It was released on August 23, , by Columbia Records as the lead single from Rainbow. The song was written by the artists and produced by Carey and DJ Clue , with additional writers being credited for the hook being built around a sample from " Attack of the Name Game " by Stacy Lattisaw. Lyrically, the song describes lovesickness towards an unfaithful partner.
Additionally, it was compared heavily to Carey's hit single " Fantasy ", which also built its hook from a sampled beat. Carey performed "Heartbreaker" live on several international television and award shows, as well as on her concert tours. The video features Carey and her friends visiting a film theater and catching her boyfriend played by Jerry O'Connell on a date with another woman. Carey played herself and a brunette villainess named Bianca Storm, during a physical altercation scene between the two women.
Due to contractual agreements at the time of its filming, Jay-Z was unable to make an appearance in the original music video, though he would appear in a recut version soon after.
The video was inspired by several other films, including Grease , Scarface and Enter the Dragon. With her sixth studio effort, Butterfly , Carey started infusing hip hop elements in her songs, working with different, and younger, producers and songwriters.
After the album's success and the release of her first compilation album 1 's , Carey began to work on her seventh album, Rainbow While recording the album in Capri, Italy , Carey claimed to have spent most of the time developing what she felt to be a strong lead single. Originally, "Heartbreaker" was intended to be part of Carey's debut film soundtrack , Glitter , however, after the film's delay, it was included on her album Rainbow.
