"The Roof (Back in Time)" is a song by American singer-songwriter Mariah Carey, taken from her sixth studio album, Butterfly (1997).

The song was written and produced by Carey and Trackmasters, and is built around a sample from "Shook Ones (Part II)" (1995) by American hip hop duo Mobb Deep.

Due to the song's limited release, "The Roof" did not chart in most major music markets, with the exception of The Netherlands and the United Kingdom, where it peaked at numbers 63 and 87, respectively.

In 2020, Carey revealed that the song was about her relationship with New York Yankees shortstop Derek Jeter, whom she first kissed on the roof of his apartment building.

[1] On April 14, 2022, Carey revealed a re-recorded and re-imagined version of the song, titled "The Roof (When I Feel the Need)" for her course on MasterClass.

[4] Author Chris Nickson felt the song was extremely important for Carey's musical transition, writing "Lyrically, this was some of her best work ever, the melody slinky and overtly sexy, confirmation – as if any was needed at this point!

"[6] A reviewer from Music Week commented, "Moving on from the more traditional-sounding ballad "Butterfly", she reverts to the R&B flavour of its more successful predecessor, "Honey", with a cut that greater reflects the edgier feel of her current album.

"[7] Rich Juzwiak from Slant Magazine wrote "Little more than yearning, kissing, and remembering happens during the course of 'The Roof', a rough-enough R&B revision of Mobb Deep's 'The Shook Ones.'

As the B-side to "Fly Away (Butterfly Reprise)", the Mobb Deep mix peaked at number 25 on the Record Mirror Club Chart published by Music Week.

[25] "The Roof" reached number 4 on the urban club chart as a standalone entry[26] after the Mobb Deep mix was issued as part of a promotional disc that also featured "Underneath the Stars", "Breakdown" and "Babydoll".

[28][30] Although a commercial release scheduled for March 16, 1998,[7] was canceled,[31] "The Roof" peaked at number 87 on the UK singles chart due to import sales.

[19] On August 28, 2020, Columbia and Legacy Recordings released a digital extended play with all the remixes of "The Roof" as part of the MC30 promotional campaign marking three decades of Carey's career.

[37] Sal Ciquemani, from Slant, gave the video a positive review, complimenting Carey's choice to pair the sultry song with a "sophisticated tale of a sexy rooftop encounter".

"[37] In the conclusion of his review of the video, Ciquemani wrote: "When Carey rises through the limo's sunroof and relishes the warm November rain, she's not drunk on the bubbly but on the memory of past delights.

[39] Carey wore a short beige ensemble and performed light classical dances, alongside a male partner.