Music and Lyrics
"My Love" is a synthpop-influenced, hip hop R&B song. The song is composed in the key of E minor and is set in time signature of common time with a tempo of 121 beats per minute. The music begins with a stop-start trance-style synthesizer, right after the quote from part of the chorus, "Ain't another woman the can take your spot my-", which actually cuts off. The song also includes Timbaland beatboxing and adding "toy sounds", as well as Timberlake's falsetto. The track features a rap verse from rapper T.I. It also carries a slower beat, with an electro-Southern hip hop sound. The Guardian described the song as a "languid love ballad, prickling with dark emotion", while MTV News described the beat as "slow and saucy". Ben Williams of New York magazine wrote that it has "stabbing techno riff, crunched-together mouth-popping noises, and wailing opera singer". Alexis Petridis of The Guardian said that the single is "a twitching mass of rave synthesizers and slow beats". Jacqui Swift of The Sun wrote that the song "begins with a tinny percussion sound before launching into a frantic repetitive chorus".
In July 2006, The Observer Music Monthly interviewed Timberlake and stated that the track "is arguably the album's 'Cry Me a River'." In response, Timberlake said, "It is similar. You go back to Aaliyah's biggest record, 'Are You That Somebody' – it's similar to that too because it's that percussive ballad." When asked about the lyrics, "There's just one thing I need from you: say I do", being autobiographical, he said no, adding that the line before that, "this ring here represents my heart", is about marriage and love. Timberlake stated, "It's not specifically about marriage, but about a humble approach to love. None of it is autobiographical, though obviously I have experience to draw from."
Williams stated that the song is "an obvious sequel" to Timberlake's 2002 song "Cry Me a River". The Georgia Straight's Martin Turenne interprets the song's background as Timberlake lowering himself on bended knee, proposing long walks on the beach and asking, "Would you date me on the regular?". Dagny Salas of North by Northwestern considered it a more romantic song, about Timberlake professing his love to a woman. Others have opined that "My Love" is a marriage proposal.
Read more about this topic: My Love (Justin Timberlake Song)
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