"Love @ 1st Sight" is a song by American singer Mary J. Blige, performed along with rapper Method Man. It was written by Blige, Sean Combs, Mario Winans, Stevie Jordan, Clifford Smith, and Mechalie Jamison and produced by Combs, Winans and Jordan for her sixth studio album, Love & Life (2003). The song is built around a sample of "Hot Sex" (1992) by American hip-hop trio A Tribe Called Quest. Due to the inclusion of the sample, several other writers are credited as songwriters. Lyrically, it features the protagonist persistently wondering about a romantic attraction for a stranger on the first sight.
The song was released as the album's lead single in the second quarter of 2003. A moderate commercial success, it reached number 22 on the US
Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Singles & Tracks chart. In addition, the song charted within the top 20 in Italy and the United Kingdom, while reaching the majority on most other charts it appeared on. The radio edit of "Love @ 1st Sight" with intro was used for the accompanying music video, which was directed by Chris Robinson
.
Critical reception
BET.com wrote of the song: "With a borrowed rap backdrop and a verse from Method Man, her old "You're All I Need to Get By" partner-in-crime, this song skillfully updated the pair's hip hop-soul heyday for the new millennium."[3]Now called a "strong street track" as well as a "killer lead single."[4]
Alexis Petridis, writing for
New York Times editor Jessica Willis described "Love @ 1st Sight" as "a breezy bit of piffle with a solid pogo-ing beat, but the song has seemingly so little to do with Ms. Blige's actual life that she puts herself at risk of sounding like just another tawny, toned and wholesome girl hip-hop singer."[6]Dallas Observer critic Walton Muyumba found that the song was a "cliché, but the sample helps push to the truth of her reaction."[7]
Music video
A music video for "Love @ 1st Sight" was directed by
Lady Foot Locker commercial in which "Love @ 1st Sight" is played in the background.[8] Filming took place in Hollywood on July 2, 2003.[9] Method Man appears in it, while Sean "Diddy" Combs makes a special cameo appearance. An iPod is featured prominently at the beginning of video, an instance of paid-for product placement on the part of Apple Inc.[10][11]