"I Don't" is a song by American singer

Mariah Carey Mariah Carey ( ; born March 27, 1969) is an American singer-songwriter, record producer, and actress. Dubbed the "Honorific nicknames in popular music, Songbird Supreme" by ''Guinness World Records'', Carey is known for her five-octave voc ...

featuring American rapper YG. The song was written by Carey, YG,

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, Crystal Nicole Pompey,

Donell Jones Donell Jones (born May 22, 1973) is an American R&B singer, songwriter, and record producer from Chicago, Illinois. He met record producer Eddie F in the mid-1990s and signed with his record label Untouchables Entertainment, beginning his car ...

, and Kyle West and produced by

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and

Bryan-Michael Cox Bryan-Michael Paul Cox (born December 1, 1977) is an American record producer and songwriter, known for his work with artists such as Usher, Mariah Carey, Mary J. Blige, and Toni Braxton. His most notable productions are " Be Without You" fo ...

. Carey previewed the track during the final episode of her E!

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, ''

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'', on January 29, 2017.

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released it as a single five days later on February 3. The song samples Jones's song " Where I Wanna Be".

Production and release

Carey debuted "I Don't" during an episode of her E!

, ''

'', on January 29, 2017. Footage of Carey recording a snippet of the song in a studio booth was broadcast during the episode, which Hugh McIntyre of ''

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'' described as "perfect timing as far as promotion goes". Two days later on January 31, the cover art was revealed by Carey via her official

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; it shows the singer in the backseat of a white car with red leathers and accompanied by the track's featured rapper, YG,

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subsequently released the track for

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on February 3, 2017. On March 24, 2017, a remix featuring

Remy Ma Reminisce Kioni Mackie ( Smith; born May 30, 1980), known professionally as Remy Ma, is an American rapper and songwriter. Discovered by the late rapper Big Pun, she came to prominence for her work as a member of Fat Joe's group, Terror Squad ...

was released.

Critical reception

Mike Wiss of

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described the song as being as "legendary" as the artwork: "Mariah Carey has had a really tough year. She literally rang in 2017 with one of the worst (not-quite) live performances of all time and endured the various humiliations of Mariah's World. He added: "Happily, everything else is spot on. Mariah's voice is in fine form and the decision to interpolate Donnell Jones' "Where I Wanna Be" is inspired." Hugh McIntyre from ''

'' wrote that the song "doesn’t see the pop star stepping too far out of the comfort zone she’s created over the past decade, opting for a laid back vibe that may please her true devotees, but which might not be uptempo enough to catch the attention of fairweather fans".

Music video

The

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

for the song premiered via Carey's

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channel on February 3, 2017. It depicts Carey forlorn by her breakup, wearing a wedding dress only to eventually burn it. She moves in and out of a car in various outfits, from latex to lace. At one point, Carey wears an engagement ring on her middle finger, before pointing it at the camera. Carey directed the video herself and executive-produced the video with her former manager, Stella Bulochnikov.

Live performances

Carey and YG performed "I Don't" live on ''

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'' on February 15, 2017. A few days later, she performed the song live at Dubai Jazz Festival.

Track listing

Charts

Release history

References

{{authority control 2010s ballads 2017 singles 2017 songs Contemporary R&B ballads Mariah Carey songs YG (rapper) songs Remy Ma songs Songs written by Mariah Carey Songs written by Kyle West Songs written by YG (rapper) Songs written by Donell Jones Songs written by Johntá Austin Songs written by Remy Ma Epic Records singles Trap music songs Songs about heartache Music videos directed by Mariah Carey