"Lemme See" is a song by American singer-songwriter

Usher Usher may refer to: Several jobs which originally involved directing people and ensuring people are in the correct place: * Usher (occupation) ** Church usher ** Wedding usher, one of the male attendants to the groom in a wedding ceremony ** F ...

, released through

RCA Records RCA Records is an American record label currently owned by Sony Music Entertainment, a subsidiary of Sony Corporation of America. It is one of Sony Music's four flagship labels, alongside RCA's former long-time rival Columbia Records; also ...

, as the third single from his seventh studio album ''

Looking 4 Myself ''Looking 4 Myself'' is the seventh studio album by American singer Usher. It was released on June 8, 2012, by RCA Records; it is Usher's first album for RCA after the October 2011 merger of the Jive Records group which also included his label, ...

'' (2012). The track features vocals from rapper

Rick Ross William Leonard Roberts II (born January 28, 1976), known professionally as Rick Ross, is an American rapper. Prior to releasing his debut single, "Hustlin'", in 2006, Ross was the subject of a bidding war, receiving offers from Diddy's Bad ...

. It was written by Usher, Eric Bellinger,

Jim Jonsin James Gregory Scheffer (born June 8, 1970), professionally known as Jim Jonsin, is an American record producer, songwriter, businessman and DJ from South Florida. Jonsin has collaborated with numerous artists, including Beyoncé, Kelly Rowland, ...

, Danny Morris, Nickolas Marzouca and Lundon Knighten with its production helmed by Jonsin and Morris. It was digitally released on May 4, 2012 and sent to

urban radio Urban contemporary music, also known as urban music, hip hop, urban pop, or just simply urban, is a music radio format. The term was coined by New York radio DJ Frankie Crocker in the early to mid-1970s as a synonym for Black music. Urban conte ...

on May 8, 2012. "Lemme See" is a

mid-tempo In musical terminology, tempo (Italian, 'time'; plural ''tempos'', or ''tempi'' from the Italian plural) is the speed or pace of a given piece. In classical music, tempo is typically indicated with an instruction at the start of a piece (often ...

R&B song that makes heavy use of

synthesizers A synthesizer (also spelled synthesiser) is an electronic musical instrument that generates audio signals. Synthesizers typically create sounds by generating waveforms through methods including subtractive synthesis, additive synthesis a ...

. Its lyrics depict Usher contemplating on what he is going to do when he "gets a certain female clubgoer into his bedroom". The song peaked at number 46 on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100. It has also reached number two on the

Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs The Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart ranks the most popular R&B and hip hop songs in the United States and is published weekly by '' Billboard''. Rankings are based on a measure of radio airplay, sales data, and streaming activity. The chart had 100 ...

chart, the second single from ''Looking 4 Myself'' to peak in the top three on the chart, following its lead single "

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". Internationally "Lemme See" reached number six on the South Korea Gaon International Chart, number 88 on the

French Singles Chart French (french: français(e), link=no) may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to France ** French language, which originated in France, and its various dialects and accents ** French people, a nation and ethnic group identified with France ...

and number ninety 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 ...

. The song's music video was directed by

Philip Andelman Philip Andelman is an American music video director and photographer. Andelman has directed music videos for many notable artists, see below. He has received nominations for his works from the MVPA, VMAs, and CMT awards including MVPA Director o ...

, and shows Usher inside his estate with his love interest in several risqué scenes. Usher performed the song live during the 2012 iTunes Festival.

Release and composition

"Lemme See" was digitally released on May 4, 2012 as the third single from Usher's seventh studio album ''Looking 4 Myself'', following " Scream". The following week, on May 8, 2012 "Lemme See" was released to

SoundCloud SoundCloud is an online audio distribution platform and music sharing website that enables its users to upload, promote, and share audio. Founded in 2007 by Alexander Ljung and Eric Wahlforss, SoundCloud is one of the largest music streaming se ...

. On the same day, it was sent to

and on May 22, to

rhythmic radio Rhythmic contemporary, also known as Rhythmic Top 40, Rhythmic CHR or rhythmic crossover, is a primarily American music-radio format that includes a mix of EDM, upbeat rhythmic pop, hip hop and upbeat R&B hits. Rhythmic contemporary never uses h ...

