Carey wrote the lyrics, in which she sings about a guy who takes care of her - a "Sugar Daddy." Carey was married to Sony executive Tommy Mottola from 1993-1998.
Musically, this song is a reworking of the 1984 Cameo hit "Candy." Members of Cameo performed on the track, and the group is listed as a featured artist. Larry Blackmon, the lead singer of Cameo, is also in the video. Carey originally wanted to sample "Firecracker" by The Yellow Magic Orchestra, but her label couldn't get the rights to it in time and "Candy" was used instead. When the sample ended up on Jennifer Lopez's 2001 hit "I'm Real," Carey suspected foul play. J.Lo was signed to Sony Music, Carey's former label that was also run by her ex-husband, Tommy Mottola. She suspected Mottola got wind of her plans and stole the sample to sabotage her single. Confirming her suspicions, the "Firecracker" publishers agreed Carey's team did indeed license usage for the sample first. More signs of Mottola's meddling were revealed when Irv Gotti, who produced her collab with Ja Rule, "If We," for Glitter, admitted Mottola instructed him to produce an identical-sounding track for J.Lo's "I'm Real" remix, which also featured Ja Rule.
This was Carey's first single released by Virgin Records. She left Sony in 2001 and signed a five-album deal with Virgin for $80 million. It didn't work out well, and in early 2002, Virgin paid Carey $28 million to break the contract and leave the label. Later that year, she signed with Island/Def Jam, where she released her next album, Charmbracelet.
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