Musiq Soulchild was born and raised in Philadelphia and grew up with his family--including eight brothers and sister]. As a teenager, he began plans for a career in music. He released his debut album, ''Aijuswanaseing'' (read: "I Just Want to Sing"), in 2000, which was well-received by critics and audiences. Musiq did much of his own songwriting, and most of the record was produced and co-written by Ivan "Orthodox" Barias and Carvin "Ransum" Haggins, then of the A Touch of Jazz production company headed by Jazzy Jeff, now of Karma Productions. The singles "Just Friends (Sunny)", "Love", and "Girl Next Door" received exposure in America mainly on the more underground music video network, MTV2, as well as on BET. His singles also received a good amount of airplay on urban and urban contemporary radio stations.
In 2002, he released his sophomore album, ''Juslisen'' (read: "Just Listen"), as simply ''Musiq''. He had continued urban and MTV2 success with its singles, "halfcrazy" and "dontchange", the former of which was one of the most played music videos on MTV2 in the summer of 2002 and during the year overall. Both videos also got substantial play during the year on VH1 Soul. The singles had heavily amounts of airplay on both urban and urban contemporary radio sations in 2002. He also gained exposure during that year by opening concerts for Alicia Keys.
In late 2002, Musiq contributed guest vocals to "Break You Off", the first single from The Roots' ''Phrenology'' album. Once again, its video got heavy play on MTV2 and VH1 Soul, as well as on MTV Jams. He also appeared in Santana's song "Nothing at All" which is featured in his 2002 album ''Shaman''.
In 2003, the singles and videos "forthenight" and "whoknows" from his third LP, ''Soulstar''. "forthenight" was one of VH1 Soul's most played videos of 2004, and also had a very successful run on American urban radio stations.
Recently, Musiq Soulchild (who has added the "Soulchild" to his moniker again) has parted ways with Def Soul and has signed with Atlantic Records. A new Musiq Soulchild album is slated for a spring 2007 release. He will be making guest appearances on rapper Lloyd Banks's ''Rotten Apple'', Talib Kweli "Eardrum", Black Ice "The Death of Willie Lynch", pay tribute to Soul music legends Earth Wind and Fire and appear on the soundtrack "Daddy's Little Girls".
Musiq Soulchild released his debut album, Aijuswanaseing (I Just Want to Sing), in 2000, which included the Billboard Hot R&B/Hip Hop single, "Just Friends (Sunny)". Musiq's second single, "Love", spent 22 weeks on the Billboard Hot 100 charts. Musiq’s sophomore album, 2002's Juslisen (Just Listen), debuted at number 1 on the Billboard Charts and went platinum; "Halfcrazy" and "Dontchange". In 2003, Musiq released his 3rd album, Soulstar. It included the singles "Forthenight" and "Whoknows".
After a four year break and changing his management to Solqi Management and his record label to Atlantic Records, in 2007, Musiq's released his fourth album Luvanmusiq (Love and Music) which included the singles "B.U.D.D.Y.", "Teachme", and "Makeyouhappy". His fifth album OnMyRadio was released on December 2, 2008. The lead single, "Radio" has posted on both Musiq's MySpace page and official website.
Musiq Soulchild has had 2 platinum albums, 2 gold albums and 7 hit singles. He has received awards from Billboard, BET, ASCAP, BMI, and Soul Train. Musiq has also earned award nominations from MTV, American Music Awards, NAACP, and 9 Grammy nominations, including 3 for his 2007 album Luvanmusiq. Besides being a successful recording artist, Musiq is notable for his creative and unique way of titling his albums and songs by ignoring the rules of capitalization, punctuation and spelling.
He recently performed at the Antigua & Barbuda first Romantic Rhythms Music Festival in the Caribbean which was held from June 12-15,2008 which features legendary artists such as Kenny Rogers, Brian McKnight, Lionel Richie, Keyshia Cole, Maxi Priest, Destra, Heather Headly, Shaggy and many other local artist from the island including The Burning Flames.
He has also made guest appearances on rapper Lloyd Banks's album Rotten Apple, Talib Kweli's Eardrum, The Roots's Phrenology (album), Black Ice's The Death of Willie Lynch and pays tribute to soul music legends Earth Wind and Fire, appearing on the soundtrack to Tyler Perry's movie Daddy's Little Girls. And Ice Cube announced that Musiq will appear on his upcoming album, Raw Footage. He also lent a song from his latest album Luvanmusiq to the soundtrack for Perry's later movie Why Did I Get Married?. He then recorded a remake of Arrested Development's song "People Everyday" with British rapper Estelle for the soundtrack to Tyler Perry's Meet the Browns entitled "People Everyday (Metamorphosis Mix)".
Outside of music, he has been featured in television and print ads for McDonald's, Nike, Inc., Coca-Cola, Levi Strauss & Co. and The Gap. He also made a special appearance in The CW's #1 comedy The Game on Monday, October 29, 2007.
