Songfacts®:

• Most SOS songs are musical distress signals, often sent when love is in peril. Rihanna's "SOS" and Abba's "S.O.S." are examples. But in this hook-up between Victoria Monét and Usher, SOS stands for "Sex On Sight." It's a steamy tune where they plan their rendezvous - their libidos are in distress, but they won't be for long. Monét described the song as exploring "the urgency you feel when you need some love, physical touch and quality attention."
• Before the song was released, Monét revealed on Instagram that it would be called "SOS," and let her followers guess what it stands for. None of them guessed correctly; one fan took a stab and guessed "Stuck on Stupid."
• The song was produced by DJ Camper, who added horn sections to the track after Usher's parts were recorded. Camper's other productions include "Love Yourself" by Mary J. Blige and "ICU" by Coco Jones.
• Leading up to this collaboration, Victoria Monét was part of a tribute to Usher at the BET Awards. They started working together on another song, but when Usher arrived at the studio, Monét was working on "SOS."
  
  "I just had the hook only, so he was like, 'Let me hear what you working on,'" Monét told Apple Music. "I was nervous. I play it and then after the hook goes off he starts mumbling a melody. I was like, 'hmmmm.' Me and DJ Camper, the producer, looked at each other we were like, 'Do you want to just go in, maybe try some stuff?' So he goes in the booth and starts this rap part. He comes out, we write a few lyrics to that, then he has to go jet-setting somewhere. He finishes his parts in Atlanta. It felt so special and so organic.
• The single is part of Monét's Jaguar II Deluxe project, an expanded version of her debut album, Jaguar II, originally released in 2023 as a follow-up to her EP Jaguar. It continues Monét's trend of using clever acronyms in her song titles, following previous releases like "F.U.C.K." (Friend You Can Keep).
• Victoria Monét had a breakthrough year in 2024, with Grammy wins for Best New Artist and Best R&B Album (Jaguar II). She was 35 when "SOS" was released; Usher was 10 years older but could still bring the heat.
• Monét and Usher get hot and heavy in the music video, which looks like one of those sex-drenched fragrance commercials. Usher is a family man and married his longtime girlfriend, Jennifer Goicoechea, a few months earlier, but he has a long history of on-screen chemistry with beautiful women in music videos. Examples:
  
  "My Boo" with Alicia Keys
  "Lil Freak" with Nicki Minaj
  "Don't Waste My Time" with Ella Mai
  "Boyfriend" with Keke Palmer