it’s always existed. The track hits hard, all churning strings and booming drum-sounds and the staccato pianos that Dre loved at the time. It sounds expensive and somehow warlike — the type of thing that should soundtrack a movie scene of military forces mobilizing. In its majestic stomp, "Family Affair" sounds vaguely stressful." Entertainment Weeklys Craig Seymour wrote: "Lyrically, the song celebrates such party virtues as dressing up and hitting the dance floor. But Blige’s bluesy vocal grit adds depth to the track, hinting at the everyday hardships that make partying so rejuvenating and worthwhile." BET.com wrote of the song: "This momentous Dr. Dre-produced banger may have been the first time that Mary really let her hair down and just had fun (you'd have to be having fun to come up with words like "dancery" and "hateration")." Vibe found that "Family Affair" combines a "funky mix of R&B and hip-hop as well as some interesting vocabulary with listeners being told about a "dancery" where "holleration" and "hateration" would not be tolerated."

Music video

The accompanying music video was directed by Dave Meyers. The video begins with Blige at a nightclub, wearing skin-revealing outfits. The video was filmed at a nightclub in 2001.

Live performances

On September 6, 2012, Blige performed the song at the last night of the Democratic National Convention in Charlotte, North Carolina. Ten years later, she also performed it in the Super Bowl LVI halftime show.

Track listings

Credits and personnel

Credits are taken from the No More Drama album booklet.

Studios

• Recorded at Record One (Sherman Oaks, California) and Quad Recording Studios (Manhattan, New York)
• Mixed at Record One (Sherman Oaks, California)
• Mastered at The Hit Factory (New York City)

Personnel

• Mary J. Blige – writing, all vocals
• Bruce Miller – writing
• Dr. Dre – writing (as Andre Young), production, mixing
• Camara Kambon – writing, keyboards
• Mike Elizondo – writing, bass
• Mauricio "Veto" Iragorri – engineering
• Chris Ribando – engineering
• Tom Sweeney – assistant engineering
• Kin Bengoa – assistant engineering
• Larry Chatman – project coordination
• Herb Powers – mastering

Charts

Weekly charts

Year-end charts

Decade-end charts

All-time charts

Certifications

Release history

References

References

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