When I Met You (Fantasia song)

Backed by bass, harmonica, and an organ, the mid-tempo, R&B and pop song's lyrics focus on finding love again in the wake of past heartbreak.

Music critics responded positively to "When I Met You", praising Fantasia's vocal performance and influences incorporated from earlier R&B artists.

Directed by Derek Blanks, the single's accompanying music video features Fantasia's daughter Zion, who plays a younger version of her mother; husband Kendall Taylor and Kairo Whitfield, son of The Real Housewives of Atlanta cast member Shereé Whitfield, also appear in the video as Fantasia's love interests.

Fair, who played the bass, harmonica, and piano, also arranged and produced Fantasia's vocals while acting as the conductor of the string section.

[1] RCA executives had originally intended to release "When I Met You" as the second single from Fantasia's fifth studio album, The Definition Of... (2016).

PopCrush's Matthew Scott Donnelly identified the single as an "early '90s benevolent R&B-pop" song that reveals "how a relationship restored [Fantasia's] sense of self".

The track was selected as one of the highlights from The Definition Of... by a reviewer for the music website You Know I Got Soul, who praised Fantasia's vocals and her how she blended in influences from legendary R&B artists.

[10] The Boombox's Amber McKynzie commended Fantasia for "bring[ing] the definition of love to life with this jubilant ballad".

[11] The music video for "When I Met You", directed by American photographer Derek Blanks, was filmed on Christmas Day 2016, around the same time Fantasia and Taylor renewed their wedding vows.

[14] The music video was released on January 27, 2017, and stars Fantasia's daughter Zion as a younger version of herself and Taylor as her primary love interest.

[7] The video begins with a short sample of Fantasia's song "Crazy", another track from The Definition Of..., accompanied by images from a high school yearbook.

[7][12][13] The adult version of Fantasia is costumed in 1990s fashion, such as hoop earrings, a choker, and a plaid shirt,[16] as well as a hairstyle reminiscent of American singer T-Boz.