Mine" was written by Brandy Norwood, LaShawn Daniels, Japhe Tejeda, Fred Jerkins III, and his brother Rodney "Darkchild" Jerkins. Musically, the song has been described as "R&B-pop." Written in thirty-two-bar form, "The Boy Is Mine" starts off with a twinkling yet stormy synthesized harp line, produced through the harp setting of a keyboard. When the two protagonists initiate a conversation that depicts their first meeting as rivals, the track adds a pulsing beat and a countermelody of cello strings before the chorus kicks in. Similar to McCartney and Jackson's "The Girl Is Mine", Jerkins and his team structured "The Boy Is Mine" with spaces. During the constructing of the lyrics, they settled on a call and response form, giving each singer two bars a piece to sing. According to the sheet music published at Musicnotes.com by Sony/ATV Music Publishing, the song is set in the time signature of common time, with a tempo of 93 beats per minute. Written in the key of C minor, it follows a chord progression of Fm9–Cm9, and the vocals span from G3 to F4. The song's lyrics chronicle a catfight between two young women who try to convince each other that they are the object of a man's affection. On the track, each trades increasingly escalating remarks about how the other must be mistaken, jealous or delusional about her importance to the man in question. The chorus runs as follows: "You need to give it up, had about enough, it's not hard to see, the boy is mine." Critics noted that the lyrics almost take on the heated fell of a political debate or even a reality show." Critical reception The song has garnered positive reviews from music critics. AllMusic editor Stephen Thomas Erlewine ranked the duet among the best songs on both album, Never Say Never (1998) and The Boy Is Mine (1998). Larry Flick from Billboard called it a "surprisingly subdued, ultimately sleek and soulful jam." He added, "Joined by fellow jeep ingénue Monica, TV's "Moesha" reveals a markedly matured style and a far more flexible range. Meanwhile, Monica whets appetites for her own forthcoming disc with a deliciously diva-driven performance that is rife with subtext." He complimented the producers for dressing the singers in "plush synths and quietly insinuating beats that will have seasoned listeners reminiscing about the heyday of Barry White and the Love Unlimited Orchestra. This isn't the obviously