She’s a solo artist, a group lead, the bass player on most OutKast albums, and vocalist on every TLC album. Monica coasted on those wins until the following summer, when her next hit single revved up at radio: the Darryl Simmons-assisted “Why I Love You So Much.” Even with some “Cleotha” in her voice, she still reaffirms her girlhood on a bridge as sweet as the rainbow swirl-pop on the single’s artwork.īy the way, you cannot discuss Miss Thang without discussing its secret weapon, Debra Killings. Their combined stats resulted in dual belt-notches for Monica: two Top 10 pop and #1 R&B singles for the marketing push of one. Moreover, pairing the hip-hop “Like This” with the pop-friendly “Before You Walk Out” was shrewd. They wrote it with Andrea Martin for Toni Braxton’s Secrets album, but it became huge for Monica.

On the flipside of that double A-side single was the more chilled-out affair, “Before You Walk Out of My Life.” This singalong favorite came courtesy of Danish team Soulshock & Karlin. The single’s All Star Remix rocked even harder, swapping Malik’s verse for a more gutter one from Queensbridge duo Mobb Deep. Malik laughs off her ultimatum with a melodic 24-bar verse that rides the beat and gives respect to the Slick Rick classic “Mona Lisa” all at once. The bassy banger found Monica warning a non-committal beau if their relationship didn’t solidify, “I can’t wait around…I’m gonna move along!” Rapper Mr.

The next offering, “Like This and Like That,” slid nonchalantly onto radio in the fall. It paid off though, yielding a platinum single right out of the gate. That was pretty gutsy to lead with a Jeep-rocker about enforcing personal boundaries when you’re on your monthly cycle. That introductory single from Monica’s triple-platinum debut Miss Thang charted #2 on the Billboard Hot 100 and #1 Billboard R&B, making her the youngest female artist ever to achieve the latter.

Monica why i love you so much what year