. "Lemme See" is a

R&B song that heavily incorporates

, and has a running duration of four minutes and 15 seconds. It contains elements of hip hop music, and its production was compared to the one in

Kelly Rowland Kelendria Trene Rowland (born February 11, 1981) is an American singer, actress, and television personality. She rose to fame in the late 1990s as a member of Destiny's Child, one of the world's best-selling girl groups of all time. During the g ...

's "

Motivation Motivation is the reason for which humans and other animals initiate, continue, or terminate a behavior at a given time. Motivational states are commonly understood as forces acting within the agent that create a disposition to engage in goal-dire ...

" (2011). Lyrically, Usher is contemplating on what he is going to do when he "gets a certain female clubgoer into his bedroom", in the line: Hey girl, I'm debating if I should take you home. During the pre-chorus, he comes to the conclusion: I decided to take my shirt off / and show my chest.

Critical reception

The Observer ''The Observer'' is a British newspaper published on Sundays. It is a sister paper to ''The Guardian'' and '' The Guardian Weekly'', whose parent company Guardian Media Group Limited acquired it in 1993. First published in 1791, it is the ...

'' Killian Fox called the song a hit. Andy Kellman of

AllMusic AllMusic (previously known as All Music Guide and AMG) is an American online database, online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on Musical artist, musicians and Music ...

described the track as "a slithering, low-slung jam" noting it as one of Usher's best songs and a stand-out from ''Looking 4 Myself''.Kellman, Andy. "Usher - Looking 4 Myself"

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. Retrieved on June 10, 2012. DJ Booth commended its production, writing that it contains "sultry, slow-burning synth grooves". Erika Ramirez of ''

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 adverti ...

'' also praised the song's production, calling it "seductive" while showing a positive response to

' verse. Several other reviewers showed similar responses to Ross' appearance on "Lemme See", including Sobhi Youssef of

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who noted it as a "welcome" surprise. The ''

Los Angeles Times The ''Los Angeles Times'' (abbreviated as ''LA Times'') is a daily newspaper that started publishing in Los Angeles in 1881. Based in the LA-adjacent suburb of El Segundo since 2018, it is the sixth-largest newspaper by circulation in the ...

'' Randall Roberts wrote that the song "finds its groove when Rick Ross parks his

Lamborghini Automobili Lamborghini S.p.A. () is an Italian brand and manufacturer of luxury sports cars and SUVs based in Sant'Agata Bolognese. The company is owned by the Volkswagen Group through its subsidiary Audi. Ferruccio Lamborghini (1916–19 ...

on the track’s lawn for a cameo". By contrast,

BBC Music BBC Music is responsible for the music played across the BBC. The current director of music is Bob Shennan, who is also the controller of BBC Radio 2, BBC Radio 6 Music, and the BBC Asian Network. Officially it is a part of the BBC's Radio ...

's Natalie Shaw disapproved of Rick Ross' verse, saying that it consists of "tasteless mentions of Trayvon Martin".

Chart performance

Due to digital downloads, "Lemme See" entered the singles chart in South Korea. It debuted on the South Korea Gaon International Chart at number ten on May 27, 2012, with sales of 17,445 digital copies. The following week, it rose to number six, selling a further 19,632 copies. In its third week, with the release of ''

'' in South Korea, it sold 10,914 units and was charted at number 18. In its fourth week, "Lemme See" dropped 23 positions to number 41, with 5,493 digital copies sold. It was knocked off the chart the proceeding week. In the US, "Lemme See" peaked below the top 40 on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100, peaking at number 46. The song peaked at number two on the

chart, and remained in the top five for eleven weeks. In the UK, following the release of ''

'', the song entered and peaked at number ninety on the week of June 23, 2012. It also reached number 21 on the UK R&B chart. In

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...

, the song entered and peaked at number 88, while dropping to number 110 the following the week before dropping off the chart in its third week.

