How to Love
Encyclopedia
"How to Love" is a song by American rapper Lil Wayne
, released as the third single from his ninth studio album, Tha Carter IV
. The song features production from Noel "Detail" Fisher with LaMar and LaNelle Seymour p/k/a Drum Up, and was released as a digital download on June 13, 2011. It was later released to urban contemporary
radio stations on June 24, 2011. The song also makes it his first entry on hot adult contemporary stations, as CJFM-FM
Montreal
began playing it a month later after the single's release. It recently peaked at number 5 on the Billboard Hot 100
, making it his third highest peak on the chart as the primary artist. Lil Wayne performed the song at the 2011 MTV Video Music Awards
.
as "Jam of the Week". In an interview with MTV News, Detail revealed that the video had been written entirely by Wayne himself, and felt that the video would "have a big, big effect, and it's going to shock you because [of] the perspective you might look at it as". He also felt that the video "crosses rap's boundaries" with the song's unusual style, and also stated that "after he showed me the video concept, it's like, 'Yo, dude, we're gonna be at the Country Awards with this record,'... we gonna be sitting next to Taylor Swift
." It is also directed by Chris Robinson
and stars Chanta Patton. Darris Love
and Tristan Wilds
make a cameo appearance. On August 24th the music video for "How To Love" was added on Lil Wayne's VEVO
channel.
The video first shows a young black woman deciding to not get an abortion
and running out of the hospital. Her child is born a girl and lives through tough times with her single mother, due to her father being in jail. When the girl is an adolescent, her mother's boyfriend molests her. When she becomes a teenager, she is promiscuous and becomes a stripper
. A customer from the strip club pays her to have sex with him and she is diagnosed with HIV
. She runs out of the hospital, like her mother at the beginning of the video. The music video then rewinds and shows a different life that the girl could have lived. Her mother would move into her own mother's house and even marry a better man, with her little daughter as flower girl. In the end, the daughter grows up to be smarter and more mature, graduating from school and making her mother and grandmother proud. When she is in the same hospital again awaiting a test result and the doctor tells her she is pregnant, she is happy and hugs her mother, thanking her for teaching how to love.
Lil Wayne
Dwayne Michael Carter, Jr. , better known by his stage name Lil Wayne, is an American rapper. At the age of nine, Lil Wayne joined Cash Money Records as the youngest member of the label, and half of the duo, The B.G.'z, with B.G.. In 1997, Lil Wayne joined the group Hot Boys, which also included...
, released as the third single from his ninth studio album, Tha Carter IV
Tha Carter IV
Tha Carter IV is the ninth studio album by American rapper Lil Wayne, released on August 29, 2011 through Young Money Entertainment, Cash Money Records and Universal Republic Records...
. The song features production from Noel "Detail" Fisher with LaMar and LaNelle Seymour p/k/a Drum Up, and was released as a digital download on June 13, 2011. It was later released to urban contemporary
Urban contemporary
Urban contemporary is a music radio format. The term was coined by the late New York DJ Frankie Crocker in the mid 1970s. Urban contemporary radio stations feature a playlist made up entirely of hip hop/rap, contemporary R&B, pop, electronica such as dubstep and drum and bass and Caribbean music...
radio stations on June 24, 2011. The song also makes it his first entry on hot adult contemporary stations, as CJFM-FM
CJFM-FM
CJFM-FM is an English language Canadian radio station located in Montreal, Quebec. Owned and operated by Astral Media, it broadcasts on 95.9 MHz with an effective radiated power of 41,200 watts using an omnidirectional antenna....
Montreal
Montreal
Montreal is a city in Canada. It is the largest city in the province of Quebec, the second-largest city in Canada and the seventh largest in North America...
began playing it a month later after the single's release. It recently peaked at number 5 on the Billboard Hot 100
Billboard Hot 100
The Billboard Hot 100 is the United States music industry standard singles popularity chart issued weekly by Billboard magazine. Chart rankings are based on radio play and sales; the tracking-week for sales begins on Monday and ends on Sunday, while the radio play tracking-week runs from Wednesday...
, making it his third highest peak on the chart as the primary artist. Lil Wayne performed the song at the 2011 MTV Video Music Awards
2011 MTV Video Music Awards
The 2011 MTV Video Music Awards took place on August 28, at Nokia Theatre in Los Angeles, honoring the best music videos from the previous year. On July 20, the nominees were announced...
.
Content and composition
The song features a slow, "stripped down" production from Noel "Detail" Fisher with LaMar and LaNelle Seymour a/k/a Drum Up, based largely around the sounds of an acoustic guitar and drums. Wayne has said the song is about women who "don't know how to love because there's deep reasons for them not knowing how to love...And what I mean by deep reasons is deep and dark reasons." Furthermore Wayne stated regarding the track that "A lot of people don't open up that can and I figured that I can open up that can of worms and see what happens".Music video
The music video premiered August 23, 2011 on MTV JamsMTV Jams
MTV Jams is a Viacom-owned American hip-hop/urban music video channel that debuted on 1998 as MTVX, then was relaunched in 2002 under its current name...
as "Jam of the Week". In an interview with MTV News, Detail revealed that the video had been written entirely by Wayne himself, and felt that the video would "have a big, big effect, and it's going to shock you because [of] the perspective you might look at it as". He also felt that the video "crosses rap's boundaries" with the song's unusual style, and also stated that "after he showed me the video concept, it's like, 'Yo, dude, we're gonna be at the Country Awards with this record,'... we gonna be sitting next to Taylor Swift
Taylor Swift
Taylor Alison Swift is an American country pop singer-songwriter, musician and actress.In 2006, she released her debut single "Tim McGraw", then her self-titled debut album, which was subsequently certified multi-platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America...
