the track. Monica commented about the song in a 1998 interview with MTV News: "'The First Night' is not an experience of mine, but it's a record that Jermaine Dupri produced, and of whom I've known a long time...It is basically about a guy making an approach towards a woman on the first date." Chart performance "The First Night" became Monica's sixth top ten entry and second consecutive number-one hit on the US Billboard Hot 100, reaching the top of the charts in the week of October 3, 1998. It replaced "I Don't Want to Miss a Thing" by Aerosmith which had held the top spot from September 5 to September 26, and followed Monica's first chart topper "The Boy Is Mine" (1998), her duet with Brandy. "The First Night" was replaced by Barenaked Ladies's "One Week" after two weeks at number one, only to reclaim the top of the charts for another three weeks in October 1998. On Billboards component charts, it spent six weeks at number-one on the Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Singles & Tracks and became Monica's first entry on the Dance Club Songs chart, also reaching the top spot. Internationally, "The First Night" was less successful though it still ranks among Monica's highest and latest-charting singles to date. It reached top ten of the singles charts in Canada, the United Kingdom, and Flemish region of Belgium, while entering the top 20 in New Zealand, and the top 30 in Australia, Iceland, Ireland, the Netherlands, and Scotland, as well as on a composite European Hot 100 Singles chart. In the United Kingdom, the song became her second chart topper on the UK R&B Singles. In Canada, it also peaked at number 15 on RPMs Dance/Urban chart. With sales in excess of 1.0 million copies and a 20 week-stay in the top 40 of the Billboard Hot 100, "The First Night" was certified platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA).Billboard ranked it 18th on its Hot 100 year-end listing and 19th on its Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Singles & Tracks year-end chart. In 1999, it finished 26 on Billboards Hot 100 decade-end chart. In 2018, the magazine ranked it 361th on its 60th Anniversary all-time chart. Music video Monica reteamed with "The Boy Is Mine" director Joseph Kahn to produce a music video for "The First Night." Filming took place in the Bradbury Building in downtown Los Angeles, California, a