"Papi" is a song recorded by American singer

Jennifer Lopez Jennifer Lynn Lopez (born July 24, 1969), also known by her nickname J.Lo, is an American singer, songwriter, actress, dancer and businesswoman. Lopez is regarded as one of the most influential entertainers of her time, credited with breaking ...

for her seventh studio album '' Love?'' (2011). The

Latin Latin ( or ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic languages, Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally spoken by the Latins (Italic tribe), Latins in Latium (now known as Lazio), the lower Tiber area aroun ...

-flavored

dance Dance is an The arts, art form, consisting of sequences of body movements with aesthetic and often Symbol, symbolic value, either improvised or purposefully selected. Dance can be categorized and described by its choreography, by its repertoir ...

song was written by

RedOne Nadir Khayat (, Latn, ar, Nādir Ḵayyāṭ; born 9 April 1972), also known as RedOne, is a Moroccan-Swedish record producer, record executive, singer and songwriter. He has worked in production for high-profile recording artists including La ...

, AJ Junior, BeatGeek, Teddy Sky,

Bilal Hajji Bilal Hajji, sometimes also known as The Chef (at times Bilal "The Chef" or Bilal "The Chef" Hajji) is a Moroccan- Swedish songwriter and record producer. Based in Sweden, of Moroccan origin, he has worked with many worldwide artists and celebrit ...

and Jimmy Joker, and produced by RedOne, BeatGeak and Jimmy Joker. The lyrical content of the song revolves around Lopez's love to dance for her man. The song was due to be released as a

promotional single A promotional recording, 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 mu ...

to help promote the album on April 19, 2011, but the song was unlocked and released on April 17, 2011, through a campaign on Lopez's

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page. "Papi" received praise from music critics, stating that it was one of the highlights from ''Love?'' "Papi" received a full commercial release as ''Love?''s third single in September and October 2011. On October 27, 2011 "Papi" became Lopez's 11th number one single on the Billboard Hot Dance Club Songs Chart. It reached the top 10 in Bulgaria, Finland, Israel, and Italy. A music video was released for the song and it was directed by

Paul Hunter Paul Alan Hunter (14 October 1978 – 9 October 2006) was an English professional snooker player. He was a three-time Masters (snooker), Masters champion, winning the event in 2001 Masters (snooker), 2001, 2002 Masters (snooker), 2002, a ...

, who had previously worked with her for videos including her 2000 hit " Love Don't Cost a Thing". The plot of the video involves Jennifer Lopez eating a mysterious love cookie, and the next morning a mob of men go crazy for her, chasing her all over the city. The song was also used as the opening number of Miss Earth 2011.

Music and lyrics

"Papi" is a

and electro-flavored, up-tempo

track written by Bilal Hajji, AJ Junior and Teddy Sky, co-written and produced by BeatGeek,

and Jimmy Joker. The melody is driven by "beating" drums and "pounding"

synths A synthesizer (also synthesiser or synth) is an electronic musical instrument that generates audio signals. Synthesizers typically create sounds by generating waveforms through methods including subtractive synthesis, additive synthesis an ...

. According to Rick Florino, from Artistdirect.com, the song also uses elements of " propulsive house" music. The lyrics center around Lopez's love for dancing for her man. Florino described the song's middle-8 breakdown as "a bass thump and seductive Spanish lines

hat A hat is a Headgear, head covering which is worn for various reasons, including protection against weather conditions, ceremonial reasons such as university graduation, religious reasons, safety, or as a fashion accessory. Hats which incorpor ...

pulsate in tandem before one final crescendo of the chorus." On the line "My rock is shinin’ bright / Even if he ain’t by my side / He makes sure that I glow / I make sure everybody knows," J. Lo sings of her man, who is not around the club but whose presence is sparkling on her finger. It was scheduled for release on April 19, 2011 as the third of four promotional singles.
" I'm Into You" was subsequently confirmed as the album's second single. The track was released three days early, after a preview was posted on Lopez's "Like for Love?" campaign, whereby the ''Love?''s three promotional singles were released early if enough fans "liked" them through

. The opening portion of the song is used in the dance-breakdown present in the

music video A music video is a video that integrates a song or an album with imagery that is produced for promotion (marketing), promotional or musical artistic purposes. Modern music videos are primarily made and used as a music marketing device intended to ...

for Lopez's second ''Love?'' single, " I'm Into You" (2011).

