"Case of the Ex" (sometimes subtitled "Whatcha Gonna Do") is a song by American singer

Mýa Mya Marie Harrison (; born October 10, 1979), (stylized as Mýa), is an American singer, songwriter, dancer, and actress. Born into a musical family, she studied ballet, jazz, and tap dance as a child. Initially, Mýa began her career as a VJ ...

. It was written and composed by Christopher "Tricky" Stewart and his songwriting partners Traci Hale and Thabiso "Tab" Nkhereanyne for Mýa's second studio album ''

Fear of Flying Fear of flying is a fear of being on an airplane, or other flying vehicle, such as a helicopter, while in flight. It is also referred to as flying anxiety, flying phobia, flight phobia, aviophobia, aerophobia, or pteromechanophobia (although ae ...

'' (2000). The

up-tempo A variety of musical terms are likely to be encountered in printed scores, music reviews, and program notes. Most of the terms are Italian, in accordance with the Italian origins of many European musical conventions. Sometimes, the special mus ...

pop and R&B track was inspired by a relationship Hale was going through at the time. It was released as the second single from the album, following " The Best of Me", on July 11, 2000. The song received generally mixed reviews from contemporary music critics and was Mýa's breakthrough hit, both stateside and internationally. "Case of the Ex" became a top five hit on the US ''Billboard'' Hot 100 for the week of December 2, 2000, peaking and spending three consecutive weeks at number two. Internationally, the single topped the Australian

ARIA Singles Chart The ARIA Charts are the main Australian record chart, music sales charts, issued weekly by the Australian Recording Industry Association. The charts are a record of the highest selling songs and albums in various genres in Australia. ARIA beca ...

for two consecutive weeks in March 2001 and peaked at number three in the United Kingdom. The accompanying

music video A music video is a video of variable duration, that integrates a music song or a music album with imagery that is produced for promotional or musical artistic purposes. Modern music videos are primarily made and used as a music marketing devi ...

for the single was directed by

Diane Martel Diane Martel (also known as Bucky Chrome) is an American music video director and choreographer. Awards Diane Martel was nominated for the Video of the Year for her work in "Blurred Lines" – Robin Thicke feat. Pharrell & T.I. in 2013. Fil ...

. Mýa worked with

choreographer Choreography is the art or practice of designing sequences of movements of physical bodies (or their depictions) in which motion or form or both are specified. ''Choreography'' may also refer to the design itself. A choreographer is one who cr ...

Tina Landon Tina Landon (born January 6, 1963) is an American choreographer based in Los Angeles who has worked with Prince, Anastacia, Mýa, Pink, Jay-Z, Marc Anthony, Kristi Yamaguchi, Aerosmith, Jennifer Lopez, Christina Aguilera, Ricky Martin, Janet J ...

, who later won an

American Choreography Award The American Choreography Awards was a ceremony and show that honored outstanding choreographers in the fields of feature film, television, music videos, and commercials. They were first known as the L.A. Dance Awards (1994–95), then as Bob Fos ...

for Best Hip Hop music video. The video drew comparisons to

Janet Jackson Janet Damita Jo Jackson (born May 16, 1966) is an American singer, songwriter, actress, and dancer. She is noted for her innovative, socially conscious and sexually provocative records, as well as elaborate stage shows. Her sound and choreog ...

's music video for "

You Want This "You Want This" is a song by American singer Janet Jackson from her fifth studio album, '' Janet'' (1993). Released as the album's seventh single (sixth and final in the U.S.) in October 1994, the track was written and produced by Jackson and Ji ...

" (1994) and

Mel Gibson Mel Columcille Gerard Gibson (born January 3, 1956) is an American actor, film director, and producer. He is best known for his action hero roles, particularly his breakout role as Max Rockatansky in the first three films of the post-apocal ...

