The song is a 1980s-inspired mid-tempo ballad,featuring the 808 drums. Ciara described it as a "big record",and said that she invited 50 Cent for "some kind of flavor". It was originally titled "Dope Boys".[1]
Background
"Can't Leave 'em Alone",along with "That's Right",was originally a contender to be the second US and first worldwide single from the album,and a poll was posted on Ciara's MySpace page to have fans help her decide,but the other contender "Like a Boy" was chosen over both songs. Later,"My Love" was confirmed to be the third US single,[2] while "That's Right" would serve as the third internationally,but "Can't Leave 'em Alone" replaced both songs.
Composition
"Can't Leave 'em Alone" is an ode to the hood boys anchored by a pair of verses from 50 Cent,featuring an "easy groove".[3]
Critical reception
"Can't Leave 'em Alone" received mixed reviews from music critics. Contactmusic.com published "Can't Leave 'em Alone" is a "mouth-watering smouldering smoothed groove",with the reviewer going on to say that it should have been the first single,and that It has "cross over potential that we see from Nelly &Kelly Rowland ["Dilemma"]" and is "simply another Darkchild classic".[4] Ken Barnes of USA TODAY called the song "pop-soul confection".[5] Other reviewers were more critical of the song. Cibula of PopMatters published that it is "a very bad pop-lite song" and criticized the use of 50 Cent as a sexy bad boy.[6] Christian Hoard of Rolling Stone published "Ciara's still prone to diva blandness and silly little pop songs,which drags down the 50 Cent feature 'Can't Leave 'em Alone' ".[7] Makkadah Selah of The Village Voice called the song "lifeless".[8]
Chart performance
"Can't Leave 'em Alone" was a moderate success in the US. Six weeks after its official release,The single debuted at 90 on the US Billboard Hot 100. The song climbed the charts slowly with moderate airplay and digital sales. It eventually reached its peak at number 40. It also peaked at number 24 on the Hot 100 Airplay. It became Ciara's tenth top 10 single on the US Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart and peaked in the top half of the Rhythmic Top 40. The single was never sent to mainstream radio formats and failed to chart on the Pop 100. Despite its lackluster performance at radio,the single was certified gold by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) for sales of over 500,000 digital copies in the United States.[9]
In international markets,"Can't Leave 'em Alone" debuted at number 40 and peaked at number 4,becoming Ciara's fifth top 10 single in New Zealand. The song failed to chart in the United Kingdom,reaching a disappointing number 115. The single peaked at low positions in China,Germany,and Poland.
Music video
The Fat Cats directed video was shot on June 9,2007,and June 10,2007,in Atlanta,Georgia.[10] Three screen shots from the music video were released on June 14,2007,[2] while a fourth screen shot featuring her and 50 Cent was released on June 27,2007.[11] The video was scheduled to premiere on Yahoo! Music on June 25,but it was changed to July 2,2007.
The video reached number 1 on 106 &Park and on YouTube it has received over 70 million views as of April 2024.[12]
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