Critical reception

Staff from entertainment website Idolator said "While this track, like ' On the Floor,' doesn't bring anything new to the dance party table, that isn't really a problem. This track is totally club-ready and there's no reason why it shouldn't play just as well as 'On the Floor'." Joe Guerra from ''

The Houston Chronicle The ''Houston Chronicle'' is the largest daily newspaper in Houston, Houston, Texas, United States. it is the third-largest newspaper by Sunday circulation in the United States, behind only ''The New York Times'' and the ''Los Angeles Times''. ...

'' agreed calling the song one of ''Love?''s "best moments." Rick Florino, from Artistdirect.com, gave the song a positive review, saying that on the song, "Lopez sat her finest". In his review, Florino praised Lopez's voice, noting that it "pulsates with a fresh, fiery, and focused energy" while also commenting that "her unique delivery brandishes traditional Latin flare,

captivates listeners hypnotically." He ended by praising the song's memorable chorus and "majestic

hook A hook is a tool consisting of a length of material, typically metal, that contains a portion that is curved/bent back or has a deeply grooved indentation, which serves to grab, latch or in any way attach itself onto another object. The hook's d ...

." Monica Herrera wrote favorably for ''

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'' that: "The pro-monogamy house trend revived by RiRi's " Only Girl," still going strong here. Fun, harmless, & strictly for Jenny's Latina fans." "Pop Crush"'s Amanda Hensel rated it four-and-a-half stars out of five and wrote that: "Papi is spicy hot — just like the Puerto Rican,

Bronx The Bronx ( ) is the northernmost of the five Boroughs of New York City, boroughs of New York City, coextensive with Bronx County, in the U.S. state of New York (state), New York. It shares a land border with Westchester County, New York, West ...

-raised herself." .."It's a perfect fit for any club packed full of dance-hungry people, and all-in-all, exemplifies what we love about the singer/actress."

BBC Music BBC Music is the arm of the BBC responsible for the music played across its services. The current director of music is Lorna Clarke. Officially it is a part of the BBC's Radio operational division; however, its remit also includes music used i ...

's Alex McApherson wrote that: "The woman who gave us the supreme millennial house of Waiting for Tonight will know her way around On the Floor and Papi, both apparent distillations of the trashy

Miami Miami is a East Coast of the United States, coastal city in the U.S. state of Florida and the county seat of Miami-Dade County, Florida, Miami-Dade County in South Florida. It is the core of the Miami metropolitan area, which, with a populat ...

house aesthetic that dominates pop these days." ''

Entertainment Weekly ''Entertainment Weekly'' (sometimes abbreviated as ''EW'') is an American online magazine, digital-only entertainment magazine based in New York City, published by Dotdash Meredith, that covers film, television, music, Broadway theatre, books, ...

'' Adam Markovitz wrote that the album is "a harmless collection of prefab dance pop with just enough hints of Latin spice to remind listeners of Jenny's from-the-block past (see: the stoop-party-ready ''Papi'') without losing sight of her Bel Air present."

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Music's Chad Grischow positively wrote that "The album is at its best when the pace is cranked up on the club bangers, with the thrusting synth and beat assault of "Papi" finding Lopez singing about dancing for her man even if he is not right next to her."

Digital Spy Digital Spy (DS) is a British-based entertainment, television and film website and brand and is the largest digital property at Hearst UK. Since its initial launch in 1999, Digital Spy has focused on entertainment news related to television pro ...

's Robert Copsey wrote that "Papi', 'Invading my Mind' and 'Hypnotico' are nothing we haven't heard before, but she carries it off with her unrivalled glamour and effortless sophistication."