's 1979 film ''

Mad Max ''Mad Max'' is an Australian post-apocalyptic action film series and media franchise created by George Miller and Byron Kennedy. It began in 1979 with '' Mad Max'', and was followed by three sequels: ''Mad Max 2'' (1981, released in the Unit ...

''. In addition, the video was nominated for a Washington Area Music Award for Video of the Year, while the song itself won in the Urban Contemporary Recording category in 2001.

Background

"Case of the Ex" was composed by Christopher Stewart, Traci Hale, and Thabiso "Tab" Nkhereanyne in late 1999. Initially, Mýa was working at the Redzone Studios in

Atlanta, Georgia Atlanta ( ) is the capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Georgia. It is the seat of Fulton County, the most populous county in Georgia, but its territory falls in both Fulton and DeKalb counties. With a population of 498,71 ...

, when she heard an early instrumental of the song through the walls from the room next door. She stepped out of her current session and was subsequently introduced to Stewart, who worked next to her. Originally a rap song, Stewart heavily rearranged the track to make it fit Mýa's persona. Speaking of its creation, Stewart said: "We got together to write a song specifically for Mýa. We kicked around some subjects which Mýa could potentially sing. We wanted to create a lyric theme that would keep her young, yet would show that she was growing up." It was Hale who came up with the lyric idea, which was inspired by a relationship she was going through at the time and revolved around "a strong woman who won't tolerate her man returning to his ex-girlfriend." While Tab and Hale contributed most of the lyrics, Stewart wrote the music and played all of the tracks, with Hale singing on the original demo." The initial demo also featured the percussive, keyboard hook which would become the song's musical trademark. "I followed an old philosophy, which is to try to catch the listener's attention," explained Stewart. "I wanted to make a statement with that hook, creating a special sound that people would react to and remember. It was like a loud horn blast, which was derived from a sampled sound, and then enhanced with my K-25 keyboard." Soon after completing the demo, Stewart played the song for Mýa, and she "immediately loved it." The following day, she recorded her vocals at Stewart's studio for the master version.

Critical reception

"Case of the Ex" garnered mixed to positive reviews. ''

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 advertis ...

'' magazine compared the song to

Destiny's Child Destiny's Child was an American girl group whose final line-up comprised Beyoncé Knowles, Kelly Rowland, and Michelle Williams. The group began their musical career as Girl's Tyme, formed in 1990 in Houston, Texas. After years of limite ...

's "

Jumpin', Jumpin' "Jumpin', Jumpin'" is a song by American group Destiny's Child for their second studio album, '' The Writing's on the Wall'' (1999). The song was co-written and co-produced by group member Beyoncé Knowles and Chad Elliott, with additional writin ...

", and added: "With its quick-programmed drum track ..Mýa's 'Case of the Ex' is on the right track. Production-wise, the song used some computer tricks to play with Mýa's vocals. tis set to be a hot track on radio and in the clubs all summer long." Jacqueline Springer of ''

NME ''New Musical Express'' (''NME'') is a British music, film, gaming, and culture website and brand. Founded as a newspaper in 1952, with the publication being referred to as a 'rock inkie', the NME would become a magazine that ended up as a f ...

'' gave the song a favorable review and rated the single seven out of ten stars, writing: "No-good boyfriend anthem number four thousand eighty time, y'all ..The stuttering arrangement of the original is cool and suits Mýa's brooding mood, but after a while it simply sits in the wind — there's no real build into a bassline leaving the track to run along a continuous

pop Pop or POP may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Music * Pop music, a musical genre Artists * POP, a Japanese idol group now known as Gang Parade * Pop!, a UK pop group * Pop! featuring Angie Hart, an Australian band Albums * ''Pop'' (G ...

/ r&b vibe ..Anyway, we all know what to do when ex-girlfriends re-emerge don't we? Round up your girls and give the wench a beat-down." Writing for

Yahoo! Music UK Yahoo! Music was a brand under which Yahoo! provided a variety of music services, including Internet radio, music videos, news, artist information, and original programming. Previously, users with Yahoo! accounts could gain access to hundreds of ...

