"Breakdown" is a song by American singer and songwriter Mariah Carey from her sixth studio album, Butterfly (1997). It was released as the fourth single from the album on March 22, 1998 by Columbia Records. Similar to the treatments of "Butterfly and The Roof (Back in Time)", "Breakdown" received a limited worldwide release due to Carey's conflict at the time with Sony. The song was written and produced by Carey, Stevie J and Puff Daddy, and features rap verses by Bone Thugs-n-Harmony. The song's lyrics describe the emotions someone feels when their lover suddenly stops loving and leaves them, and the pain, or breakdown, it causes the person. The song was well received by contemporary music critics.

In the music video, Carey goes through a variety of different colorful outfits, with matching make-up. Of the many changes, two scenes predominantly occupy the video. The first in Carey dressed in flamenco style clothing, while dancing on a chair with two other female dancers. The other features Carey and Bone Thugs-N-Harmony gambling in a casino. Carey performed the song live during select dates of her Butterfly World Tour in 1998 and Adventures of Mimi Tour in 2006. Due to the song's limited release, "Breakdown" did not chart in most major music markets, with the exception of Australia and New Zealand, where it peaked at numbers 38 and four, respectively. In the US, due to Billboard rules at the time, the song was unable to chart on the Hot 100, but charted at number 53 on the Hot 100 Airplay Chart.

I told Bone Thugs-n-Harmony I wanted to record something with them. Their reaction was something like, 'Okay...?' I think I shock people with the ideas I have, but I believe the result is okay.

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