Chart performance

For the week ending April 27, 2011, "Papi" debuted on the US ''Billboard'' Hot 100 at number 99. Ultimately, the single peaked at number 96 and spent three weeks on the chart, becoming her lowest-peaking entry on the Hot 100. "Papi" experienced more success on the US ''Billboard''

Pop Songs Pop Airplay (also called Mainstream Top 40, Pop Songs, and Top 40/ CHR) is a 40-song music chart published weekly by ''Billboard'' Magazine that ranks the most popular songs of pop music being played on a panel of Top 40 radio stations in the U ...

chart, where it peaked at number 33.

Music video

Background

The music video was shot in August 2011 in Downtown

Los Angeles, California Los Angeles, often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, most populous city in the U.S. state of California, and the commercial, Financial District, Los Angeles, financial, and Culture of Los Angeles, ...

. It was directed by

, who previously directed her music videos for " If You Had My Love" (1999) and " Love Don't Cost a Thing" (2001). A portion of the video was shown on September 16, 2011 on

Good Morning America ''Good Morning America'', often abbreviated as ''GMA'', is an American breakfast television, morning television program that is broadcast on American Broadcasting Company, ABC. It debuted on November 3, 1975, and first expanded to weekends wit ...

. The full video premiered on September 19, 2011 on

VEVO Vevo LLC ( , an abbreviation for "Video Evolution", stylized in all caps until 2013) is an American Multinational corporation, multinational video hosting service, best known for providing music videos to YouTube. The service is also available ...

. The music video was edited into a 31 second commercial, promoting the

Fiat 500 The Fiat 500 (, ) is an Economy car, economy / city car that was manufactured and marketed by Fiat Automobiles from 1957 until 1975. It was sold as a two-door semi-convertible or saloon car and as a three-door panel van or estate car. Launched ...

, the car in which Lopez is driving in the music video. and over 850 million views as of May 2025 on YouTube the based in most-viewed video of " Pinkfong" Baby Shark reach 15 billion views.

Synopsis

The music video begins with the words "Love? Happens". The video continues with Lopez holding her

BlackBerry Bold The BlackBerry Bold was a line of mid-range and high-end smartphones developed by BlackBerry Limited. The lineup was launched in 2008 with the BlackBerry Bold 9000. In 2009 the Form factor (mobile phones), form factor was shrunk with the 9700 and ...

9900 and chatting with her apartment mail attendant Lisa. They talk about Lopez's love interest; she is disappointed because her lover, who is a

colonel Colonel ( ; abbreviated as Col., Col, or COL) is a senior military Officer (armed forces), officer rank used in many countries. It is also used in some police forces and paramilitary organizations. In the 17th, 18th, and 19th centuries, a colon ...

in the

United States Air Force The United States Air Force (USAF) is the Air force, air service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is one of the six United States Armed Forces and one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. Tracing its ori ...

; has not returned from deployment yet. Lisa then hands over the mail and offers her a cookie which she claims will bring her man back to her. Lisa is careful to tell her to take only a small bite owing to the strength of the cookie, but Lopez accidentally takes too big a bite. The following morning the captivating spell of the cookie takes hold and as Lopez leaves her apartment building she attracts the attention of a man who steals a rose to present to her, only to be tackled by another man. As she walks on through the streets of the city she draws the affection of an ever-increasing number of men, including a gardener, a businessman and a motorcyclist, who fight among one another while Lopez walks on oblivious to the chaos behind her. Lopez finally reaches her car (a

) but is swarmed by the group of men who chase her with gifts of flowers and a puppy. The mob eventually outmaneuvers and corners Lopez, forcing her from the car. They proceed to dance around her in a complex display of choreography. She tells the men to stop and quickly discovers that she can control how close they get to her by using her body positions. She manages to lead the men in a quick choreographed sequence before the men all lift her from the ground. Her lover then emerges from a bus and rescues her and the crowd quickly dissipates, leaving the pair to drive away in Lopez's car. The video ends with a shocked Lopez trying in vain to explain to her lover the events she endured throughout the day.

Reception

Idolator's Becky Bain perceived that the clip was "clearly a rejected concept" for a "Lopez-starring romantic comedy", while comparing it to her films '' The Wedding Planner'', ''

The Back-Up Plan ''The Back-up Plan'' (previously known as ''Plan B'') is a 2010 American romantic comedy film directed by Alan Poul, starring Jennifer Lopez, Alex O'Loughlin, Eric Christian Olsen, Anthony Anderson and Linda Lavin.Siegel, Tatiana, and Michael ...

