Whenever I Say Your Name
"Whenever I Say Your Name" | ||||
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Single by Sting & Mary J. Blige | ||||
from the album Sacred Love and Love & Life | ||||
Released | November 2003[1][2] | |||
Length | 5:25 | |||
Label | ||||
Songwriter(s) | Sting | |||
Producer(s) |
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Sting singles chronology | ||||
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Mary J. Blige singles chronology | ||||
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Music video | ||||
"Sting - Whenever I Say Your Name (Official Music Video) ft. Mary J. Blige" on YouTube |
"Whenever I Say Your Name" is a duet by English musician Sting and American singer Mary J. Blige. Written by Sting and produced by him along with Mark "Kipper" Eldridge, it served as the second single from Sting's seventh studio album Sacred Love (2003). It was not originally included on Blige's sixth studio album Love & Life (2003) but was later added to the album's international re-release.
Background
"Whenever I Say Your Name" was written and produced by Sting for his seventh studio album Sacred Love (2003).[3] Production was helmed by Sting and Mark "Kipper" Eldridge.[3] The singer felt inspired to work with Blige ever since they performed together on the 1997 MTV Video Music Awards. In 2003, he told LAUNCHcast: "I was totally blown away by her passionate, open singing [...] I had decided on that night that I'd love to write a song for her one day, and I came up with this idea of "Whenever I Say Your Name" – that's perfect for her, you know? It's very romantic. It also has a kind of religious component – you know, she's very churchy in the way she sings."[4]
Critical reception
Alan Light from
Music video
A music video for "Whenever I Say Your Name" was directed by frequent Sting collaborator Jim Gable.[7]
Track listings
All tracks written by Sting.[8]
4:03 | |||
3. | "Whenever I Say Your Name" (Salaam's Groove mix) |
| 4:48 |
---|---|---|---|
4. | "Whenever I Say Your Name" (Billy Mann mix) |
| 3:53 |
Notes
- ^[a] denotes remix producer
Credits and personnel
Credits adapted from the liner notes of Sacred Love.[3]
- Mary J. Blige – vocals
- Kipper – producer
- Simon Osborn – engineer
- Sting – producer, vocals, writer
Charts
Chart (2004) | Peak position |
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Belgium (Ultratip Bubbling Under Wallonia)[9] | 6 |
Netherlands (Single Top 100)[10] | 60 |
Switzerland (Schweizer Hitparade)[11] | 50 |
60 |
References
- ^ "Sting singles". Sting.com. Retrieved 4 March 2024.
- ^ "Sacred Love release date". Discogs. Retrieved 21 December 2023.
- ^ a b c Sacred Love (Media notes). Sting. A&M Records. 2003.
{{cite AV media notes}}
: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link) - ^ a b Light, Alan (24 August 2003). "Lost and found". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved 4 March 2024.
- ^ Sinclair, Tom (3 October 2003). "Sacred Love". Entertainment Weekly. Retrieved 4 March 2024.
- ^ Baechle, Alexander (15 March 2021). "ALBUM REVIEW: Sting brings out the best in his guests on 'Duets'". riffmagazine.com. Retrieved 4 March 2024.
- .
- ^ a b "Whenever I Say Your Name – CD Single". Discogs. Retrieved 4 March 2024.
- Ultratip. Retrieved 1 May 2022.
- ^ "Sting & Mary J Blige – Whenever I Say Your Name" (in Dutch). Single Top 100. Retrieved 3 January 2013.
- ^ "Sting & Mary J Blige – Whenever I Say Your Name". Swiss Singles Chart. Retrieved 3 January 2013.
- ^ "Sting & Mary J Blige: Artist Chart History". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 23 May 2012.