, Gary Crossing described "Case of the Ex" as a smooth and sassy if a somewhat formulaic slice of R&B.

Accolades

"Case of the Ex" was featured on ''

The Village Voice ''The Village Voice'' is an American news and culture paper, known for being the country's first alternative newspaper, alternative newsweekly. Founded in 1955 by Dan Wolf (publisher), Dan Wolf, Ed Fancher, John Wilcock, and Norman Mailer, th ...

''s

Pazz & Jop Pazz & Jop was an annual poll of top musical releases, compiled by American newspaper ''The Village Voice'' and created by music critic Robert Christgau. It published lists of the year's top releases for 1971 and, after Christgau's two-year abse ...

end of the year critics list.

Chart performance

In the United States, "Case of the Ex" debuted at number 72 on ''Billboard'' Hot 100 in the week of August 19, 2000.^{/sup> The following week, it leaped from 72 to 57 in the week of August 26, 2000. It continued to climb the Hot 100, ascending from 42 to 31 in its sixth week of September 23, 2000. The song reached its peak at number 2 in the week of December 2, 2000. From the weeks of December 2–16, 2000; it spent three consecutive weeks at number two. "Case of the Ex" spent 30 consecutive weeks on that chart. The song became Mýa's second non-consecutive Top Ten hit (solo) after 1998's "It's All About Me

'It's All About Me' is a song by American singer Mýa. It served as her debut single from her self-titled debut studio album and recorded as a duet with R&B singer Sisqó. A psychedelic R&B slow jam, "It's All About Me" was written and composed ...
." It remains Mýa's biggest and highest-charting single on the chart to date. "Case of the Ex" became a Top Ten hit on ''Billboard'' Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Singles & Tracks

The Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart ranks the most popular R&B and hip hop songs in the United States and is published weekly by ''Billboard''. Rankings are based on a measure of radio airplay, sales data, and streaming activity. The chart had 100 ...
chart in the week of December 9, 2000, peaking at number ten and spent 28 consecutive weeks on that chart. It was Mýa's fifth and final top-10 hit on that chart.

Globally, "Case of the Ex" became a Top 20 hit success. It debuted at number five on the Australian singles chart in the week of February 18, 2001. It topped the chart and spent two consecutive weeks at number one during the weeks of March 18–25, 2001. In total, the song spent twenty-three consecutive weeks altogether on the chart. It was certified platinum by Australian Record Industry Association

The Australian Recording Industry Association (ARIA) is a trade association representing the Australian recording industry which was established in the 1970s by six major record companies, EMI, Festival, CBS, RCA, WEA and Universal replacing ...
for shipment of 70,000 units. In the Netherlands

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, the song debuted at number sixty-two during the week of October 7, 2000. It reached its peak of number eight in the week of November 4, 2000, and spent 18 consecutive weeks on the Dutch Top 100 Singles chart. "Case of the Ex" peaked at number seventeen in New Zealand

New Zealand ( mi, Aotearoa ) is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and over 700 List of islands of New Zealand, smaller islands. It is the ...
during the week of January 28, 2001. It debuted and peaked at number three in the UK in the week of February 10, 2001, and spent thirteen consecutive weeks altogether on the chart.

Music video

Background

The music video

A music video is a video of variable duration, that integrates a music song or a music album with imagery that is produced for promotional or musical artistic purposes. Modern music videos are primarily made and used as a music marketing devi ...
for "Case of the Ex" was directed by Diane Martel

Diane Martel (also known as Bucky Chrome) is an American music video director and choreographer.
Awards
Diane Martel was nominated for the Video of the Year for her work in "Blurred Lines" – Robin Thicke feat. Pharrell & T.I. in 2013.
Fil ...
. Mýa worked with choreographer Tina Landon

Tina Landon (born January 6, 1963) is an American choreographer based in Los Angeles who has worked with Prince, Anastacia, Mýa, Pink, Jay-Z, Marc Anthony, Kristi Yamaguchi, Aerosmith, Jennifer Lopez, Christina Aguilera, Ricky Martin, Janet J ...
, who won an American Choreography Award

The American Choreography Awards was a ceremony and show that honored outstanding choreographers in the fields of feature film, television, music videos, and commercials. They were first known as the L.A. Dance Awards (1994–95), then as Bob Fos ...
for Best Hip Hop Music Video for the video.

