Songfacts®: You can leave comments about the song at the bottom of the page.
Alicia Keys explained to MTV News that this is "about living every moment as if it's your last. Because if it's our last time to say, 'I love you,' then let it be that we didn't forget that."
In the same interview she described the video for this song as: "heart-wrenching. If your heart doesn't feel me, then you are dead!"
The video features rapper/actor Common as Key's love interest.
On the January 5, 2008 Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart, Alicia Keys became the first solo artist to succeed herself at #1. On that date "No One" gave way after 10 weeks at the pinnacle to "Like You'll Never See Me Again." There have been 3 instances where artists followed themselves at #1, but in all 3 cases, the artist either had support from a featured artist on at least one of the two songs, or was the featured artist. The previous time an act succeeded itself at #1 on the R&B chart was over 58 years previous to Keys' feat. In October 1949 Louis Jordan and His Tympany Five were #1 for one week with "Beans and Cornbread," which was immediately followed by that same group's "Saturday Night Fish Fry (Parts I & II)" for 8 weeks.
"Like You'll Never See Me Again" won both the Outstanding Music Video and Outstanding Song awards at the 2008 NAACP Image Awards. Keys also picked up the gongs for Outstanding Album for As I Am and Outstanding Female Artist.
Additionally with this song and "
No One ," Keys broke the record for the longest consecutive run at #1 on the Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs survey. The combined total of 17 weeks accumulated by "No One" and "Like You'll Never See Me Again" broke the previous record of 15 weeks, set by Nelly in 2002 with "
Hot In Herre" and "
Dilemma" and tied by Mary J. Blige in 2005 with "
Be Without You."
The follow-up single release to "
No One," this did not repeat its success chart-wise. In the UK it became Keys' lowest charting single to date, only reaching #53.
Comments (2):
Spooner Oldham
His keyboard work helped define the Muscle Shoals sound and make him an integral part of many Neil Young recordings. Spooner is also an accomplished songwriter, whose hits include "I'm Your Puppet" and "Cry Like A Baby."
JJ Burnel of The Stranglers
JJ talks about The Stranglers' signature sound - keyboard and bass - which isn't your typical strain of punk rock.