Music video and live performances

The official

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 promotional or musical artistic purposes. Modern music videos are primarily made and used as a music marketing devic ...

for "Lemme See" was released on June 14, 2012, and was directed by

. The video opens with a close-up of Usher's estate, and a woman bound by ropes. Usher is stood by a swimming pool singing the first verse, with the pool reflecting on him. During the pre-chorus, Usher is leaning against a wall while pulling up his top to reveal his chest. Entering the chorus, the video intercuts to Usher preparing drinks for himself and the tied up woman– his love interest. With the second verse, Usher is admiring his still tied up love interest. In the second pre-chorus, leaned against a wall Usher removes his shirt, while the video intercuts to him approaching his love interest to make love. Entering

' verse, Ross is sat down shirtless, accompanied by two women sat by him left and right. Touching Ross' back, their tattoos transfer on to Ross and bloom. Him and Usher are both by a pool with Ross performing his rap, while in an intercut scene Usher's love interest is being released from her tied up predicament. In the final chorus, Usher and his love interest make love in a risqué scene, with both their tattoos moving and blooming on to each other in a similar way to Ross' scene. This alternates with the latter scene, Usher leaned against the wall and him and Ross by the pool, with Usher singing the verse. The video ends with Ross and Usher echoing the song's title. American magazine ''

Rap-Up ''Rap-Up'' is a magazine launched in 2001 by founder Devin Lazerine. The publication was originally a website devoted to hip hop, until Lazerine decided to pitch the possibility of a magazine to several publishers. The magazine is focused on the ...

'' praised the music video, calling it "seductive" while ''

'' David Greenwald compared it to Barbadian singer

Rihanna Robyn Rihanna Fenty ( ; born February 20, 1988) is a Barbadian singer, actress, and businesswoman. Born in Saint Michael and raised in Bridgetown, Barbados, Rihanna auditioned for American record producer Evan Rogers who invited her to th ...

's " S&M", and noted parts of "Lemme See"'s video as "less edgy" compared to its love scene. Opening the 2012 iTunes Festival, Usher performed the song for the first time along with " Can't Stop Won't Stop", "Twisted", "

Dive Diving most often refers to: * Diving (sport), the sport of jumping into deep water * Underwater diving, human activity underwater for recreational or occupational purposes Diving or Dive may also refer to: Sports * Dive (American football), a ...

" and " Numb" and other songs.

Credits and personnel

;Recording *Vocal recording – Parkland Playhouse, Parkland, FL; Silent Sound Studios, Atlanta, GA *Mixing – Parkland Playhouse, Parkland, FL ;Personnel *

Songwriting A songwriter is a musician who professionally composes musical compositions or writes lyrics for songs, or both. The writer of the music for a song can be called a composer, although this term tends to be used mainly in the classical music gen ...

–

, Daniel Morris, Nickolas Marzouca, Usher Raymond IV, Eric Bellinger, Lundon *

Production Production may refer to: Economics and business * Production (economics) * Production, the act of manufacturing goods * Production, in the outline of industrial organization, the act of making products (goods and services) * Production as a stati ...

– Jim Jonsin, Mr. Morris *Vocal production – Natural *Keyboard and programming – Jim Jonsin, Danny Morris *

Recording A record, recording or records may refer to: An item or collection of data Computing * Record (computer science), a data structure ** Record, or row (database), a set of fields in a database related to one entity ** Boot sector or boot record, r ...

– Nickolas Marzouca, Mark "Exit" Goodchild *Recording assistants – Matt Huber, Nathan Burgess, Kory Aaron *Mixing – Robert Marks *Mixing assistants – Matt Huber, Nathan Burgess, Dana Richard *Additional vocals –

Credits adapted from the liner notes of ''Looking 4 Myself'', RCA Records.

Charts

Weekly charts

Year-end charts

Release history

References

External links

* {{authority control 2012 singles Usher (musician) songs RCA Records singles 2012 songs Songs written by Usher (musician) Songs written by Jim Jonsin Song recordings produced by Jim Jonsin Songs written by Eric Bellinger Music videos directed by Philip Andelman Rick Ross songs Songs written by Rick Ross Songs written by Danny Morris (music producer)