"Lock U Down" is a song by American singer

Mýa Mya Marie Harrison (; born October 10, 1979), (stylized as Mýa), is an American singer, songwriter, dancer, and actress. Born into a musical family, she studied ballet, jazz, and tap dance as a child. Initially, Mýa began her career as a VJ ...

on her fourth studio album ''

Liberation Liberation or liberate may refer to: Film and television * ''Liberation'' (film series), a 1970–1971 series about the Great Patriotic War * "Liberation" (''The Flash''), a TV episode * "Liberation" (''K-9''), an episode Gaming * '' Liberati ...

'' (2007). It was written by Harrison along with Jason Boyd, Dwayne Carter, and

Scott Storch Scott Spencer Storch (born December 16, 1973) is an American record producer and songwriter. He started off as a keyboardist for the group the Roots. Early life Storch was born on Long Island, New York. He was raised in South Florida and Ph ...

, with production handled by the latter, and featured

Young Money Young Money Entertainment is an American record label founded by rapper Lil Wayne. Young Money's president is Lil Wayne's lifelong friend and fellow rapper Mack Maine. The label was an imprint of Cash Money Records and is distributed by Republ ...

rapper

Lil Wayne Dwayne Michael Carter Jr. (born September 27, 1982), known professionally as Lil Wayne, is an American rapper, singer, songwriter, and record executive. His career began in 1995, at the age of 12, when he was signed by rapper Birdman (rapper), ...

. The song was released as the album's official leading single after "

Ayo! "Ayo!" is a song by American singer Mýa. It was written and composed by Mýa, DJ Kool and Christopher “Deep” Henderson and initially recorded for her fourth studio album '' Liberation'' (2007). Production on the track was helmed by Henderso ...

" failed to find success on the charts or at radio and eventually deemed a

promotional single A promotional recording, or promo, or plug copy, is an audio or video recording distributed free, usually in order to promote a recording that is or soon will be commercially available. Promos are normally sent directly to broadcasters, such as ...

only. The lyrics of the R&B-collaboration speak of a woman locking her man down when she has found the right one. The song received generally mixed reviews from contemporary music critics, who found that "Lock U Down" sounded dated and a poor choice as a single. The song was a commercial disappointment, it failed to chart on ''

Billboard A billboard (also called a hoarding in the UK and many other parts of the world) is a large outdoor advertising structure (a billing board), typically found in high-traffic areas such as alongside busy roads. Billboards present large advertis ...

''s

Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs The Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart ranks the most popular R&B and hip hop songs in the United States and is published weekly by '' Billboard''. Rankings are based on a measure of radio airplay, sales data, and streaming activity. The chart had 100 ...

chart; peaking below the chart at number one hundred and number one on the

Bubbling Under R&B/Hip-Hop Songs The Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart ranks the most popular R&B and hip hop songs in the United States and is published weekly by ''Billboard''. Rankings are based on a measure of radio airplay, sales data, and streaming activity. The chart had 100 ...

chart only. The song's accompanying

music video A music video is a video of variable duration, that integrates a music song or a music album with imagery that is produced for promotional or musical artistic purposes. Modern music videos are primarily made and used as a music marketing devi ...

was filmed by director

Benny Boom Benny Douglas (born July 22, 1971), professionally known as Benny Boom, is an American director who has worked in music, television, and film. His most commercially successful film was the 2017 Tupac Shakur biopic ''All Eyez on Me''. Career D ...

. It featured Harrison and Lil Wayne in abandon

warehouse A warehouse is a building for storing goods. Warehouses are used by manufacturers, importers, exporters, wholesalers, transport businesses, customs, etc. They are usually large plain buildings in industrial parks on the outskirts of cities, ...

. The video made its world premiere on

BET Black Entertainment Television (acronym BET) is an American basic cable channel targeting African-American audiences. It is owned by the CBS Entertainment Group unit of Paramount Global via BET Networks and has offices in New York City, Los ...

’s ''

106 & Park ''106 & Park'' is an American hip hop and R&B music video show, set up in a countdown format, that was broadcast on weekdays at 6:00 pm ET/5:00 pm CT on BET; it aired on a one-day delay on BET International. It was the network's highest- rat ...

'' on April 25, 2007.

