R&B has always been a game of voices, but El DeBarge is a whole different vibration. When he dropped the El DeBarge song Lay With You in 2010, the music world was in a weird spot. Autotune was everywhere. Club bangers were the default. Then, out of nowhere, this legendary falsetto returned after sixteen years of silence, legal drama, and personal struggles that would’ve broken most people.
Honestly, nobody knew if El still had "it." Could he still hit those notes? Would he sound like a relic?
The answer came the second the beat dropped on this track. Featuring the "First Lady" of Bad Boy, Faith Evans, the song wasn't just a comeback; it was a masterclass in grown-folks' music. It’s midtempo, it’s silky, and it reminds you why the DeBarge name is essentially royalty in the soul world.
The Story Behind the Collaboration
You’ve gotta understand the context of the Second Chance album. El had been away. A long time. We’re talking nearly two decades since his 1994 project Heart, Mind and Soul. When he walked into the studio with producer Mike City (the genius behind Sunshine Anderson's "Heard It All Before"), the goal wasn't to chase a Drake-style hit. It was to reclaim a throne.
Mike City brought in a groove that felt modern but had that classic "quiet storm" DNA. Pairing El with Faith Evans was a stroke of brilliance. Faith has this gritty, church-reared texture that perfectly balances El's airy, angelic tenor.
They aren't just singing at each other. They’re conversing.
- Release Date: October 25, 2010
- Producer: Michael "Mike City" Flowers
- Writers: Mike City and Ericka J. Coulter
- The Vibe: Sophisticated, late-night, soulful
Most people don't realize how high the stakes were. El was 49 at the time. In the music industry, that’s usually when you start playing the "oldies" circuit. But "Lay With You" managed to climb the Billboard Adult R&B charts, peaking at number 20. It proved that there was still a massive appetite for real singing and bridge-heavy arrangements.
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Why the Song Actually Works
It’s the chemistry. It’s also the restraint.
A lot of R&B duets today feel like two separate files emailed back and forth. You can tell when artists weren't in the same room. But on this track, when Faith comes in for her verse, the transition is seamless. El’s ad-libs in the background—those little yelps and "oohs" he’s famous for—wrap around her voice like a velvet blanket.
The lyrics are straightforward. It’s a song about intimacy, sure, but it’s more about the comfort of a long-term connection. It’s not a "club" hookup song. It’s a "let’s stay in and ignore the world" song.
Breaking Down the Production
Mike City is known for his "thump." He uses these heavy, rounded basslines that give R&B a certain weight. On "Lay With You," he kept the percussion crisp but let the Rhodes piano do the heavy lifting. This gave El plenty of space to breathe.
Interestingly, critics at the time compared it to the work of Marvin Gaye. El has never hidden his obsession with Marvin. He famously wrote "All This Love" hoping Marvin would record it. In this 2010 single, you can hear that "I Want You" era influence—the layered harmonies, the sensual pacing, and that effortless "head voice" that sounds like it’s floating.
The "Second Chance" Era Legacy
Let’s be real. El DeBarge’s journey hasn't been easy. The title of the parent album, Second Chance, wasn't just a marketing gimmick. It was a literal statement. He had just finished a prison sentence and was finally clean.
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When the music video for "Lay With You" dropped in November 2010, fans saw a version of El they hadn't seen in years. He looked healthy. He looked sharp. He was dancing. Seeing him and Faith Evans together in the video felt like a victory lap for 90s soul fans.
It also reminded the younger generation that their favorite rappers—from The Notorious B.I.G. to Ashanti—built their biggest hits on DeBarge samples. Faith Evans herself was married to Biggie, who famously sampled "Stay With Me" for "One More Chance." The layers of history in this one collaboration are deep.
Critical Reception and Chart Impact
The song didn't just please the fans; the critics loved it too. PopMatters and AllMusic both highlighted the track as a standout. It helped the album earn a Grammy nomination for Best R&B Album.
Think about that for a second.
After sixteen years away, he stepped back into the ring and immediately got a Grammy nod. That doesn't happen unless the music is undeniable. "Lay With You" was the anchor that made people take the comeback seriously. It wasn't just nostalgia. It was a high-quality, standalone R&B record that could compete with anything on the radio at the time.
Common Misconceptions About the Track
People often think "Lay With You" was written by El himself because it fits his style so perfectly. In reality, it was Mike City and Ericka Coulter. This shows El's brilliance as an interpreter. He knows how to take someone else's composition and "DeBarge-ify" it until it sounds like it came straight out of his own diary.
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Another thing? People assume this was a "slow jam." It’s actually more of a midtempo "stepper’s" groove. You can't really slow dance to it in the traditional sense, but you can definitely two-step to it at a summer cookout. That versatility is why it still gets play on "Old School" and "Adult Contemporary" stations today.
How to Appreciate the Song Today
If you’re just discovering the El DeBarge song Lay With You, don't just listen to the radio edit. Find the high-quality album version. Pay attention to the vocal stacking in the final minute of the song. The way El and Faith weave their voices together during the fade-out is a masterclass in vocal arrangement.
It's a reminder that real talent doesn't have an expiration date.
To get the most out of this track and the era it represents, here are a few ways to dive deeper:
- Listen for the "DeBargeisms": Identify those tiny vocal runs and breathy "ha-ha" sounds El uses between lines. They are his sonic signature.
- Compare it to the Classics: Queue up "All This Love" or "Time Will Reveal" and then play "Lay With You." Notice how his voice aged into a richer, more soulful place without losing its range.
- Watch the Live Performances: Seek out their live performance from the 2010 Soul Train Awards. The energy between Faith and El on stage is electric and proves the vocals weren't just "studio magic."
- Explore the Samples: Look up how many artists have sampled El DeBarge since 2010. You'll find that this "Second Chance" era sparked a whole new wave of appreciation for his catalog among producers like Drake and DJ Khaled.
The song stands as a bridge between the classic Motown era and the modern R&B landscape. It’s a testament to resilience. More than anything, it's just a vibe that hasn't aged a day since it hit the airwaves.
Next time you need a playlist for a late-night drive or a relaxed Sunday morning, put this on. It’s El DeBarge doing exactly what he was born to do: making the world feel a little bit smoother, one note at a time.