"Down with the Clique" is a song recorded by American singer

Aaliyah Aaliyah Dana Haughton (; January 16, 1979 – August 25, 2001) was an American singer and actress. She has been credited for helping to redefine contemporary R&B, pop and hip hop, earning her the nicknames the "Princess of R&B" and " ...

for her debut studio album '' Age Ain't Nothing but a Number'' (1994). It was written and produced by

R. Kelly Robert Sylvester Kelly (born January 8, 1967) is an American singer, songwriter, record producer, and sex offender convicted of racketeering and multiple sex offenses. During his recording career, Kelly sold over 75 million records worldwid ...

. The song was released as the fourth single from ''Age Ain't Nothing but a Number'' exclusively in the United Kingdom on May 1, 1995, by Blackground Records and

Jive Records Jive Records was an American independent record label founded by Clive Calder in 1981 as a subsidiary to the Zomba Group. In the US, the label had offices in New York City and Chicago. Jive was best known for its successes with hip hop, R&B, an ...

. "Down with the Clique" was met with mixed reviews from music critics, who praised Aaliyah's vocal delivery on the song but dismissed its lyrical content. A moderate commercial success, the song peaked at number 33 on the

UK Singles Chart The UK Singles Chart (currently titled Official Singles Chart, with the upper section more commonly known as the Official UK Top 40) is compiled by the Official Charts Company (OCC), on behalf of the British record industry, listing the top-s ...

, becoming Aaliyah's fourth consecutive top-40 single in the United Kingdom.

Recording and production

While recording "Down with the Clique", Aaliyah developed an interest in producing, and she watched and helped

develop the song. She said: "When we were recording 'Down With the Clique', I watched how Robert ellylaid the

drums A drum kit (also called a drum set, trap set, or simply drums) is a collection of drums, cymbals, and other Percussion instrument, auxiliary percussion instruments set up to be played by one person. The player (drummer) typically holds a pair o ...

and everything. He taught me to play the

piano The piano is a stringed keyboard instrument in which the strings are struck by wooden hammers that are coated with a softer material (modern hammers are covered with dense wool felt; some early pianos used leather). It is played using a keyboa ...

a bit, and I'm also trying to learn the mixing board, though it looks complicated. The studio is my first love."

Music and lyrics

"Down with the Clique" is a hip hop-influenced song on which Aaliyah displays a "silky cooing" with her vocals. In his autobiography ''Aaliyah'' (2021) author Tim Footman said the song was "macho hip-hop posturing over a cheesy, pseudo–Caribbean rhythm track". In February 1995, British producers Mafia & Fluxy produced a

reggae Reggae () is a music genre that originated in Jamaica in the late 1960s. The term also denotes the modern popular music of Jamaica and its diaspora. A 1968 single by Toots and the Maytals, " Do the Reggay" was the first popular song to use ...

remix of the song. Lyrically, the song sees her committing to a "junior-

gangsta Gangsta may refer to: Urban culture * Gangsta rap, a subgenre of hip hop music that evolved from hardcore hip hop and purports to reflect urban crime and the violent lifestyles of inner-city youths * Gangster, a member of a gang * Hip hop fashi ...

persona" with lines such as "Well now I guess it's time for me to wreck shop". Footman analyzed the lyrics explaining that, "Kelly's egomania really goes to town here, as Aaliyah entreats, 'all the dolls in the house' to recognize how cool her mentor/songwriter/producer truly is".

YardBarker Yardbarker is a digital media property focused on the publishing of sports and entertainment news and information. Founded in 2006, the property distributes content on Yardbarker.com, social media platforms and via third party syndication partne ...

said the lyrics were about "finding out which friends are true blue", and that Aaliyah was "adamant about finding out who's really down to support her".

Critical reception

Kenneth Partridge from ''

Billboard A billboard (also called a hoarding in the UK and many other parts of the world) is a large outdoor advertising structure (a billing board), typically found in high-traffic areas such as alongside busy roads. Billboards present large advertise ...

'' gave "Down with the Clique" a mixed review, saying Aaliyah sounded unnatural singing lines such as "I guess it's time for me to wreck shop" and that the song was too much like an R. Kelly song, but described Aaliyah's performance as "adorable".

