according to author chris nickson, "breakdown" was an important component of "butterfly": "'breakdown' showed mariah treading forcefully into territory that was new for her and making it her own; it had a melody that simmered under her vocal, and a groove that was irresistible." when carey began recording the album, she had slow and sultry ballads such as "whenever you call" and "butterfly," but also had big r&b and hip-hop like "honey". for this reason, carey recorded "breakdown" in order to fill in the midsection of the album, and serve as the album's "backbone."