The Girl Next Door
Musiq Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
If I would've knew the girl next door
Would've been you
I would've been nice to you
A little more kind to you
I would've looked twice at you
If I would've knew the girl next door
Would've been you
Depending on how close we was
By now we would be so in love
Girl I'm so surprised to see
The young, fine woman that you grew up to be
Your body's banging like a 400SE
Even your attitude flows pleasantly
I remember when you was just Tonya Hall
A girl that likes to play basketball
As far as I was concern, you were one of my boys
I never cared about my sex or yours but
If I would've knew the girl next door
Would've been you
I would've been nice to you
A little more kind to you
I would've looked twice at you
If I would've knew the girl next door
Would've been you
I probably would've shared my grub
Depending on how close we was
By now we would be so in love
I'm happy to see
That you're home from school
And I want to let you know that I'm proud of you
Even when we was younger I admired you
That's why I always used to pick fights with you
I remember when we used to call each other names
Mimic old TV shows and play those childish games
Like I was your Tarzan and you were my Jane
Can we do that nowadays?
If I would've knew the girl next door
Would've been you
I would've been nice to you
A little more kind to you
I would've looked twice at you
If I would've knew the girl next door
Would've been you
I probably would've shared my grub
Depending on how close we was
By now we would be so in love
If I would've knew the boy next door
Would've been you
I would've been nice to you
Spent a little time with you
I would've dressed cuter too
If I would've knew the boy next door
Would've been you
I would've been on your team
When we played hide and seek
Instead of you chasing me
You're so fly now
(Girl stop playing)
I didn't know you were that guy now
(Naw I ain't)
Phat car, phat life
Impressed I am
Oh maybe we could jam like we used to baby
If I would've knew the girl next door
Would've been you
I would've been nice to you
A little more kind to you
I would've looked twice at you
If I would've knew the girl next door
Would've been you
I probably would've shared my grub
Depending on how close we was
By now we would be so in love
If I would've knew the boy next door
Would've been you
If I would've knew the girl next door
Would've been you
If I would've knew the boy next door
Would've been you
If I would've knew the girl next door
Would've been you
Oh I would've spent a little more time getting to know you
Baby I would've been more gentle
If I would've knew the girl next door
Would've been you
I would've been nice to you
A little more kind to you
I would've looked twice at you
If I would've knew the girl next door
Would've been you
I probably would've shared my grub
Depending on how close we was
By now we would be so in love
The song "Girl Next Door" by Musiq begins with the thought of the singer wishing that he had known the girl next door was actually the woman he is now seeing. The song is a reflection of how the singer should have been treating this woman better from the start. The lyrics repeat this idea throughout the song, as the singer admits that he would have been "nice," "kind," and "shared his grub" with her if he had only known who she really was. He is surprised and impressed by how she has grown into a "young, fine woman" with a great body and an excellent attitude.
The song is packed with nostalgia as the singer reflects on his memories of growing up with this girl, even though he did not know her as anything more than a friend. He admires her for everything she has accomplished since they were kids, including finishing school. The lyrics also suggest that the singer was sometimes mean to the girl next door, but he admits that he was always impressed by her and, in some ways, had a crush on her even when they were young.
The song "Girl Next Door" by Musiq is a reminder of how we don't always notice the people around us until it's too late. It encourages listeners to appreciate the people in their lives, even if they don't realize how important they are until much later. Additionally, the song highlights the consequences of missed opportunities, and how failure to pay attention to someone can lead to missing out on a chance for love.
Line by Line Meaning
Oh, hmm, hmm, hmm, hmm
Introduction lyrics to the song
If I would've knew the girl next door
Would've been you
I would've been nice to you
A little more kind to you
I would've looked twice at you
If I would've knew the girl next door
Would've been you
I probably would've shared my grub
Depending on how close we was
By now we would be so in love
The singer regrets not knowing that the girl next door was going to be his love interest as he would have treated her better and shared with her more. They could have had a relationship by now.
Girl I'm so surprised to see
The young, fine woman that you grew up to be
Your body's banging like a 400SE
Even your attitude flows pleasantly
I remember when you was just Tonya Hall
A girl that likes to play basketball
As far as I was concern, you were one of my boys
I never cared about my sex or yours but
The singer is surprised by how stunning the girl next door became, as she grew up. He remembers her as the girl who liked playing basketball. He used to treat her like one of the boys, and he did not consider her gender at the time.
I'm happy to see
That you're home from school
And I want to let you know that I'm proud of you
Even when we was younger I admired you
That's why I always used to pick fights with you
I remember when we used to call each other names
Mimic old TV shows and play those childish games
Like I was your Tarzan and you were my Jane
Can we do that nowadays?
The singer is happy that the girl next door is back from school, and he tells her that he is proud of her. He admits to picking fights with her when they were younger because he admired her. They used to play childish games with each other, like imagining they were Tarzan and Jane. He wonders if they can still do those things now.
