Blindfold Me

"Blindfold Me" is a song by American singer Kelis featuring American rapper Nas from her fourth studio album Kelis Was Here (2006). Released on October 3, 2006, it was the album's second single. It was written and produced by Polow da Don and Sean Garrett. Garrett spoke positively of his experience working with Nas on the song. "Blindfold Me" is a pop, R&B, and rap song with sexually explicit lyrics.

"Blindfold Me"
Single by Kelis featuring Nas
from the album Kelis Was Here
ReleasedOctober 3, 2006 (2006-10-03)
RecordedWestlake Audio
(West Hollywood, California)
Battery Studios
(New York City, New York)
Genre
Length3:48
LabelJive
Songwriter(s)
Producer(s)
  • Polow da Don
  • Sean Garrett
Kelis singles chronology
"I Love My Chick"
(2006)		 "Blindfold Me"
(2006)		 "Lil Star"
(2007)
Nas singles chronology
"Road to Zion"
(2005)		 "Blindfold Me"
(2006)		 "Hip Hop Is Dead"
(2006)

Music critics had a mixed response to the single; some praised its sexual content while others questioned its commercial appeal and placement on the album's track listing. It peaked at number 91 on the Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs Billboard chart. An accompanying music video, which featured Nas, promoted the single. "Blindfold Me" was not included on Kelis' compilation album The Hits (2008).

Recording and release
Nas co-wrote and was featured on "Blindfold Me".

Polow da Don, Sean Garrett, and Nas wrote and produced "Blindfold Me".[1][2] On the album's liner notes, Polow da Don is credited under his legal name Jamal Jones. Brian Stanley mixed the song, assisted by Mike Makowski. It was recorded by Brian Sumner and Doug Wilson[1] at Westlake Recording Studios in West Hollywood, California, and Battery Studios in New York City, and mixed at Chung King Studios in New York City.[1][2]

Nas provided collaborative verses for the song.[1] Describing his experience working with Nas, Garrett said: "Working with the man who made Illmatic and my career like a dream come true. Being able to meet these people and interact with them and have them respect your craft has been great."[3]

Jive released "Blindfold Me" as the second single from Kelis' third studio album Kelis Was Here (2006),[4] and made it available as a 12-inch single on October 3, 2006.[5][6][7] The release included the instrumental and a cappella versions of the song, as well as two callout hooks.[6] A music video released in 2006 promoted the single.[8] The video, directed by Marc Klasfeld, features Nas tying up Kelis.[9][10] It was re-uploaded to Kelis' Vevo account on July 27, 2015.[8] "Blindfold Me" was not included on Kelis' compilation album The Hits (2008).[11]

Composition and lyrics

"Blindfold Me" is a pop, R&B, and rap song that lasts three minutes and 48-seconds.[4][12] Music critics had varying opinions on the song's genre;[13][14][15] Rashod D. Ollison of The Baltimore Sun writing that it contains influences from club music,[13] and other commentators identified it as a hip hop composition.[14][15] Doreen St. Félix of MTV News described the composition as "a skeletal beat" and its lyrics as "more sexually literal" than Kelis' 2003 single "Milkshake".[16] Clover Hope of Billboard wrote that the instrumental consisted of "thumping drums and tick-tock percussion" and compared Kelis' vocals to "squealing, panting and pleading", summarizing the song as a "half-rapping/half-singing affair".[4] Lyrics include: "He refused to take a bite before I put my blindfold on."[17]

Reception

Upon its release, "Blindfold Me" received mixed reviews from music critics. Pitchfork's Tim Finney described it as "her most brazenly confronting" and its style as "urgent and almost crude".[18] Highlighting "Blindfold Me" during the album review, Robert Christgau wrote: "Good for sex and not much else, which in a fantasy object is plenty."[19] While Hope praised the song as "fun and fancy" and "apt for the night scene", she wrote: "it is hard to see it getting much airplay outside the sweaty confines of the clubs". Hope responded negatively to Kelis' collaboration with her husband Nas, saying it "possibly forc[e]s unwanted images of their real-life relationship".[4] Andy Kellman of AllMusic praised "Blindfold Me" for its "anthemic kink", but criticized its placement on the album, writing it "drops directly into a misty-eyed ballad".[20] In a negative review, Sal Cinquemani of Slant Magazine panned "Blindfold Me" as an attempt to recapture the success from "Milkshake", and wrote the newer song was "far less catchy and witty" than the previous single.[21]

