"Bust Your Windows" is a song recorded by American singer-songwriter Jazmine Sullivan from her debut album ''

Fearless Fearless or The Fearless may refer to: Psychology * Lack of fear * Courage or bravery Film, television and audio Film * ''Fearless'' (1978 film), an Italian film directed by Stelvio Massi * ''Fearless'' (1993 film), an American drama directed ...

''. The song was available as a digital download on

Amazon Amazon most often refers to: * Amazons, a tribe of female warriors in Greek mythology * Amazon rainforest, a rainforest covering most of the Amazon basin * Amazon River, in South America * Amazon (company), an American multinational technology co ...

in the U.S. on September 16, 2008. The song was then later released as a promo CD on November 15, 2008, after it was sent to radio stations for airplay around the U.S.. "Bust Your Windows" was nominated in the

Best R&B Song The Grammy Award for Best R&B Song (sometimes known as the R&B Songwriter's Award) has been awarded since 1969. From 1969 to 2000, it was known as the Grammy Award for Best Rhythm and Blues Song. Beyoncé has won it a record four times, while Ba ...

category for 2009's Grammy Awards. "Bust Your Windows" was number 58 on '' Rolling Stone''s list of the 100 Best Songs of 2008.

Composition

"Bust Your Windows" is a midtempo R&B

ballad A ballad is a form of verse, often a narrative set to music. Ballads derive from the medieval French ''chanson balladée'' or '' ballade'', which were originally "dance songs". Ballads were particularly characteristic of the popular poetry and ...

with a moderate Latin beat and a tango

rhythm Rhythm (from Greek , ''rhythmos'', "any regular recurring motion, symmetry") generally means a " movement marked by the regulated succession of strong and weak elements, or of opposite or different conditions". This general meaning of regular rec ...

. It is set in

common time The time signature (also known as meter signature, metre signature, or measure signature) is a notational convention used in Western musical notation to specify how many beats (pulses) are contained in each measure ( bar), and which note va ...

with a moderate tempo of 107

beats per minute Beat, beats or beating may refer to: Common uses * Patrol, or beat, a group of personnel assigned to monitor a specific area ** Beat (police), the territory that a police officer patrols ** Gay beat, an area frequented by gay men * Battery ...

and is written in the key of F harmonic minor. It follows the chord progression Fm–D♭–B♭m–C. Sullivan's vocal range spans from F₃ to E♭₅.

Salaam Remi Salaam Remi Gibbs (born May 14, 1972) is a Grammy winning American record producer known for his association with Nas, Amy Winehouse, Robby, Fugees, Fergie, Estelle, Black Thought, and Miguel, and for his reggae-tinged (often referred to as ...

contributes to the song's emotional weight with his maudlin, noir-style string samples taken from ''Bad Man Waltz''. Epinions described the song's composition: "The musical layers are deceptively intricate, with a unison string/woodwind line that continually evolves throughout the song and a very simple vocal harmony mix that moves into a

call and response Call and response is a form of interaction between a speaker and an audience in which the speaker's statements ("calls") are punctuated by responses from the listeners. This form is also used in music, where it falls under the general category of ...

against Jazmine's pleas. Neither of the facets scream for attention but repeated listens bear out just how well they framed this song." The song interpolates the lyric "Now watch me you" from

Soulja Boy Tell 'Em DeAndre Cortez Way (born July 28, 1990), known professionally as Soulja Boy (formerly Soulja Boy Tell 'Em), is an American rapper and record producer. He rose to prominence, after his self published debut single " Crank That (Soulja Boy)" peak ...

's signature song "

Crank That (Soulja Boy) "Crank That" is the debut single by American rapper Soulja Boy Tell'em. It served as the lead single from his debut studio album, '' souljaboytellem.com'' (2007) and accompanies the Soulja Boy dance. The song is recognized by its looping steel ...

". The song features Jazmine on both lead and backing vocals.

Critical reception

Billboard A billboard (also called a hoarding in the UK and many other parts of the world) is a large outdoor advertising structure (a billing board), typically found in high-traffic areas such as alongside busy roads. Billboards present large advertise ...

gave it a positive review, describing Sullivan's performance as "one of the most challenging vocals from a female R&B artist this year. Sullivan's husky voice floats effortlessly over an eerie underlining violin score, originating from a sample of producer Salaam Remi's composition "Bad Man Waltz." ''

Slant Magazine ''Slant Magazine'' is an American online publication that features reviews of movies, music, TV, DVDs, theater, and video games, as well as interviews with actors, directors, and musicians. The site covers various film festivals like the New York ...