James Masterton James Masterton (born 2 September 1973) is a music writer and columnist, his work focusing on the UK Singles Chart having been an online fixture on various sites since the 1990s. Masterton is also a producer for talkSPORT, and has worked on air ...

wrote in his weekly UK chart commentary,"Why do Americans pronounce it to rhyme with 'stick'? Its 'cleek' as everyone here knows it which perhaps unfairly makes for rather grating listening as Aaliyah croons her way through her fourth UK hit." Bianca Gracie from

Fuse Fuse or FUSE may refer to: Devices * Fuse (electrical), a device used in electrical systems to protect against excessive current ** Fuse (automotive), a class of fuses for vehicles * Fuse (hydraulic), a device used in hydraulic systems to protect ...

felt that Aaliyah was embodying an "effortless swagger that guys twice her age could only dream of having", also praising Aaliyah's "mellow" and "deep" vocal performance. Nakita Rathod from

HotNewHipHop ''HotNewHipHop (HNHH)'' is an online publication that covers daily news about hip hop and pop culture, including streetwear, sports, and sneakers. In addition to its editorial content, HotNewHipHop also produces the video serieses; ''How to Roll ...

mentioned that despite the controversy surrounding Aaliyah's debut album, she was still able to be a young, free teenager with songs like "Down with the Clique".

MTV.com MTV (Originally an initialism of Music Television) is an American cable channel that launched on August 1, 1981. Based in New York City, it serves as the flagship property of the MTV Entertainment Group, part of Paramount Media Networks, a di ...

felt that "Down With The Clique" was one of the album's highlights, along with "At Your Best (You Are Love)," "Young Nation," and "Age Ain't Nothing But A Number". The ''

New Sunday Times The ''New Straits Times'' is an English-language newspaper published in Malaysia. It is Malaysia's oldest newspaper still in print (though not the first), having been founded as ''The Straits Times'' on 15 July 1845. It was relaunched as the ' ...

'' said the song was a "shout out from Aaliyah to her friends at the mall hangouts." In a review for ''Age Ain't Nothing but a Number'', Tonya Pendleton from ''

The Washington Post ''The Washington Post'' (also known as the ''Post'' and, informally, ''WaPo'') is an American daily newspaper published in Washington, D.C. It is the most widely circulated newspaper within the Washington metropolitan area and has a large nati ...

'' praised the production of the song by saying: "Kelly's hip-hop inserts provide a funky contrast that carries over to "Throw Your Hands Up" and "Down With the Clique", all paeans to the fun-loving good times of adolescence".

Commercial performance

"Down with the Clique" was released as the fourth UK single from ''Age Ain't Nothing but a Number''. It peaked at number 33 on the

dated May 13, 1995. The song also peaked at number five on the

UK R&B Singles Chart The UK Hip Hop and R&B Singles Chart and the UK Hip Hop and R&B Albums Chart (also known as The Official UK Hip Hop and R&B Charts, the Top 40 Hip Hop and RnB Singles and the Top 40 Hip Hop and RnB Albums, or simply the UK Urban Chart) are 40-posi ...

, and at number 25 on the

UK Dance Singles Chart The UK Dance Singles Chart and the UK Dance Albums Chart are music charts compiled in the United Kingdom by the Official Charts Company from sales of songs in the dance music genre (e.g. house, trance, drum and bass, garage, synthpop) in record s ...

, both on May 7.

Track listings and formats

UK 12-inch vinyl # "Down with the Clique" (Madhouse Mix Radio Edit I) – 3:10 # "Down with the Clique" (Madhouse Mix) (instrumental) – 3:13 # "Down with the Clique" (Dancehall Mix) – 3:30 # "Down with the Clique" (Madhouse Mix Radio Edit II) – 3:28 UK maxi CD single # "Down with the Clique" (Madhouse Mix Radio Edit I) (no chat) – 3:01 # "Down with the Clique" (album version) – 3:24 # "Down with the Clique" (Dancehall Mix) – 3:30 # "Down with the Clique" (Madhouse Mix Radio Edit II) – 3:28 # "Down with the Clique" (Madhouse Mix) (instrumental) – 3:13

Charts

Release history

References

Bibliography

* {{authority control 1994 songs 1995 singles Aaliyah songs Songs written by R. Kelly Song recordings produced by R. Kelly Blackground Records singles Reggae fusion songs