Too Little Too Late

"Too Little Too Late" is a song by American singer JoJo from her second studio album, The High Road (2006). It was written by Billy Steinberg, Josh Alexander and Ruth Anne Cunningham, and produced by the former two with Da Family Records founder Vincent Herbert. The song was released as the album's lead single on July 24, 2006. A power ballad, "Too Little Too Late" is a pop and R&B breakup song about a girl who struggles about dealing with her first love as she refuses to reconcile with her ex boyfriend despite his efforts to convince her. Its theme about an unsuccessful relationship drew comparisons to JoJo's 2004 debut single, "Leave (Get Out)". Alexander began writing the song on his own before being joined by Steinberg and Cunningham to complete it. Although Cunningham always envisioned the song being recorded by JoJo, the songwriters had considered offering "Too Little Too Late" to American girl group The Pussycat Dolls. After learning that the Blackground Records was recruiting new material for JoJo, it was forwarded to the label two years after it had been written. JoJo decided to record "Too Little Too Late" to express how much she had matured since the release of her self titled debut album in 2004, and personally selected the track to be the album's first single. The song earned positive reviews from music critics, who praised its composition, mature themes and JoJo's vocal performance; some critics and media publications included it on their rankings of the best breakup songs. Commercially, the song was an international success, reaching the top six in six countries in addition to the United States. When "Too Little Too Late" rose from number 66 to number three on the Billboard Hot 100 chart, it broke singer Mariah Carey's record for the largest jump to a top three spot in the chart's history, which Carey had previously achieved with her 2001 single "Loverboy". The record was ultimately later broken by Kelly Clarkson's "My Life Would Suck Without You", which jumped from number 97 to number one on the issue dated February 7, 2009. "Too Little Too Late" remains JoJo's most commercially successful single to date. Directed by Chris Robinson, the song's music video features a soccer theme, inspired by both JoJo's appreciation for the sport and her relationship with then boyfriend Freddy Adu, a professional soccer player. Soccer player Mike Zaher, junior defender for the UCLA Bruins at the time, portrays JoJo's boyfriend in the music video, which also features appearances by the rest of the soccer team.

"Too Little Too Late" was written by songwriters Billy Steinberg and Josh Alexander, and singer songwriter Ruth Anne Cunningham. Steinberg identified "Too Little Too Late" as one of the few songs in his career to which he contributed only after a portion of it had been written, with Alexander introducing the song to him after he had already conceived its title, as well as some of the ballad's lyrics and melody, admitting that Steinberg essentially "helped him finish writing that song and that lyric." Born in Ireland, "Too Little Too Late" was one of the first songs Cunningham was hired to write professionally after moving to Los Angeles, California from Dublin at the age of 17. Cunningham's manager at the time, Eamonn Maguire, had introduced her to Steinberg a few weeks after she relocated from Ireland. After hearing Cunningham perform one of her original songs, Steinberg invited her to co write "Too Little Too Late", which they successfully completed by the following day during a writing session with Alexander. Upon finishing the song, Cunningham felt that it was most suitable for JoJo but the songwriters lacked the necessary contacts and resources to forward it to her at the time. Writing the song in a more urban contemporary style was a conscious decision the songwriters made after realizing pop rock songs they had written for artists such as FeFe Dobson and The Veronicas were not being particularly embraced by contemporary radio stations in the United States; Steinberg elaborated, "I enjoy writing in all different styles. But I particularly enjoy hearing my songs on the radio, and these days pop radio is playing much more urban So there’s a lot more gratification in writing a song for an artist like JoJo that radio embraces." The singer claimed that she wanted to record the song as soon as she heard it for the first time, elaborating, "When my team heard that song, they knew I could hit the sweet spot, musically and in terms of subject matter." According to Vibe, the overall more mature, personal sentiment of the album prompted her to record "Too Little Too Late", having experienced both her first love and first heartbreak since the release of her self titled debut album. The song was recorded at both Cryptic Studios in Los Angeles, California and Sony Music Studios in New York, New York. The songwriters later returned to the studio to co write a second song for the album with JoJo herself, titled "How to Touch a Girl". "Too Little Too Late" was ultimately released as the lead single from The High Road on August 15, 2006, via the Da Family/Blackground/Universal Records. "Get It Poppin'" was released as the single's B side. A CD single was released in Europe that includes an instrumental version, two remixes produced by Full Phatt, and the music video. breakup song about a girl ending a relationship with a boy who has mistreated her; she refuses to resume or salvage their relationship even though he begs her for a second chance. Performed at a moderately slow tempo of 80 beats per minute, A power ballad, Kelefa Sanneh, music journalist for The New York Times, observed that production wise, the single features "airy synthesizers and synthetic sounding strings" as opposed to loud guitars. while her vocal range on the track spans three octaves, from D3 to E6. Contributing to HuffPost, Sam Lansky concurred that the single is "more restrained but no less bitter" than "Leave (Get Out)" while remaining "a guitar driven sigh of impotent resignation." Musically, JoJo identified "Too Little Too Late" as a pop song into which R&B elements had been incorporated using various harmonies and chord progressions, "but still kept it rock in the hook when it explodes." Instrumentally, the track also incorporates both acoustic and electric guitars. realizing she is stronger on her own despite sometimes experiencing temptations to relent due to the fact that her former partner continues to know "all the right things to say". Identified as a breakup anthem, "Too Little Too Late" features an empowering message to which most women can relate, despite their age. Lyrically, the song explores some mature concepts, such as the line "you don't like me, you just like the chase." with JoJo repeating the refrain "you know it's just too little, too late" several times throughout the song. People's Julia Emmanuele compared this line to an Instagram caption. The Boston Globe's Maura Johnston described the song as "chiding" in tone, while Sam Willett of Consequence of Sound described its mood as "sassy" and a "slap in the face". Describing it as simultaneously "a hate track" and "a heartbreak track", Jane Hu, a music critic for Medium, compared the song to Whitney Houston's "It’s Not Right but It’s Okay" (1999) as though it "were sung by a 15 year old." Believing that "art predicted life" when she was first introduced to the track, JoJo explained, "when I started dating a few years later, I wondered if those songwriters hadn’t instinctively picked up on something.”