'' also reviewed the song favorably: "Sullivan exposes the reality beneath the revenge fantasy: "Oh, but why am I the one who's still crying?" The song interpolates the lyric "Now watch me you" from

's signature song "

". The song features Jazmine on both lead and backing vocals.

Commercial reception

The single, fueled by strong radio airplay, managed to peak at number 4 on Billboard's Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Singles Chart, becoming her second consecutive Top 5 single on that chart. "Bust Your Windows" debuted at number 81 on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100 issued for week 43 of 2008. The single also became her second consecutive Top 40 hit on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100 when it spent a total of 5 weeks within the top 40. It peaked at #31 and holds the record for Jazmine's highest-peaking single on the chart, so far. The success of the song on this chart continued for weeks on end and it eventually dropped out in early 2009, spending a total of 15 weeks charting. Elsewhere, "Bust Your Windows" gave Jazmine her second consecutive top 20 hit on the

Billboard Hot 100 Airplay The Radio Songs chart (previously named Hot 100 Airplay until 2014 and Top 40 Radio Monitor until 1991) is released weekly by ''Billboard'' magazine and measures the airplay of songs being played on radio stations throughout the United States acro ...

Chart, where it peaked at number 18. As well as her second consecutive top 30 hit on the ''

'' Hot Adult R&B Songs Chart, where it peaked at number 22. Towards the end of the single's promotion, Jazmine performed "Bust Your Windows" on

CBS CBS Broadcasting Inc., commonly shortened to CBS, the abbreviation of its former legal name Columbia Broadcasting System, is an American commercial broadcast television and radio network serving as the flagship property of the CBS Entertainme ...

's '' The Late Late Show'' with

Craig Ferguson Craig Ferguson (born 17 May 1962) is a Scottish-born American comedian, actor, writer, and television host. He is best known for hosting the CBS late-night talk show '' The Late Late Show with Craig Ferguson'' (2005–2014), for which he won ...

in early January 2009.

Music video

On October 10, 2008, the music video for "Bust Your Windows" premiered on BET's ''

106 & Park ''106 & Park'' is an American hip hop and R&B music video show, set up in a countdown format, that was broadcast on weekdays at 6:00 pm ET/5:00 pm CT on BET; it aired on a one-day delay on BET International. It was the network's highest- rate ...

''. The video was also placed at #46 on BET's "Notarized: Top 100 Videos of 2008" countdown. The music video features scenes of adultery involving Jazmine's boyfriend in the video mimicking the song and song lyrics. The video, however, does not feature Jazmine physically busting out car windows, as fans expected but instead the intense emotion of the song is displayed through Jazmine breaking wine glasses on a table; there is also a trail of glass leading up to the bedroom where she discovered what would bring out this feeling of rage within her. The setting of the video is dark and features harsh coloured gases passing through the air whilst Jazmine is singing – adding the sense of anger and depression that the video is meant to bring out in the song. Other scenes feature her boyfriend's guilty conscience of what he's done – namely when he hesitantly looks himself in the mirror.

Covers and remixes

*On September 16, 2009, Fox featured "Bust Your Windows" in their new early fall hit '' Glee''. The show's teenage love triangle leads Mercedes (

Amber Riley Amber Patrice Riley (born February 15, 1986), sometimes known mononymously as RILEY, is an American actress and singer. She is best known for her portrayal of Mercedes Jones on the Fox comedy-drama series ''Glee'' (2009–2015). For her perfor ...

) to break into her own dream-state music video singing Sullivan's 2008 hit. The song is also featured on the soundtrack album '' Glee: The Music, Volume 1''. '' The Independent''

Andy Gill Andrew James Dalrymple Gill (1 January 1956 – 1 February 2020) was a British musician and record producer. He was the lead guitarist for the rock band Gang of Four, which he co-founded in 1976. Gill was known for his angular, jagged style of gu ...

praised Riley's rendition of "Bust Your Windows", calling it the album's "most compelling moment". *

Trey Songz Tremaine Aldon Neverson (born November 28, 1984), known professionally as Trey Songz, is an American R&B singer and rapper. His debut album, ''I Gotta Make It'', was released in 2005 through Atlantic Records. His follow-up album, ''Trey Day'', ...

has covered this song, releasing the underground track as a response from the male antagonist in the original song by Sullivan. *The official remix features

The-Dream Terius Youngdell Nash (born September 20, 1977), better known by his stage name The-Dream, is an American singer, songwriter, and record producer. His co-writing credits include songs with " Me Against the Music" (2003) for Britney Spears, " Ri ...

