"If I Never See Your Face Again" is a song written by Maroon 5 members Adam Levine and James Valentine for Maroon 5's second studio album, It Won't Be Soon Before Long (2007). A remix of the song was recorded with extra verses sung by pop singer Rihanna, and was released as the fourth single from the album instead of the original version. The remix will be included on the re-release of It Won't Be Soon Before Long, and is featured on the re-release of Rihanna's third studio album, Good Girl Gone Bad (2007). The song was produced by Mike Elizondo, Mark "Spike" Stent, and Maroon 5.
The original version of "If I Never See Your Face Again" was complete, but Maroon 5 enlisted Rihanna to record "bits and pieces" because they wanted to, in lead singer Adam Levine's words, "try something different". James Diener, president of A&M/Octone Records, said that Maroon 5 were friends with and fans of Rihanna, having attended some of her performances, and thought that she could help them achieve Levine's goal of turning the song into a "'battle of the sexes'-style duet". Because of the speed of the collaboration, Levine compared the remix of "If I Never See Your Face Again" to his experience working with rapper Kanye West on the song "Heard 'Em Say" (2005), explaining "It sounds cheesy, but if the magic is there, if the chemistry is there, you don't even have to think about it."
Rihanna said she was "honored" to be approached by Maroon 5, one of her favorite bands, and made the song the only collaboration on the re-release of Good Girl Gone Bad because she had always wanted to work with them. She also attributed her enthusiasm for collaborating on the remix to the song's "energy" and "badass" lyrics.
Maroon 5 and Rihanna performed it for the first time live on the MTV show, FNMTV.
"If I Never See Your Face Again" was sent to U.S. mainstream radio on May 13, 2008.
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