." It is also directed by Chris Robinson
Chris Robinson (director)
Chris Robinson is an American film director working mostly with music videos and commercials. He has directed commercials for brands such as iPod, Coca Cola and Verizon and music videos for songs like "Fallin'" and "You Don't Know My Name" by Alicia Keys, "Roc Boys" by Jay-Z, the grammy nominated...
and stars Chanta Patton. Darris Love
Darris Love
Darris Love is an American actor, most notable for his role as Raymond 'Ray' Alvarado in Nickelodeon's The Secret World of Alex Mack...
and Tristan Wilds
Tristan Wilds
Tristan Paul Mack Wilds is an American actor. He is best known for his roles as Michael Lee on the HBO original drama series The Wire and as Dixon Wilson on the CW drama series 90210.-Life and career:...
make a cameo appearance. On August 24th the music video for "How To Love" was added on Lil Wayne's VEVO
Vevo
Vevo is a music video website. It is a joint venture among Sony Music Entertainment, Universal Music Group, and Abu Dhabi Media with EMI licensing its content to the group without taking an ownership stake. The service was launched officially on December 8, 2009...
channel.
The video first shows a young black woman deciding to not get an abortion
Abortion
Abortion is defined as the termination of pregnancy by the removal or expulsion from the uterus of a fetus or embryo prior to viability. An abortion can occur spontaneously, in which case it is usually called a miscarriage, or it can be purposely induced...
and running out of the hospital. Her child is born a girl and lives through tough times with her single mother, due to her father being in jail. When the girl is an adolescent, her mother's boyfriend molests her. When she becomes a teenager, she is promiscuous and becomes a stripper
Stripper
A stripper is a professional erotic dancer who performs a contemporary form of striptease at strip club establishments, public exhibitions, and private engagements. Unlike in burlesque, the performer in the modern Americanized form of stripping minimizes the interaction of customer and dancer,...
. A customer from the strip club pays her to have sex with him and she is diagnosed with HIV
HIV
Human immunodeficiency virus is a lentivirus that causes acquired immunodeficiency syndrome , a condition in humans in which progressive failure of the immune system allows life-threatening opportunistic infections and cancers to thrive...
. She runs out of the hospital, like her mother at the beginning of the video. The music video then rewinds and shows a different life that the girl could have lived. Her mother would move into her own mother's house and even marry a better man, with her little daughter as flower girl. In the end, the daughter grows up to be smarter and more mature, graduating from school and making her mother and grandmother proud. When she is in the same hospital again awaiting a test result and the doctor tells her she is pregnant, she is happy and hugs her mother, thanking her for teaching how to love.
Critical reception
"How to Love" received generally positive reviews from critics, complimenting the low tone and mellow meaning in the lyrics. Amanda Hensel of PopCrush commended the "new side" displayed by Lil Wayne in the song, stating "we haven’t heard Young Weezy like this before, but if [it] is a result of his new lady friend, we welcome it with open arms. Not that we want the rap master to go all singer-songwriter on us, but this gem shows that even the hardest of exteriors can have a gooey center." It also reached #1 in the Rhythmic Top 40 and two weeks later it returned to that spot.Track listing
Digital singleCharts
| Chart (2011) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| UK R&B (The Official Charts Company) | 20 |
Certifications
| Country | Certifications |
|---|---|
| United States Recording Industry Association of America The Recording Industry Association of America is a trade organization that represents the recording industry distributors in the United States... |
2x Platinum |
Release history
| Country | Date | Format | Label |
|---|---|---|---|
| United States | May 26, 2011 | Digital download Music download A music download is the transferral of music from an Internet-facing computer or website to a user's local computer. This term encompasses both legal downloads and downloads of copyright material without permission or payment... |
Young Money Young Money Entertainment Young Money Entertainment is an American record label founded by rapper Lil Wayne. Young Money's president is Lil Wayne's lifelong friend Mack Maine. The label is an imprint of Cash Money Records and is distributed by Universal Republic Records... , Cash Money Cash Money Records Cash Money Records is a record label founded by brothers Bryan "Birdman" Williams and Ronald "Slim" Williams. Today it operates as a subsidiary of Universal Music Group, and is distributed by Universal Republic Records as of 2011... , Universal Republic |
| May 31, 2011 | Urban contemporary Urban contemporary Urban contemporary is a music radio format. The term was coined by the late New York DJ Frankie Crocker in the mid 1970s. Urban contemporary radio stations feature a playlist made up entirely of hip hop/rap, contemporary R&B, pop, electronica such as dubstep and drum and bass and Caribbean music... airplay |
||
| United Kingdom | June 3, 2011 | Digital download Music download A music download is the transferral of music from an Internet-facing computer or website to a user's local computer. This term encompasses both legal downloads and downloads of copyright material without permission or payment... |
|
| Germany |