"Blindfold Me" peaked at number 91 on the Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs Billboard chart on November 11, 2006, and it remained on the chart for a week.[22]

Track listing
12" single[6]
No.TitleLength
1."Blindfold Me (Main)"4:17
2."Blindfold Me (Instrumental)"4:18
3."Blindfold Me (Acappella)"3:51
4."Blindfold Me (Call Out Hook #1)"0:07
5."Blindfold Me (Call Out Hook #2)"0:07

Credits and personnel

Credits adapted from the liner notes of Kelis Was Here:[1]

Recording studios
  • Westlake Recording Studios (West Hollywood)
  • Battery Studios (New York City)
  • Chung King Studios (New York City)
Personnel
  • Mixed By – Brian Stanley
  • Mixed By [Assisted By] – Mike Makowski
  • Producer – Polow Da Don, Sean Garrett
  • Recorded By – Brian Sumner, Doug Wilson
  • Written-By – J. Jones

Charts
Chart (2006) Peak
position
US Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs (Billboard)[23] 91

Release history
Region Date Format Label Ref.
United States October 3, 2006 12" single LaFace [5]
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References
  1. Kelis Was Here (Media notes). Kelis. Jive. 2006.CS1 maint: others (link)
  2. "Credits". AllMusic. Archived from the original on March 3, 2018.
  3. Nostro, Lauren (November 22, 2012). "Sean Garrett Tells All: The Stories Behind His Classic Records". Complex. Archived from the original on September 12, 2017.
  4. Hope, Clover (September 23, 2006). "Kelis: Blindfold Me". Billboard. Archived from the original on March 3, 2018.
  5. "Releases". AllMusic. Archived from the original on March 3, 2018.
  6. Blindfold Me (Media notes). Kelis. Jive. 2006.CS1 maint: others (link)
  7. "Track Listing". AllMusic. Archived from the original on March 3, 2018.
  8. "Kelis - Blindfold Me ft. Nas". Vevo. July 27, 2015. Archived from the original on February 19, 2018.
  9. "Nasty Nas ties up wifey in the video for Kelis' "Blindfold Me". XXL. September 7, 2006. Archived from the original on March 3, 2018.
  10. "Blindfold Me". Vevo. Archived from the original on August 6, 2016.
  11. Cinquemani, Sal (March 5, 2008). "Kelis: The Hits". Slant Magazine. Archived from the original on March 6, 2016.
  12. Hope, Clover (September 30, 2006). "Rising Star: Polow". Billboard. Archived from the original on March 3, 2018.
  13. Ollison, Rashod D. (September 7, 2006). "The Baltimore Sun Rashod D. Ollison column: From blues to rock, with stops in between.(Sound recording review)(Column)". The Baltimore Sun. Archived from the original on March 3, 2018.(subscription required)
  14. Brooks, Brandon (August 17, 2006). "Bump It Or Dump It". Los Angeles Sentinel. Archived from the original on March 4, 2018.(subscription required)
  15. "New CD's". The New York Times. August 21, 2006. Archived from the original on March 3, 2018.
  16. St. Félix, Doreen (August 22, 2016). "Kelis Was Here, 10 Years Later". MTV News. Archived from the original on March 3, 2017.
  17. "kelis's nas-ty boy". MTV. August 16, 2006. Archived from the original on March 5, 2018.
  18. Finney, Tim (August 30, 2006). "Kelis: Kelis Was Here". Pitchfork. Archived from the original on October 30, 2017.
  19. Christgau, Robert (February–March 2007). "Honorable Mention". Robert Christgau. Archived from the original on August 15, 2013.CS1 maint: date format (link)
  20. Kellman, Andy. "AllMusic Review by Andy Kellman". AllMusic. Archived from the original on November 5, 2017.
  21. Michel, Sia. "Her Milkshake's Next Act". New York. Archived from the original on August 29, 2017.
  22. "Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs". Billboard. Archived from the original on March 3, 2018.
  23. "Kelis Chart History (Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs)". Billboard. Retrieved June 6, 2016.
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