"I Should Have Cheated" is a song by

American American(s) may refer to: * American, something of, from, or related to the United States of America, commonly known as the "United States" or "America" ** Americans, citizens and nationals of the United States of America ** American ancestry, pe ...

recording artist Keyshia Cole. It was written by

112 112 may refer to: *112 (number), the natural number following 111 and preceding 113 *112 (band), an American R&B quartet from Atlanta, Georgia **112 (album), ''112'' (album), album from the band of the same name *112 (emergency telephone number), t ...

members Daron Jones and Quinnes "Q" Parker for her debut album, '' The Way It Is'' (2005), while production was helmed by Jones along with Ron Fair. The song was released on August 3, 2005 as the album's third single, following "

I Changed My Mind "I Changed My Mind" is a song by American R&B recording artist Keyshia Cole, recorded for her debut album, ''The Way It Is'' (2005). It was written by the singer along with John Legend and Kanye West, while production on the track was helmed by t ...

" and "

(I Just Want It) To Be Over "(I Just Want It) To Be Over" is a song by American singer Keyshia Cole. It was written by the singer along with Alicia Keys, Taniesha Smith, and Kerry "Krucial" Brothers for her debut album, '' The Way It Is'' (2005). Production on the song was ...

." It rose to number four on US ''

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''s

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chart and number 30 on the US ''Billboard'' Hot 100. Its

music video A music video is a video of variable duration, that integrates a music song or a music album with imagery that is produced for promotion (marketing), promotional or musical artistic purposes. Modern music videos are primarily made and used as a m ...

made it to the top five on ''

106 and Park ''106 & Park'' is an American hip hop and R&B music video show, set up in a countdown format, that was broadcast on weekdays at 6:00 pm ET/5:00 pm CT on BET; it aired on a one-day delay on BET International. It was the network's highest- rate ...

'' and remained there for 46 days.

Background

"I Should Have Cheated" was written by Daron Jones and

Quinnes Parker 112 (pronounced "one-twelve") is an American R&B group from Atlanta, Georgia. Formerly artists on Bad Boy Records, the group signed to the Def Soul roster in 2002. They had great success from the late 1990s into the early 2000s with hits such as ...

, members of the R&B group

. The song is about a girl who suspects her boyfriend of cheating, but he also accuses her of the same; since she was not cheating, she thinks that she should have cheated on him. Originally recorded by and for R&B singer Nivea for her 2005 second album, '' Complicated'', it was eventually handed over to Cole. When asked about how the song ended on her album, Cole elaborated in an interview with ''

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'' that "Daron did a song with

Kelly Price Kelly Cherelle Price (born April 4, 1973) is an American R&B and gospel singer. She started her singing career in 1992. Price originally garnered attention by singing backing vocals for Mariah Carey on multiple songs, including her ''Billboa ...

that I was a big fan of ..So I saw him at a video shoot one day and asked if I could work with him. I don't think it was really in my budget, but he got paid eventually, and it all worked out, which is great 'cause a lot of people like that don't work with new artists. So it was a blessing to actually work with him."

Chart performance

The single entered the US ''Billboard'' Hot 100 at number 85 and slowly moved up the charts, eventually peaking at number 30. "I Should Have Cheated" was a success in the

urban community A residential community is a community, usually a small town or city, that is composed mostly of residents, as opposed to commercial businesses and/or industrial facilities, all three of which are considered to be the three main types of occ ...

, peaking at number 4 in the

chart, and charted on the Hot Dance Club Play chart at number 11.

Live performances

On October 26, 2005, Cole was announced as a performer at the second annual 2005 Vibe Awards. In November, Cole performed "I Should Have Cheated" at the 2005 Vibe Awards, which was where she was nominated for three awards and went home with only one (the ''Next Award'' alongside rapper Young Jeezy) and it marked her first ever career award and nominations. Cole's performance of the song became a fan-favorite and was praised by critics, being described as "show-stopping" and "ghetto-fabulous" and also gained head nods from the famous audience members, most particularly Cole's idol

Mary J. Blige Mary Jane Blige ( ; born January 11, 1971) is an American singer, songwriter, and actress. Often referred to as the " Queen of Hip-Hop Soul" and " Queen of R&B", Blige has won nine Grammy Awards, a Primetime Emmy Award, four American Music Award ...

Music video

Cole reunited with

Benny Boom Benny Douglas (born July 22, 1971), professionally known as Benny Boom, is an American director who has worked in music, television, and film. His most commercially successful film was the 2017 Tupac Shakur biopic ''All Eyez on Me''. Career Do ...

, director of her previous music video for "

," to film a visual for "I Should Have Cheated." Rapper Chink Santana is featured as Cole's boyfriend in the video. Rapper and friends

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as well as writer Daron Jones and Quinnes Parker also make appearances. In the clip, Cole finds bits of evidence that show her what her man is up to, because of various

cell phone A mobile phone, cellular phone, cell phone, cellphone, handphone, hand phone or pocket phone, sometimes shortened to simply mobile, cell, or just phone, is a portable telephone that can make and receive calls over a radio frequency link whil ...

messages and movie stubs. As it unfolds, the video periodically cuts to Cole in a recording studio with 112's Daron and Q. When she confronts her boyfriend, he claims that she is the one who is cheating. Since she was faithful in the relationship, Keyshia deems that she should have cheated.

Track listings

Notes * signifies an additional producer

Credits and personnel

Credits adapted from the liner notes of ''The Way It Is''. *Charlie Bisharat – violin *Keyshia Cole – arranger, vocals * Ron Fair – instruments, mixing engineer, producer *Tal Herzberg – nass, protools, engineer * Daron Jones – producer, writer *Quinnes "Q" Parker – writer

Charts

Weekly charts

Year-end charts

References

{{authority control 2005 singles Keyshia Cole songs Music videos directed by Benny Boom Contemporary R&B ballads 2005 songs A&M Records singles Songs written by Daron Jones Songs about infidelity 2000s ballads Songs written by Quinnes Parker