'' and ''

Maid in Manhattan ''Maid in Manhattan'' is a 2002 American romantic comedy drama film directed by Wayne Wang and based on a story by John Hughes, who is credited using a pseudonym. It stars Jennifer Lopez, Ralph Fiennes, and Natasha Richardson. In the film, a ...

''. Bain noted that in the music video, Lopez "attempts to do two things with her new video: first, make herself more rateable by a creating comedic, tongue-in-cheek clip. And secondly, show people how extremely desirable she is by having hundreds of men literally fling themselves off buildings and crash through breakaway glass to win her affections." ''

s Jason Lipshut was unsure about the storyline, but praised the "cheeky choreography" as a "charming nod to Lopez's past videos." ''

The Huffington Post ''HuffPost'' (''The Huffington Post'' until 2017, itself often abbreviated as ''HPo'') is an American progressive news website, with localized and international editions. The site offers news, satire, blogs, and original content, and covers p ...

'' gave the music video a positive review: "Ms. Lopez has still got it – "

Jenny from the Block "Jenny from the Block" is a song by American singer Jennifer Lopez, which features American rappers Jadakiss and Styles P, both members of the Lox. It was released by Epic Records on September 26, 2002, as the lead single from her third studio al ...

" breaks into a signature group dance number and kills it!"

Live performances

Lopez first performed the song at the iHeart Radio Festival on September 24, 2011. She wore a red-fringed mini-dress. Lopez had previously announced the festival herself, which included

Lady Gaga Stefani Joanne Angelina Germanotta (born March 28, 1986), known professionally as Lady Gaga, is an American singer, songwriter, and actress. Known for her image reinventions and versatility across the entertainment industry, she is an influ ...

Coldplay Coldplay are a British Rock music, rock band formed in London in 1997. They consist of vocalist and pianist Chris Martin, guitarist Jonny Buckland, bassist Guy Berryman, drummer and percussionist Will Champion, and manager Phil Harvey (band m ...

Alicia Keys Alicia Augello Cook (born January 25, 1981), known professionally as Alicia Keys, is an American singer and songwriter. A classically trained pianist, Keys began composing songs at the age of 12 and was signed by Columbia Records at 15. After d ...

and

Bruno Mars Peter Gene Hernandez (born October 8, 1985), known professionally as Bruno Mars, is an American singer, songwriter, musician, and record producer. Regarded as a pop icon, he is known for his three-octave tenor vocal range, live performances, R ...

among several others. She stated: "It's going to be this amazing concert ... to launch the new iHeartRadio, where you can kind of customize your own radio stations So, it's pretty exciting. I'm glad to be doing it." The following month on October 22, she performed the song during her headlining concert at

Mohegan Sun Mohegan Sun is a large casino and entertainment complex located on 240 acres (97 ha) of the Mohegan Indian Reservation in Uncasville, Connecticut, along the banks of the Thames River (Connecticut), Thames River. It is owned and operated by the fe ...

to celebrate its 15th anniversary. Lopez performed "Papi" at the 39th American Music Awards on November 20. It was a part of a medley, along with " Until It Beats No More" and " On the Floor", which Pitbull assisted her with. The performance of the song was almost a replica of the video; a

Fiat Fiat Automobiles S.p.A., commonly known as simply Fiat ( , ; ), is an Italian automobile manufacturer. It became a part of Fiat Chrysler Automobiles in 2014 and, in 2021, became a subsidiary of Stellantis through its Italian division, Stellant ...

car which she endorsed was included on stage. She was criticized for using the Fiat as part of her performance. The costume she wore, which consisted of a near-nude body suit with glitter covering necessary places, has been said to resemble the outfit

Britney Spears Britney Jean Spears (born December 2, 1981) is an American singer. Often referred to as the "Princess of Pop", she has sold over 150 million records worldwide, making her one of the world's best-selling music artists. Cultural impact of Brit ...

wore in the music video for "

Toxic Toxicity is the degree to which a chemical substance or a particular mixture of substances can damage an organism. Toxicity can refer to the effect on a whole organism, such as an animal, bacterium, or plant, as well as the effect on a subst ...