Background

Co-written by Mýa and produced by

, "Lock U Down" featuring

Lil' Wayne Dwayne Michael Carter Jr. (born September 27, 1982), known professionally as Lil Wayne, is an American rapper, singer, songwriter, and record executive. His career began in 1995, at the age of 12, when he was signed by rapper Birdman, joining ...

mixes a prominent

Eastern Eastern may refer to: Transportation *China Eastern Airlines, a current Chinese airline based in Shanghai *Eastern Air, former name of Zambia Skyways *Eastern Air Lines, a defunct American airline that operated from 1926 to 1991 * Eastern Air L ...

harp sample with a guitar riff. A street-but-sweet hip-hop soul jam, it exposes what kind of man a woman wants and needs. Following the commercial disappointment of "

," Universal Motown delayed ''

''s release. Initially, "Lock U Down"

leaked A leak is a way (usually an opening) for fluid to escape a container or fluid-containing system, such as a tank or a ship's hull, through which the contents of the container can escape or outside matter can enter the container. Leaks are usuall ...

in late December 2006.

Critical reception

Upon release "Lock U Down" garnered "mixed" reviews from

music critics Music journalism (or music criticism) is media criticism and reporting about music topics, including popular music, classical music, and traditional music. Journalists began writing about music in the eighteenth century, providing commentary on ...

. Previewed by back in July 2006, the '' Miami Herald'' praised "Lock U Down," and described the song as "genius" while commenting,"a rippling rhythm that shows off the rich tones of the underrated singer's voice, with a

Middle Eastern The Middle East ( ar, الشرق الأوسط, ISO 233: ) is a geopolitical region commonly encompassing Arabia (including the Arabian Peninsula and Bahrain), Asia Minor (Asian part of Turkey except Hatay Province), East Thrace (Europea ...

counter melody." Writing for ''

Sentinel Sentinel may refer to: Places Mountains * Mount Sentinel, a mountain next to the University of Montana in Missoula, Montana * Sentinel Buttress, a volcanic crag on James Ross Island, Antarctica * Sentinel Dome, a naturally occurring grani ...

'', editor Brandon Brooks gave "Lock U Down" a favorable review. Brooks deemed "Lock U Down" a sure fire hit; while complimenting on Harrison's vocal performance noting, "She has grown up over the years and sound rejuvenated than ever before." ''

The Guardian ''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper A newspaper is a periodical publication containing written information about current events and is often typed in black ink with a white or gray background. Newspapers can cover a wide ...

''s Rosie Swash dismissed Lock U Down as a "basic but generally likeable song."

Music video

On April 24, 2007, a day prior to the video's official release,

Universal Motown Universal Motown Records was an American record label that operated as a division of Universal Motown Republic Group. It was the contemporary incarnation of the legendary Motown Records label, and the " urban" half of UMG, although there were som ...

uploaded a 27-minute video teaser. The

-directed

for the track was premiered on ''

'' on April 25, 2007. The heavy dance-laid video includes Mýa dancing in a seemingly abandoned warehouse. Mýa performs a dance routine with a few back-up dancers during the video. Lil Wayne stands next to Mýa when rapping his verses, and Mýa is sometimes seen mouthing the words to his rap. Towards the end of the video, Mýa is seen partying with a couple of friends.

Track listing

Credits and personnel

Credits lifted from the liner notes of ''Liberation''. *Wayne "The Brain" Allison – recording engineer *

Jason "Poo Bear" Boyd Jason Paul Douglas Boyd, better known by his stage name Poo Bear, is an American songwriter, singer, and music producer. He is best known for being one of Justin Bieber's main collaborators, having co-written many of Bieber's hits (including " ...

– writer * Dwayne "Lil Wayne" Carter – vocalist, writer *Vadim "Chise" Chislov – recording engineer assistance *Aaron "Franchise" Fishbein –

guitar The guitar is a fretted musical instrument that typically has six strings. It is usually held flat against the player's body and played by strumming or plucking the strings with the dominant hand, while simultaneously pressing selected string ...

*Conrad Golding – recording engineer *Suha Gur – mastering engineer *

Mýa Harrison Mya Marie Harrison (; born October 10, 1979), (stylized as Mýa), is an American singer, songwriter, dancer, and actress. Born into a musical family, she studied ballet, jazz, and tap dance as a child. Initially, Mýa began her career as a ...

– vocalist, writer *Fabian Marasciullo – mixing engineer *

– producer, writer

Charts

Weekly charts

Year-end charts

Release history

References

{{authority control 2007 singles 2007 songs Mýa songs Lil Wayne songs Universal Motown Records singles Music videos directed by Benny Boom Songs written by Poo Bear Song recordings produced by Scott Storch Songs written by Scott Storch Songs written by Lil Wayne Songs written by Mýa