"Doesn't Really Matter" is a song by American singer Janet Jackson from the soundtrack to the 2000 film Nutty Professor II: The Klumps and her seventh studio album, All for You (2001). It was written and produced by Jackson, Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis. The track was sent to contemporary hit radio in the US on May 23, 2000, after an unmastered version was leaked to several radio stations. It is an upbeat electropop, R&B and dance song with a syncopated drum loop and bassline. Based on a previously discarded poem Jackson wrote, the lyrics are about her film character's love for The Nutty Professor.
The track received generally positive reviews from music critics, who praised its upbeat sound and Jackson's breathy voice. "Doesn't Really Matter" topped the Billboard Hot 100 for three consecutive weeks, becoming the singer's ninth US chart-topper. It was Jackson's 19th single to be certified gold by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA), making her only the third singer, after Madonna and Whitney Houston, to achieve this feat. The song peaked at number five on the UK Singles Chart, becoming Jackson's 15th single to reach the top 10 in the UK. It also peaked within the top 10 in Canada, Denmark, Poland, Italy, and Spain.
The Joseph Kahn-directed music video resembles an abstract, futuristic environment based on Japanese culture. It features an AIBO, a prototype of the Acura CL-X, morphing clothes, and a dance sequence on a tilting platform. Production of the video cost over $2.5 million (equivalent to $ million in ), making it one of the most expensive music videos of all time. To promote the single, Jackson performed it on British television program Top of the Pops and at the 2000 MTV Video Music Awards. The song was also performed during four of the singer's concert tours, and her 2019 Las Vegas residency, Janet Jackson: Metamorphosis.
Background and development
"Doesn't Really Matter" was written and produced by Janet Jackson, Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis as the theme for the Universal Pictures film Nutty Professor II: The Klumps, starring Jackson and actor Eddie Murphy. When asked to contribute a single for the movie's soundtrack, Jackson stated that she would consider if she found an appropriate song. The single would allow Jackson to continue releasing music, while simultaneously devoting time to her film career. To help inspire Jackson, director Peter Segal brought a rough cut of the film to Flyte Tyme Studios where the singer was recording her seventh album, All for You. She decided to write an uptempo love song rather than a ballad, inspired by Segal finding her love for Murphy's unattractive character in the film convincing.
The lyrics of "Doesn't Really Matter" were based on a poem Jackson found which she previously wrote and disposed of. The poem's lyrics were kept intact, although its structure was altered. Jackson wrote further lyrics for the song during the same night Jam came up with the melody alongside drum programmer Alex Richburg. After an early version of the song was created, Jackson requested Jam and Richburg to add more instrumentation, however Jam decided to record from live to tape after Richburg left the studio. Initially conceived as a "slow melody", Jam chose to increase its tempo.
Two different choruses were written by Jam and Jackson; Jam wrote "Nutty, nutty, nutty, my love for you" while Jackson wrote "Doesn't really matter". They decided to use Jackson's chorus, and include Jam's chorus towards the end of the track. Jackson presented three songs to Segal on May 12, 2000, three days prior to his set deadline for the soundtrack. He chose "Doesn't Really Matter", believing it was a better fit and a "summertime record". A slightly modified version was included on All for You, featuring an alternate introduction and elements from the song's Rockwilder remix.
Composition
"Doesn't Really Matter" is an electropop, R&B, and dance song. Although making using of funk production, common in R&B music at the time of its 2000 release, the track was viewed as an R&B-pop take on lounge music. Its upbeat pop sound is akin to Jackson's 1995 single "Runaway", a stark contrast to the sparse R&B of her previous album, The Velvet Rope. Music critic Jim Farber compared the retro-style melody in "Doesn't Really Matter" to compositions by Burt Bacharach. The production makes use of sparse, programmed percussion.