"I Used to Love H.E.R." is a hip hop song by the Chicago-born rapper Common Sense. Released on the 1994 album Resurrection, "I Used to Love H.E.R." has since become one of Common's best known songs. Produced by No I.D., its jazzy beat samples "The Changing World" by George Benson. A music video directed by Chris Halliburton was made for the song. The song is also found on Common's greatest hits album, Thisisme Then.
Acclaim
It is often regarded as one of the greatest hip hop recordings ever. Tiffany Hamilton of AllHipHop.com describes it as a "timeless ode to Hip-Hop [...] that established Common as one of the pioneers in conscious Hip-Hop." Vukile Simelane of RapReviews.com claims it to have one of the "fattest beat[s] ever constructed". Alex Henderson of Allmusic considers it to be the standout track on Resurrection. Duke University professor Mark Anthony Neal considers it to be Common's best single ever. Andrea Duncan-Mao of XXL describes it as a "bittersweet ode to hip-hop" and a "classic" track. Pitchfork's Ryan Dombal considers it to be a "classic hip-hop parable". In 2008, the song was ranked number 69 on VH1's 100 Greatest Songs of Hip Hop. It was ranked number 1 on About.com's Greatest Rap Songs Of All Time.
Remixes
9th Wonder, a producer from North Carolina, remixed "I Used to Love H.E.R." and released the remix as a single. Independent record label Boom Bap Records distributed the single, which contained "The 6th Sense" as a B-side.
Music video
The music video was filmed on September 20, 1994, and released later that year. It shows clips of Common's home of Southside Chicago and a woman, who is the main subject of the video because of the extended metaphor. It shows how she "became a gangster" when this woman is seen with two other ghetto-looking women in allusion to the rise of gangsta rap.
Track listing
A-side
"I Used to Love H.E.R." (4:29) "I Used to Love H.E.R. (Instrumental)" (4:43) "I Used to Love H.E.R. (Acapella)"
B-side
"Communism (2:16)" "Communism (Instrumental)" (2:39) "Communism (Acapella)"
Chart positions
See also
List of Common songs
References
External links
1994 singles
Common (rapper) songs
Song recordings produced by No I.D. Songs written by Common (rapper) Songs written by No I.D. 1994 songs Relativity Records singles Jazz rap songs Songs about hip hop