" (2004). Additionally, "Papi" was included on the set list for her 2012 Dance Again World Tour.

Track listing

*;Digital download #"Papi" — 3:40 *;Digital download (Remixes) #"Papi" ( Rosabel Radio Edit) — 3:26 #"Papi" (Mixin Marc & Tony Svedja Radio) — 3:40 #"Papi" ( R3hab Radio) – 3:37 #"Papi" (It's the DJ Kue Radio Mix!) — 3:53 #"Papi" (Rosabel Vocal Club Mix) — 7:29 #"Papi" (Mixin Marc & Tony Svedja Extended) — 6:33 #"Papi" (R3hab Club) — 4:53 #"Papi" (It's the DJ Kue Extended Mix!) — 5:34 #"Papi" (Rosabel Attitude Dub) — 7:56 #"Papi" (Mixin Marc & Tony Svedja Dub) — 6:17 #"Papi" (R3hab Instrumental) — 4:53 #"Papi" (It's the DJ Kue Instrumental!) — 5:35 *;Dimitri Vegas & Like Mike Remix #"Papi" (

Dimitri Vegas & Like Mike Dimitri Vegas & Like Mike (previously Dnm) are a Belgian–Greek DJ duo composed of brothers Dimitri Thivaios and Michael Thivaios. They were ranked No. 1 on ''DJ Magazine, DJ Mag''s Top 100 DJs list in 2015 and 2019, and No. 2 in 2014, 2016 thr ...

Remix) — 3:22

Credits and personnel

;Technical "Papi" was recorded at Cove Studio in

New York City New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs, each coextensive w ...

and Henson Recording Studios in

Los Angeles Los Angeles, often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, most populous city in the U.S. state of California, and the commercial, Financial District, Los Angeles, financial, and Culture of Los Angeles, ...

. ;Personnel *Jim Annunziato – vocal recording *BeatGeek – producer,

songwriter A songwriter is a person who creates musical compositions or writes lyrics for songs, or both. The writer of the music for a song can be called a composer, although this term tends to be used mainly in the classical music genre and film scoring. ...

, instruments & programming *Josh Gudwin – vocal recording, vocal editor *

– songwriter * Kuk Harrell – vocal producer, vocal recording,

background vocals A backing vocalist is a singer who provides vocal harmony with the lead vocalist or other backing vocalists. A backing vocalist may also sing alone as a lead-in to the main vocalist's entry or to sing a counter-melody. Backing vocalists are u ...

* Jimmy Joker – producer, songwriter * AJ Junior – songwriter * Nadir "RedOne" Khayat – producer, songwriter, vocal editor, vocal arranger, recording engineer, instruments & programming *

–

lead vocalist The lead vocalist in popular music is typically the member of a group or band whose voice is the most prominent melody in a performance where multiple voices may be heard. The lead singer sets their voice against the accompaniment parts of t ...

*Trevor Muzzy –

audio mixer A mixing console or mixing desk is an electronic device for mixing audio signals, used in sound recording and reproduction and sound reinforcement systems. Inputs to the console include microphones, signals from electric or electronic instr ...

recording engineer An audio engineer (also known as a sound engineer or recording engineer) helps to produce a recording or a live performance, balancing and adjusting sound sources using equalization, dynamics processing and audio effects, mixing, reproducti ...

*Chris "TEK" O'Ryan – vocal editor, recording engineer *Jeanette Olsson – background vocals *Geraldo "Teddy Sky" Sandell – songwriter

Charts

Weekly charts

Year-end charts

Certifications

Release history

References

{{Jennifer Lopez songs Jennifer Lopez songs 2011 singles Song recordings produced by RedOne Songs written by RedOne Songs written by Bilal Hajji Dance-pop songs 2010 songs 2011 songs Island Records singles Music videos directed by Paul Hunter (director) Song recordings produced by Kuk Harrell Songs written by Geraldo Sandell Songs written by AJ Junior Songs written by Jimmy Thörnfeldt