Don't Forget About Us - Composition

Composition

"Don't Forget About Us" is a mid-tempo song lasting three minutes and fifty-three seconds, while drawing influence from pop and R&B music genres. Written by Carey, Jermaine Dupri, Bryan-Michael Cox and Johntá Austin, and produced by the former three, the song drew comparisons to Carey's "We Belong Together". According to Michael Paoletta from Billboard, the song features a similar tempo, lyrical style, instrumentation and production as the latter song, and incorporates a reminiscent vocal performance from Carey. According to the sheet music published at Musicnotes.com by Alfred Music Publishing, the song is set in common time with a moderate tempo of 72 beats per minute. The song is composed in the key of G minor, with Carey's vocal range spanning from the low-note of D₃ to the high-note of F₅. Lyrically, the song describes the potency of a "first love", and features a protagonist pleading to her lover to "not forget about them". Critics noted that the song's lyrics both let go of a lover, as well as cherishing their memory. Carey sings "Just let it die / With no goodbyes", indicating a relationship that has long decayed, and how she has let it drift away, while also adding "here's only one me and you / And how we used to shine / No matter what you go through / We are one, that's a fact / That you can't deny", indicating that while they are no longer together, she will continue to cherish the memory of them, and how strong their love was. According to Carey, she refrained from giving away too much of the song's lyrical meaning, in order to allow fans to possibly interpret the song in their own way:

I try not to get too specific so that people can apply the lyrics to their own lives. When I was growing up and listening to the radio and I would hear a song that reminded me of a certain person or a situation or whatever, I would want to be able to completely connect it to that moment. And then if I heard someone explaining it and making it into something totally different, it ruined it for me. So I kind of like to keep it open for people's imaginations. It evokes something different depending on who listens to it and at what time. "Don't Forget About Us" could give you a good, happy memory, or you could be miserable, crying, listening to it over and over. All in all, I think it's good to have music you can live vicariously through, and that's what a lot of people have told me this record has been for them.