. This remix is also featured on the 12" Vinyl release of the song in the U.S. * Skillz has made a remix, which contains additional vocals by Sullivan (though is not the official remix). *

Chamillionaire Hakeem Temidayo Seriki (born November 28, 1979), better known by his stage name Chamillionaire (), is an American rapper. He was the founder and an original member of The Color Changin' Click from 2001 until the group split in 2005. He began his ...

has also produced a freestyle called "Car Windows" which features

Chalie Boy Charles Williams (born October 13, 1979), better known by his stage name Chalie Boy, is an American hip hop recording artist, who made his major-label debut in 2009 with the breakout hit single "I Look Good." In 2010, Chalie Boy made headlines ...

. *

Jim Jones James Warren Jones (May 13, 1931 – November 18, 1978) was an American preacher, political activist and mass murderer. He led the Peoples Temple, a new religious movement, between 1955 and 1978. In what he called "revolutionary suicide", ...

Busta Rhymes Trevor George Smith Jr. (born May 20, 1972), known professionally as Busta Rhymes, is an American rapper, singer, songwriter, record producer and actor. Chuck D of Public Enemy gave him the moniker Busta Rhymes, after NFL and CFL wide receiver ...

and

Gorilla Zoe Alonzo Keith Mathis Jr. (born January 27, 1981), better known by his stage name Gorilla Zoe (), is an American rapper originally from East Point, Georgia. He is best known for being a member of the rap group Boyz N Da Hood. His solo debut albu ...

have made remixes to the song. *

Ace Hood Antoine Franklin McColister (born May 11, 1988), better known by his stage name Ace Hood, is an American rapper. He was born in Port St. Lucie, Florida and raised in Deerfield Beach, Florida. He was signed to record producer DJ Khaled's label We ...

has also recorded a freestyle over this song. *On May 4, 2010
Jed305
posted a remake of this song, "''Bust the windows out your car for some chicken''". Although it's now removed, it became a YouTube sensation and had over 4.6 ''million'' views by September, 2011.
*In 2011, Jesy Nelson of Little Mix sang the song for her audition for The X Factor (UK). *The song was also featured in the movie ''

Step Up 3D ''Step Up 3D'' (also known as ''Step Up 3'') is a 2010 American 3D dance film directed by Jon M. Chu and written by Amy Andelson and Emily Meyer. It serves as a sequel to 2008's '' Step Up 2: The Streets'' and the third installment in the ''Ste ...

''. The song was covered by a contestant on The Voice UK in May 2013 and caused the song to enter the charts for the first time. * Chris Hollins and

Ola Jordan Aleksandra "Ola" Jordan (''née'' Grabowska; born 30 September 1982) is a British-Polish professional ballroom dancer and model. She appeared as a professional on the British TV show ''Strictly Come Dancing'' from 2006 to 2015. After winning a ch ...

performed an Argentine tango to the song in the semi-final of the seventh series of '' Strictly Come Dancing''. They went on to win the competition.

Track listings

US 12" vinyl
(88697-42906-1; Released: 2008) # "Bust Your Windows" (Main Mix) - 3:43 # "Bust Your Windows" (Instrumental Version) - 3:43 # "Bust Your Windows" (Remix Ft. The-Dream) - 3:49 Australia CD single # "Bust Your Windows" (Main Mix) - 3:43 # "Need U Bad" (Remix Ft. The-Dream) - 3:49

Credits

*Written by: Jazmine Sullivan,

DeAndre Way DeAndre Cortez Way (born July 28, 1990), known professionally as Soulja Boy (formerly Soulja Boy Tell 'Em), is an American rapper and record producer. He rose to prominence, after his self published debut single "Crank That (Soulja Boy)" peake ...

*Produced by:

*Recorded at: Phantom Bot Studios, Los Angeles, Instrumental Zoo, Miami *Orchestral arrangement by: Stephen Coleman *Instruments: Vincent Henry,

, Ron Feuer *Backing vocals by: Jazmine Sullivan

Charts

Weekly charts

Year-end charts

Certifications

Release history

References

{{authority control 2008 singles 2000s ballads Jazmine Sullivan songs Songs written by Jazmine Sullivan Pop ballads Soul ballads Contemporary R&B ballads Songs about infidelity 2008 songs Songs written by Salaam Remi Songs about revenge J Records singles Arista Records singles