Legacy

British girl group

A girl group is a music act featuring several female singers who generally harmonize together. The term "girl group" is also used in a narrower sense in the United States to denote the wave of American female pop music singing groups, many of who ...
IV Rox re-recorded "Case of the Ex" and released it as their debut single. Their version was featured on the group's debut EP ''Imperfections'' (2015). Impressed by their cover, Mýa has expressed her appreciation and tweeted, "Lovely job ladies~xoxo." With their version, the group auditioned for ''X Factor

''The X Factor'' is a television music competition franchise created by British producer Simon Cowell and his company Syco Entertainment. It originated in the United Kingdom, where it was devised as a replacement for ''Pop Idol'' (2001–2003) ...
'' and received a standing ovation. ''Out

Out may refer to:

Arts, entertainment, and media
Films
* ''Out'' (1957 film), a documentary short about the Hungarian Revolution of 1956
* ''Out'' (1982 film), an American film directed by Eli Hollander
* ''Out'' (2002 film), a Japanese film ba ...
'' magazine included "Case of the Ex" as one of their most empowering, memorable and influential all-girl dance routines list. Vh1

VH1 (originally an initialism of Video Hits One) is an American basic cable television network based in New York City and owned by Paramount Global. It was created by Warner-Amex Satellite Entertainment, at the time a division of Warner Communic ...
recognized "Case of the Ex" in their list of Best R&B Music Video Choreography of the 1990s and 2000s. Writing for ''Pitchfork

A pitchfork (also a hay fork) is an agricultural tool with a long handle and two to five tines used to lift and pitch or throw loose material, such as hay, straw, manure, or leaves.

The term is also applied colloquially, but inaccurately, to ...
'', Marc Hogan suggested "Case of the Ex" as one of his choices for his 6 Millennium Era Hits That Top 40 Needs to Sample list, commenting, "A clear-voiced young singer with a strong sense of identity like Kehlani

Kehlani Ashley Parrish (born April 24, 1995) is an American singer, songwriter, and dancer. Kehlani is originally from Oakland, California, and achieved initial fame as a member of the teen group Poplyfe in 2011.

In 2014, Kehlani released the ...
(or maybe Halsey in a pinch) could work wonders here." 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 advertis ...
ranked "Case of the Ex" as one their 100 Greatest Songs of 2000 list. In September 2020, ''Spin
Spin or spinning most often refers to:
* Spinning (textiles), the creation of yarn or thread by twisting fibers together, traditionally by hand spinning
* Spin, the rotation of an object around a central axis
* Spin (propaganda), an intentionally b ...
'' magazine ranked "Case of the Ex" at number 19 on their "50 Greatest Songs of 2000" list.

Track listings

US CD single
# "Case of the Ex" (radio edit) – 3:35
# "Case of the Ex" (LP version) – 3:56
# "Case of the Ex" (instrumental) – 4:14

US 12-inch single
:A1. "Case of the Ex (Whatcha Gonna Do)" (radio edit) – 3:52
:A2. "Case of the Ex (Whatcha Gonna Do)" (LP version) – 3:56
:B1. "Case of the Ex (Whatcha Gonna Do)" (instrumental) – 4:14
:B2. "Case of the Ex (Whatcha Gonna Do)" (acappella) – 3:55

UK CD single
# "Case of the Ex" (radio edit) – 3:56
# "Case of the Ex" (Sovereign Remix) – 5:40
# "Ghetto Supastar (That Is What You Are)