If I would've knew the boy next door
Would've been you
I would've been nice to you
Spent a little time with you
I would've dressed cuter too
If I would've knew the boy next door
Would've been you
I would've been on your team
When we played hide and seek
Instead of you chasing me
The singer starts to imagine what would have happened if he knew that the boy next door was going to be him. He believes he would have treated him better, spent more time with him, and tried to look better. He would be on his team, rather than just running away from him when they played hide and seek.
You're so fly now
(Girl stop playing)
I didn't know you were that guy now
(Naw I ain't)
Phat car, phat life
Impressed I am
Oh maybe we could jam like we used to baby
The singer is impressed by how impressive the girl next door's life became. He suggests that they could reconnect and hang out like they used to.
If I would've knew the girl next door
Would've been you
I would've been nice to you
A little more kind to you
I would've looked twice at you
If I would've knew the girl next door
Would've been you
I probably would've shared my grub
Depending on how close we was
By now we would be so in love
The chorus repeats, where the singer wishes he knew the girl next door was going to be his love interest. He would have treated her better, and they could have been in love by now.
If I would've knew the boy next door
Would've been you
If I would've knew the girl next door
Would've been you
If I would've knew the boy next door
Would've been you
If I would've knew the girl next door
Would've been you
Oh I would've spent a little more time getting to know you
Baby I would've been more gentle
The singer reconciles that if he knew the boy or girl next door was going to be his love interest, he would have spent more time getting to know them and treated them with more gentleness.
Lyrics © Universal Music Publishing Group
Written by: EDWARD PRINCE GREEN, CARVIN HAGGINS, ANDRE HARRIS, TAALIB JOHNSON, JILL H SCOTT
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
@maramara9694
Oh, hmm, hmm, hmm, hmm
If I would've knew the girl next door
Would've been you
I would've been nice to you
A little more kind to you
I would've looked twice at you
If I would've knew the girl next door
Would've been you
I probably would've shared my grub
Depending on how close we was
By now we would be so in love
Girl I'm so surprised to see
The young, fine woman that you grew up to be
Your body's banging like a 400SE
Even your attitude flows pleasantly
I remember when you was just Tonya Hall
A girl that likes to play basketball
As far as I was concern, you were one of my boys
I never cared about my sex or yours but
If I would've knew the girl next door
Would've been you
I would've been nice to you
A little more kind to you
I would've looked twice at you
If I would've knew the girl next door
Would've been you
I probably would've shared my grub
Depending on how close we was
By now we would be so in love
I'm happy to see
That you're home from school
And I want to let you know that I'm proud of you
Even when we was younger I admired you
That's why I always used to pick fights with you
I remember when we used to call each other names
Mimic old TV shows and play those childish games
Like I was your Tarzan and you were my Jane
Can we do that nowadays?
If I would've knew the girl next door
Would've been you
I would've been nice to you
A little more kind to you
I would've looked twice at you
If I would've knew the girl next door
Would've been you
I probably would've shared my grub
Depending on how close we was
By now we would be so in love
If I would've knew the boy next door
Would've been you
I would've been nice to you
Spent a little time with you
I would've dressed cuter too
If I would've knew the boy next door
Would've been you
I would've been on your team
When we played hide and seek
Instead of you chasing me
You're so fly now
(Girl stop playing)
I didn't know you were that guy now
(Naw I ain't)
Phat car, phat life
Impressed I am
Oh maybe we could jam like we used to baby
If I would've knew the girl next door
Would've been you
I would've been nice to you
A little more kind to you
I would've looked twice at you
If I would've knew the girl next door
Would've been you
I probably would've shared my grub
Depending on how close we was
By now we would be so in love
If I would've knew the boy next door
Would've been you
If I would've knew the girl next door
Would've been you
If I would've knew the boy next door
Would've been you
If I would've knew the girl next door
Would've been you
Oh I would've spent a little more time getting to know you
Baby I would've been more gentle
If I would've knew the girl next door
Would've been you
I would've been nice to you
A little more kind to you
I would've looked twice at you
If I would've knew the girl next door
Would've been you
I probably would've shared my grub
Depending on how close we was
By now we would be so in love
@vincentsmith5130
One of the best album of the last 25 years. Musiq is underrated. I could listen to this album all day long
@londaramsey3277
I agree with you.. HE A NATURAL TALENT AND HAS BEEN A GIVE THE THE MUSIC WORLD!! I WOULD LOVE TO HEAR MORE OF HIS WORK HOPEFULLY SOON!!
@alecaquino4306
YES!
@Papi.Pharaoh
Unfortunately this type of R&B doesn’t exist anymore and it’s a shame. I’m beyond thankful for music like this. I really appreciate all the real artists that we had back around this time. This was a beautiful time in life early 2000s was magical.
@djones7056
This was a beautiful time in life early 2000's was magical
@elprezidenteclarke5417
indeed it was...
@ryananderson5265
Pre social media when people had to interact with each other...
@johnharris4899
Talented artists ran the late 90s and early 00s
@raysmithpt25
Very beautiful time, i was a teen, miss these days
@c.l.9344
I think the 80s babies miss these times the most.