Be Here

Recorded in 2001 and 2002 for Instant Vintage, with Raphael Saadiq joined by D'Angelo on guest vocals. Saadiq wrote the song with Glenn Standridge, Bobby Ozuna, and Michael Archer, and produced it during the album sessions across Los Angeles, Atlanta, Oakland, Sacramento, Cincinnati, Huntsville, and Burbank studios. Released by Universal in 2002, Be Here was the lead single from Saadiq's debut solo album Instant Vintage. The D'Angelo collaboration linked two central figures from late-1990s and early-2000s soul and earned Grammy nominations for R&B song and urban-alternative performance. Be Here remains one of the signature tracks from Instant Vintage and a concise example of Saadiq's gospeldelic solo sound. Its collaboration with D'Angelo kept the track prominent in discussions of early-2000s soul and Saadiq's transition from group member and producer to solo artist.