"Ghetto Supastar (That Is What You Are)" is a song by American rapper Pras, featuring rapper Ol' Dirty Bastard and R&B singer Mýa. It was released on June 6, 1998. The track samples Kenny Rogers and Dolly Parton's 1983 single " Islands in the St ...
" (main version) – 4:26
# "Case of the Ex" (CD-ROM video)

UK 12-inch single
:A1. "Case of the Ex" – 3:56
:A2. "Case of the Ex" (O.M.O. 2-step mix) – 3:57
:B1. "Case of the Ex" (Sovereign Remix) – 5:40

UK cassette single
# "Case of the Ex" – 3:56
# "Ghetto Supastar (That Is What You Are)" (main version) – 4:26

European CD single
# "Case of the Ex" (radio edit)
# "Case of the Ex" (O.M.O. 2-step mix)

Australian CD single
# "Case of the Ex" (radio edit)
# "Case of the Ex" (O.M.O. 2-step mix)
# " Take Me There" (soundtrack LP version)
# "Ghetto Supastar" (soundtrack LP version)

Credits and personnel

* Produced by Christopher "Tricky" Stewart

Christopher Alan "Tricky" Stewart (born January 4, 1974) is an American record producer, record executive, songwriter, and music publisher. In a career spanning over 30 years, Stewart has won 5 Grammys and is responsible for over 50 million rec ...

* Music by Christopher "Tricky" Stewart
* Lyrics by Traci Hale, Christopher "Tricky" Stewart

* Keyboards and programming by Christopher "Tricky" Stewart
* Recording engineer: Brian "B-Luv" Thomas
* Mix engineer: Kevin "KD" Davis

Charts and certifications

Weekly charts

Year-end charts

Certifications

Release history

Notes

See also

* List of number-one singles of 2001 (Australia)
* List of Top 25 singles for 2001 in Australia

The following lists the top 100 singles of 2001 in Australia from the Australian Recording Industry Association (ARIA) End of Year singles chart.

"Can't Fight the Moonlight" by LeAnn Rimes was the biggest song of the year, peaking at #1 for si ...

* List of number-one urban singles of 2001 (Australia)

The ARIA Urban Chart is a chart that ranks the best-performing Urban tracks singles of Australia. It is published by Australian Recording Industry Association (ARIA), an organisation who collect music data for the weekly ARIA Charts. To be el ...

* List of UK R&B Singles Chart number ones of 2001
* List of UK top 10 singles in 2001

The UK Singles Chart is one of many music charts compiled by the Official Charts Company that calculates the best-selling singles of the week in the United Kingdom. Before 2004, the chart was only based on the sales of physical singles with ai ...

* List of Billboard Rhythmic number-one songs of the 2000s
The Rhythmic chart debuted in ''Billboard'' Magazine in the issue dated October 3, 1992, as the Top 40/Rhythm-Crossover chart. Weekly rankings are "compiled from a national sample of airplay" as measured by Nielsen BDS monitoring rhythmic radios st ...

* List of Billboard Hot 100 top 10 singles in 2000

This is a list of singles that charted in the top ten of the ''Billboard'' Hot 100 during 2000.

Destiny's Child, 'N Sync, and Christina Aguilera each had three top-ten hits in 2000, tying them for the most top-ten hits during the year.
Top-te ...

* List of Billboard Hot 100 top 10 singles in 2001

This is a list of singles that charted in the top ten of the ''Billboard'' Hot 100 during 2001.

Ja Rule and Destiny's Child each had four top-ten hits in 2001, tying them for the most top-ten hits during the year.
Top-ten singles

;Key
* – ...

References

External links

MyaMya.com
— official website
*

{{Authority control

2000 singles
2000 songs
Dance-pop songs
Interscope Records singles
Music videos directed by Diane Martel
Mýa songs
Number-one singles in Australia
Song recordings produced by Tricky Stewart
Songs written by Traci Hale
Songs written by Tricky Stewart}