"Too Little Too Late" received positive reviews from music critics. Entertainment Weekly's Leah Greenblatt cited "Too Little Too Late" as an example of "the best songwriting a major label budget can buy", while Billboard identified the song as a track "that can dwell comfortably on both the pop and AC charts", appealing to "listeners of all ages." Similarly, Amazon. ca's Tammy La Gorce described the song as "addictive but not over the top". Another Billboard critic felt that the song was better than most singles playing on the radio at the time, lauding it as a track that "provides desperately needed balance to a top 40 landscape that is lacking a lot in the way of singable melodies." The writer also praised JoJo's vocal maturity, concluding, "With so many disappointing 'event' singles on the airwaves, radio needs this record." Contributing to Rolling Stone, music critic Jenny Eliscu wrote that the ballad demonstrates JoJo's "nuanced command of how to work an R&B; arpeggio like a pro." Similarly, People's Oliver Jones wrote that the singer "finds her musical comfort zone" singing "Too Little Too Late". Crowning the song one of the best 10 "Feel Good Break Up Songs" in 2007, Slice contributor Nicolle Weeks joked that nothing is "more humbling than a twerpy 15 year old who can concisely summarize the way I feel about my stunted relationship". In a more lukewarm review, Evan Sawdey from PopMatters described the track as "appropriately melodramatic," drawing similarities between it and JoJo's debut single "Leave (Get Out)" only "without the angry chorus". Sawdey described the song as "something that Alanis Morissette might have recorded for her last I'm no longer angry and therefore am content with plain ballads album." In 2007, "Too Little Too Late" earned JoJo a Boston Music Award for Female Vocalist of the Year. Cunningham won an ASCAP songwriting award for her contributions to the song. AwesomenessTV's Alexis Joy called the song "terrific" and "our go to #Throwback song!". In 2016, AXS ranked "Too Little Too Late" JoJo's second best song, believing that its popularity eclipsed that of "Leave (Get Out)". In 2016, GQ's Lauren Larson crowned "Too Little Too Late" the "breakup ballad of the decade." The Odyssey ranked "Too Little Too Late" their fifth most empowering break up song.

"Too Little Too Late" remains JoJo's biggest hit to date. "Too Little Too Late" appeared on both Billboards pop and adult contemporary charts, "Too Little Too Late" initially debuted at number 13 on the Bubbling Under Hot 100 Singles the week of August 19, 2006, topping the chart the week after. The following week, it jumped to the Billboard Hot 100 at number 90. In its second week on the chart, "Too Little Too Late" moved from number 66 to number three due to a 121,000 increase in digital downloads, becoming the largest jump into the top three spot in Billboard history. This broke the record previously set by American singer Mariah Carey for her song "Loverboy" (2001), It is her first and so far only single to make it to the top 10 of the Hot 100 chart. The song remains her highest charting single on the chart. Additionally, the song peaked at number two on Mediabase. The single sold 821,000 digital downloads as of March 2007. By October 2011, "Too Little Too Late" had sold over one million copies. "Too Little Too Late" achieved success worldwide, peaking within the top 10 in six other countries outside the United States. the song is credited with launching Cunningham's songwriting career. Before deciding on soccer, JoJo considered featuring American football in the video until Robinson convinced her that soccer would have more universal appeal due to being "the biggest sport in the world." The video was filmed in spring 2006 during the playoffs. was cast as JoJo's boyfriend David in the music video. Though he was initially only intended to be featured as an extra, JoJo personally selected Zaher to play the role of her boyfriend in the video after he was screen tested. though both denied that the music video's plot had anything to do with this.

JoJo's first scheduled performance of the single was during the Miss Teen USA 2006, which aired on August 15, 2006. Mehek Seyid, a writer for Live in Limbo, reviewed the singer's rendition at the Mod Club in Toronto as having "attitude and confidence that defined the Billboard hit [when it] first circulated in the 2000s." In January 2017, JoJo sang verses of "Too Little Too Late" with elementary school choir the PS22 Chorus. JoJo aperformed the song throughout her "Mad Love Tour". Reviewing her performance at the O2 Academy Islington, Attitude wrote that JoJo's rendition of "Too Little Too Late" is a "reminder of the pipes that made JoJo one of pop's most promising young stars". The Atlanta Journal Constitution Jewel Wicker called her live rendition one of the show's "great moments". In late October 2007, Daniel Rossen of Grizzly Bear recorded a version of the song in honor of bandmate Ed Droste's 29th birthday. Musician Daniel Rossen, one of the two lead vocalists of the band Grizzly Bear, covered "Too Little Too Late" live in concert in February 2009. Bandmate Ed Droste's wanted Rossen to deliver the cover "very seriously, as if he really meant all those lyrics". Stereogum described Rossen's rendition as "great, dusty and hazy and hooky".

Region Date Format Label(s) Ref. (Reference) United States July 24, 2006 Contemporary hit radio Blackground Records, Blackground, Universal Motown Records, Universal Motown Rhythmic contemporary radio New Zealand August 15, 2006 Digital download Blackground United States September 12, 2006 Blackground September 25, 2006Hot adult contemporary radioBlackground Records, Blackground, Universal Motown Records, Universal Motown Germany November 10, 2006 CD single Edel United Kingdom January 8, 2007 Mercury